The annual Halloween event at Bovill Square is going on tour.
The usual gathering of children in costumes on Oct. 31 to collect candy, play games and have a dance party can’t happen because of the ongoing health pandemic.
However, organizers decided to do something else this year to replace it.
Mark DeHoog said people have been asking if it is going to happen or not.
“Generally people have been wondering what the public health authority was going to say about Hallowe’en,” he said. “However, we felt if we created a safety plan and had some flexibility with the way we went about Hallowe’en we could definitely make a way for some fun for everyone.”
The idea is to have people enjoy an evening of fun with their family bubble and also have a sense of community connection with other families in a safe and fun way.
There will be a community-wide Halloween home décor contest with neighbourhood COVID-safe candy dispensing stations.
The plan is to have community-oriented homes and businesses in the area participate in a giant Halloween party called ‘Treat City Tour.’
There will be a a downloadable map of all the Treat Locations and an Event Page on Facebook so all the little ghosts and goblins can converge on these homes, receive treats in a safe manner, and then vote on which one they think is best.
Dehoog said it isn’t just about the sugar.
“We think it’s important that community has ways to connect,” he said. “We have been doing Treat City for several years now and it has been a great success. We knew doing our normal event at Bovill Square would be unsafe, so we felt that creating a Treat City tour was a great way to create community connection amidst all the concerns with COVID.”
Organizers have created a COVID-safe event guide for participants and hosts.
“We provide the best means possible for a safe event,” he added. “We are trusting our community members — both hosts and participants to keep in their bubble, practice safe distancing and respect everyone with kindness and cooperation.”
The event is hosted by Proton Foundation and RESTORE with the Rotary Club, Home Hardware, Royal Bank, Oscar’s, Red Apple and BV Insurance signing on to sponsor it.
Anyone wanting to sign up to be a part of the tour can find the event on Facebook.
