Morgan Hall
The Ashland Beacon
If you are familiar with the 90s cult classic series of Halloween Town, you will find Russell will be bringing the Halloween spirit this upcoming Saturday. Halloween Towns movie description elaborates,
"Marnie and her kids get a big shock when they follow grandma home to Halloweentown - and find out they come from a family of witches. The town is the only place where supernatural beings can lead a `normal' life, but the trouble is looming, and on her 13th birthday Marnie not only finds she is a witch, but that she and her family are involved in a fight against the evil that is threatening to take over the world." You may not be traveling to an alternate universe; but here in the mortal world, the city of Russell will be celebrating Halloween and all are welcome to join in on the fun!
After speaking with Kristie Patterson, from Revitalize Russell she confirmed, "We have food trucks coming and there will be music playing in the streets.
At 4:00 p.m. we're going to have Downtown deals where all the storefronts will have specials. You can shop from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. At 5:00 p.m. the Monster March begins, which is a Halloween parade. At 6:00 p.m. trick or treat begins and the kids will be able to trick or treat with all the businesses, there are 60 businesses already registered." Don't be surprised if the adults are also dressed up to pass out candy. Because in Halloween Town everyone is happy to dress up and enjoy the Halloween festivities.
Located beside the fire station will be the haunted tunnel. Patterson shared that the tunnel is family-friendly and suitable for young children. Many folks prefer spooky as opposed to scary, especially for little ones. Don Fraley, Diamond Lewis, and John Callihan will help set it up.
There will be photo opportunities with a giant pumpkin and sasquatch, who will also be in the parade. Patterson added, "We had Spiderman last year and the kids loved taking pictures with him."
All of this can't happen without volunteers. Patterson told us there are so many volunteers that there are too many to mention, however, she wanted to emphasize their efforts and let them know they are appreciated. Patterson and four other people make up Revitalize Russell, simply to bring new businesses and activities to their town. Tracy Frye is President, Dr. Lori Mccoy and Alona Gillum are the Vice Presidents, Sarah Gabbard is the Secretary and Patterson is the Treasurer. They plan all of these events together, it's a collaboration and group effort.
Since last year was huge, they are much better prepared this year. Last year, they had close to 3000 people, and folks ran out of candy within the first hour. This is a total bummer, but it is awesome to have such a great turnout. Especially since it started raining. Fingers crossed the rain clouds stay away this time.
"Come out for a snack or dinner, shop, watch the monster March, and let the kids trick or treat, '' concluded Patterson. It's that magical time of the year when the cool weather and colored leaves abound. Watch out for all those things that go bump in the night. Russell is bringing the spooky and keeping it kooky.