As Halloween approached, COVID-19 was still very present in the daily lives of Americans. With the state of Michigan having an increase of 39% this past week alone, COVID-19 case numbers have been rising in Michigan and all over the United States recently.
With the COVID-19 pandemic entering its eighth month in the United States, everyone, children included, wants normalcy in their lives. Trick-or-treating is one way to give children that little bit of normalcy.
However, trick-or-treating was deemed a “high risk activity” by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As a result, in order for trick-or-treating to be safe this year, there needed to be some guidelines set in place to keep everyone safe and healthy. The CDC gave tips to make sure that this Halloween is as safe as it could be.
The CDC recommended wearing a mask that covers both the nose and mouth, but they also stated that a costume mask isn’t a suitable mask to protect one from COVID-19. To ensure less of a chance of spreading, the CDC recommended to trick-or-treat with people that you live with and not to create large crowds outside of houses.
The CDC also recommended only going to houses with the proper social distancing measures taken into account.
Consistent with years prior, Albion set its own time for trick-or-treating from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Spooktacular
Each year, Albion College puts on an event called Spooktacular. The event, sponsored by Greek Life, coordinates clubs and organizations to pass out candy to children of the Albion community.
Normally, children would trick-or-treat from building to building around the colleges’ campus. Given the pandemic this year, Spooktacular took place in Victory Park with a drive-through style to keep the event COVID-19 friendly.
From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., each organization was designated a spot along the Veterans Way, the road that runs through Victory Park. Each organization was festive in the Halloween spirit and interact with the cars driving through by dancing, commenting on costumes and saying, “Happy Halloween.”
A few organizations, such as Student Volunteer Bureau, Student Senate, Panhel and Interfraternity Council, handed out pre-packaged bags of candy to the kids in the cars driving by. Union Board handed out cookies to those who drove through.
“I think given the circumstances that we had to deal with, the event was a success,” said Jonathan Stander, a junior from Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich, who was apart of the planning committee. “The community seemed to really enjoy the event and were happy that we were able to provide some sense of the new normal.”
Thank you for the Halloween drive through Spooktacular! It was awesome. The time was great and worked out perfect. We are trying to view the pictures but are having trouble.