‘Boo’ Hoo To A Cancelled Halloween, Almost —

Revelers Relocate From Main Street To St Rose

By Kendra Bobowick

October 31 may have come and gone without costumes or candy at what would have been a traditional trick-or-treat event along Main Street thanks to heavy snow, but the haunting happened anyway on November 5.

“I couldn’t tell my kids there was no trick-or-treating this year,” said St Rose parishioner Amy Griffin. She had contacted Monsignor Robert Weiss on Thursday, November 3, and sought permission to hold a trunk-or-treat event in the church parking lot on November 5. “He agreed!” she said.

Town and borough officials chose to waylay the usual Main Street festivities this year for the sake of public safety just two days after a heavy snow on October 29 that cut power to much of the town, which was not completely restored until early this week.

Ms Griffin announced the St Rose event on Thursday, November 3, just two days beforehand, and saw hundreds of revelers ready with their candy bags on Saturday. “It’s safe and fun,” she said that evening, watching as children dressed in their Halloween costumes crowded around trunks of cars and SUVs flung open to reveal grave yards, haunted houses, and creepy vignettes for the season.

Although Ms Griffin at first worried “what if we don’t have enough trunks,” she soon noticed that the line of ghosts and ghouls lining up to enter the frightening fray “just kept coming.”

“We pulled it together,” she said. “This is fantastic.”

Residents Rob Frate and his children Rian and Shayne “came to check it out,” he said. “They should do it every year.”

Would the haunting happen annually in the St Rose lot? Ms Griffin was not sure, she said.

Dressed for fun and freight were friends Lynn, Katie, and Hannah Marcum, Grace and Sarah Bertsche, Ashleigh Garrity, Mary Sortino, Caroline Hancock, and Kelsey Pearson who planned their route through the many trunks awaiting them.

Peering into their bags and sampling the candy were witch Talia Ondy, hedgehog Ryan Gommo, and football player Gregory Gargano. Waddling through the rows in her penguin suit was Brittany Taylor and friend, fairy Megan Latte, along with pirate Kelsey Denuszar.

Nearby Emil Roland carried his young daughter Reese through the crowd where they saw Joe Yacovelli dressed head-to-toe in orange as Orange Crush.

Gypsies, lady bugs, monsters, and witches including Kyra and Zachary Massone moved from trunk to trunk. “This bag is getting heavy!” Zachary laughed.

Lack of power and a need to celebrate Halloween drove resident Curt Demott to decorate his car’s trunk and come out for Halloween. He sat on his tailgate with skeletons dangling above him. Resident Susan Gargano’s purple wig swung from side to side as she tried to fit candy in greedy little monster’s bags. She had decorated her trunk as a haunted house.

Walking down one row was the “Winnie the Pooh” crew of parents Karen and David Smiley as Pooh and Eeyore with cousin Camreon Stewart as an owl, and Andrew and Lauren Smiley as Tigger and Piglet.

Dressed in a silver and blue robe, Nancy Duffy stood beside her decorated trunk and noted that the night’s extravaganza was a “great idea.” She said, “I’m so happy. So many people participated.” She added, “Kids needed a place to wear their outfits.”

Themed after The Wizard of Oz, Tin Man Sam Duffy sat with Kayla O’Grady as Dorothy, and George Salaris as the Lion.

Debra Sullivan announced a “whole trunkful of kids” including clowns Taylor McPhadden and gypsy Lianna Perazza, and pirate Kaila Sullivan.

Offering a reprieve from the chilly trunk-or-treat event were Grace Christian Fellowship members Barb Tavaka and Kelly Velez who offered coffee and refreshments to the hundreds of guests. The church volunteers also had games set up and a glow-in-the-dark Muppet show.

With her face a pasty white with gray around the eyes and frosted hair, Kim McIntosh admitted, “I love Halloween.” She dressed up her trunk with a sign that said, “Rotten Realty.”