Trick or Treating Should Be On October 31st

When people made comments on Patch a few weeks ago about moving Trick or Treating from the Friday to the actual holiday of 10/31 I was not that taken with the idea.  After all, Hellertown had been doing Trick or Treating on the Sunday before 10/31 for many years so I just didn’t see the difference, Friday, Sunday, whenever....  I read all the comments posted about it but was not persuaded.

So, a week ago, we did the Friday Trick or Treating here in town.  I handed out more candy than in many years, saw many cute costumes and scary ones too! Then my mom’s assisted living did trick or treating on this Tuesday evening.  I took my 2 year old grandson and my daughter to it so my mom could admire Aiden’s fox costume.  Then, the school I was working at on Thursday, the actual date, did nothing what so ever to celebrate it.  It was just like any other day.  They had done their community parade and room parties the Friday before (the night they were going trick or treating) and I could only imagine the sugar overload they were putting on their kid digestive systems that weekend! It felt like such a let down, no Halloween sweaters on the teachers, no goofy orange and black t-shirts, well maybe a few of those were seen!  It was like Halloween had disappeared by the 31st!

Thinking more on it I was struck by how different this was from my childhood when we donned our costumes on October 31 and trick or treated that night.  Sure, school might have a big school wide party on the Friday night before Halloween but we wore our costumes at school on the actual day and everyone ate cupcakes with orange icing and scads of candy corn on the 31st.

I am bothered that in Hellertown and Bethlehem Halloween has become just like many other holidays; celebrated when it is “convenient” for schools, towns, organizations and residences.  Not when it actually occurs. Sad.  I was beginning to see why some were arguing for moving trick or treating to the 31st...

I think trick or treating would be more authenic and fun if it was done on the actual day. After all, trick or treating is only for 2 hours, from 6-8 pm.  It does not keep most kids from their normal bed time and frankly they often have school or sport activities that can run until after 8 pm.

I have friends in other nearby communities that celebrate Halloween on the 31st.  It can be done: other towns manage to do it that way.  We should seriously consider making this change.  It would keep Halloween more authentic than changing the date to have trick or treating always fall on a Friday.  I do think that Friday or Saurday makes a great evening for a party to celebrate with friends; extend the holiday a bit for everyone.

I agree the parade needs to stay on the Sunday before Halloween for a number of understandable reasons but trick or treating could work on the actual date, if we chose to do that.  So next year, why can’t we change things up and got to celebrate Halloween on October 31st.  Maybe others think so?