LANSING, Ill. (October 30, 2023) – It was a spooky day of fun throughout Lansing on Saturday as several trick-or-treat or trunk-or-treat events were held in anticipation of Halloween.
Fox Pointe trick-or-treating
A line of costumed kids stretched down Henry Street all the way to Washington Street as they patiently waited to enter Fox Pointe for the village’s ultra-popular Halloween happening.
A total of 58 groups and businesses set up tables around the perimeter and under the pavilion at the Fox Pointe music venue to pass out candy to kids in costumes.
Costumes seemed to lean more toward superheroes and dinosaurs than scary.
Ken Reynolds, Director of Venue Operations for the Village of Lansing, said the Fox Pointe Halloween event started during the COVID year of 2020 as a way to allow use of the venue for an open air activity.
“We had no idea how popular it was going to be,” Reynolds said.
Popular may be an understatement as Reynolds estimated 1,000 to 1,250 kids attend annually. The event is open to all children regardless of where they reside. The organizations that give out candy do not pay to do so, and are given the chance to promote their groups or businesses.
Brandon Hunter, of Burnham, attended with his two-year-old daughter, Reign, who dressed as a cute little witch.
“We just like the costumes, the environment, and the fact that it’s a free thing for everybody to get out and go do,” Hunter said.
Six-year-old Diego Oxlaj, of Lansing, gave the obvious answer of “candy” when asked what he was looking forward to as he stood in a long line outside of Fox Pointe on what was a cloudy, breezy, but otherwise not-too-cold afternoon.
A “Monster Mash” contest was held in conjunction with the Fox Pointe trick-or-treat event, as businesses and families were invited to decorate monsters that were then placed on PVC pipe frames inside the venue for people to see as they walked around.
Online balloting took place prior for the 15 entries, of which the first three won cash prizes.
“We had almost a thousand online votes,” Reynolds said.
Jack Hajduch, of Dyer, took first place with his creation of a scary priest character. The Lansing Junior Woman’s Club took second place with its depiction of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Third Place went to Next Move Community Services, who made up the Wicked Witch from Wizard of Oz, complete with Toto in a basket.
Kiany Guider, executive director for Next Move, said it was the first time the non-profit organization took part in the event.
“It’s crazy,” Guider said. “It’s so busy I love it. We’re so excited to see all of the costumes. It’s been really fun.”
Bethel trunk-or-treat
A trunk-or-treat event was also held at Bethel Christian Reformed Church, 3500 Glenwood-Lansing Road, the same time as the Fox Pointe Halloween party. Thirty or so members of the church gave out treats out of the back of their vehicles in the church parking lot.
Becca Trepton, children’s director at Bethel, said the church has done this event for many years.
“We love to be in our community,” Trepton said. “We love kids and we want our whole community to know that our church is here.”
Taja Hicks, of Lansing, attended with her three-year-old son, King, who dressed as Spiderman, which was a popular costume choice.
Hicks said she won’t go trick-or-treating with King on Halloween, so she wanted to take him here.
“Just knowing that you can go to a one-stop shop where everybody is caring and loving, it was good,” Hicks said. “It was perfect for a three-year-old.”
First Christian Church trunk-or-treat
First Christian Church of Lansing, 2921 Ridge Road, had a smaller trunk-or-treat event on Saturday, with eight or so church members using their cars to disperse candy.
Pastor William Lyons took part by giving out candy from the back of his wife’s Volkswagen.
“I think we were about the first church to do this in Lansing,” Lyons said. “And we just did it to give the kids an alternative to going door to door, knowing that the candy is safe and the environment is safe.”
Lyons estimated between 400 and 600 kids come each year, and free hot dogs and chips are given out.
Knights of Columbus trunk-or-treat
The Lansing Knight of Columbus, 17800 Lorenz Avenue, started their trunk-or-treat event at 4 p.m. so kids could go right there after the Fox Pointe event ended at the same time.
The timing strategy seemed to be working not even an hour into the three-hour event.
“It definitely helped,” said Peter Tyderek, a member of the Knights who organized the event. “We usually get about 20 and so far we’ve already had about 60 kids.”
Those who gave candy out of 10 vehicles in the parking lot of the Knights of Columbus Hall were either members of the Knights or members of St. Ann Catholic Church.
“We’re a charity organization, so we like to give back to the community,” said Bill Benne, who serves as grand knight for the Lansing Knights of Columbus.
Village-wide trick-or-treating will take place on Tuesday, October 31, from 4 – 7 p.m.
