Halloween celebrations in today
’s world, where fears of terrorism, kidnapping and child
molesters are common, are vastly different than even a decade ago,
when handmade treats were common and young ghouls and goblins could
roam freely without parental supervision.
Halloween celebrations in today’s world, where fears of terrorism, kidnapping and child molesters are common, are vastly different than even a decade ago, when handmade treats were common and young ghouls and goblins could roam freely without parental supervision.
“It is important for parents to realize that although it is a fun evening, Halloween has the potential to be fairly dangerous,” said MHPD Officer David Ray.
Like other cities, Ray said, Morgan Hill has its fair share of Halloween pranks, in the form of pumpkin smashing and toilet paper in trees.
“There hasn’t been a major incident recently,” he said. “People should still be careful.”
Although many children still wander the street in costume, most are accompanied by an adult. Or should be, Ray said. If trick-or-treaters want to go door-to-door, they should ring the bells of neighbors they know.
“Young children should not trick-or-treat alone, and parents have to know their child, and their child’s friends, to determine if the child is mature enough to go on their own,” he said.
“If they go on their own, they should go only with friends, at least two, and point out their route to their parents before they go, maybe make them a copy of that. They should carry flashlights or lightsticks, cross only in crosswalks and make sure they wear something somewhat visible.”
Ray added that being cautious of strangers is a good idea, at any time, and that children going trick-or-treating should not eat their candy until their parents or another adult can inspect it.
The Morgan Hill Downtown Association provides families with another choice, an option that is popular across the nation: knocking on merchants’ doors, instead of private residences. Between 5-7 p.m. on Halloween, downtown businesses will be handing out candy to costumed youngsters.
“It’s right up there with the Fourth of July parade and Christmas parade,” said Brad Jones of BookSmart. “It’s an opportunity to spend time downtown with family and friends. Pretty much all of the downtown participates, and we invite merchants from all over town to set up tables and join in the fun. In this instance, more is more. It has become a citywide event.”
To those who would say they have to stay home and pass out candy to the trick-or-treaters, Jones would say:
“Our goal is to get so many people down here that it’s not worth it to stay home,” he said.
Others besides downtown merchants are involved, said Jones.
“We’re getting great help from the Boy Scouts -Troop 730 – as always, and we’ll have a great police presence downtown,” he said. “The event is getting so big that we have thought when Butterfield (Boulevard) goes through, maybe we could close off the street. In fact, we tried hard this year to make something happen. We’d love to have a haunted house next year.”
All over the country, malls and shopping centers are hosting similar events for a dual purpose: provide a safe place for kids to trick-or-treat and bring business and goodwill to their stores.
Gilroy’s Premium Outlets will hold their second trick-or-treat event, with police officers, firefighters and highway patrol officers on hand to pass out candy.
For a listing of Halloween Happenings, please see page D8 in the Mogan Hill Life section of today’s Times.
