Halloween big holiday for many families

CINDY WOOD/independent feature writer

Some cardboard, silver spray paint, a Pizza Hut cavatini box, some slinkies for good measure, and abracadabra, the Jones family of Van Wert has a robot costume.

For some, Halloween is an excuse to find the nearest costume party and knock back a cold beverage or two. But for many others, Halloween represents weeks, or months, of planning, designing and constructing elaborate costumes.

“I get my ideas the year before,” Neomi Jones of Van Wert said. “That means I already have ideas for next year. I also go by what my kids like or enjoy.”

Tomorrow’s Fright Festival at the Van Wert County Fairgrounds will feature the typical witches, princesses and football players, oh my! But creativity reigns supreme at the annual costume judging as parents scramble to showcase children dressed to impress in costumes ranging from school buses to scarecrows.

Adult costume parties are sure to bring about a few chuckles as well. Snooki? So 2011. Sarah Palin? Nope. This year, adults are looking to the big screen, and their favorite television shows, for ideas. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), Charlie Sheen costumes will be a big hit this year, as will GOP candidates, including Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry and Herman Cain. The hit show Sister Wives, featuring a polygamist family, will be a favorite ensemble costume as well.

“Years ago, I made six witch costumes, sequins and all,” said Tomi Jaycox of Van Wert. “I still have the costume and I will be wearing it on Halloween this year.”

Rosanah Foster of Van Wert will debut as a nurse this year, and her husband will round out the couple’s Halloween attire by dressing up as a doctor.

Despite the dreary economy, Halloween is big business for retail outlets, so big that the NRF predicts an 18 percent increase in spending this year, with total spending estimated at $6.86 billion this year, up from $5.8 billion in 2010.

Of that total, consumers are expected to spend $1 billion on children’s costumes and $1.21 billion on adult costumes. Yet many consumers who are spooked by the economy will make a costume this year, instead of purchasing one. Jones is one such consumer who gets into the spirit of things, but maintains a budget in doing so.

“We usually don’t spend any more than twenty dollars to make each costume because we have stuff laying around that we can use to make something,” Jones said. “One year, I spent three dollars and eighty-nine cents to make my son’s costume.”

Whatever the family does, it’s working, as the Jones family consistently ranks in first or second place at the annual Fright Festival, Van Wert’s Halloween celebration at the Van Wert County Fairgrounds. The annual event takes place from noon to 2 p.m. Saturday, with doors opening at 11:30 a.m. Each child receives a goody bag, candy and tickets for games. Free cider, doughnuts and popcorn will be available. A favorite activity, the cakewalk, will also be back this year, as will a food stand. A carved pumpkin contest is open to all ages for cash prizes, and results of the coloring contest will be announced. Boo bingo is available for Bingo lovers and is 25 cents per card. A photo booth will be on site and 5-by-7 pictures will be sold for $5.

Trick or treat in the city will be held later throughout the city of Van Wert.

As children and adults alike prepare their costumes, many Halloween enthusiasts have been busy decorating their homes and yards. According to the NRF, consumers spend plenty on yard decorations, creepy crawlies, and enough candy to make any dentist see dollar signs. The NRF reports that nearly half of all consumers will purchase decorations for their home, and nearly 74 percent will pass out candy to cute little trick-or-treaters.

Trish Myers of Van Wert carries on her childhood traditions with her sons by making cutout cookies and decorating her home. “We put the Halloween tablecloths on the tables, and the mums and pumpkins outside,” Myers said, adding, “we do the annual pumpkin carving before Halloween and put lights in the pumpkins.”

Locals also have a chance to enjoy the fall colors and spooky spirit of the season at the second annual Harvest Moon Festival, set to begin at 4 p.m. today in downtown Van Wert. The event, sponsored by Main Street Van Wert and First Financial Bank, will feature merchant sales, pumpkin hunts, ghostly historians and trick-or-treating at downtown businesses on Saturday morning.

Local residents who plan on taking their children trick-or-treating are urged to use caution when crossing streets, and examine all candy before consumption. Homeowners passing out candy are asked to turn their porch lights on.

Let the cavities begin!