Area town plans first Halloween event

— Trisha Benton

Laurel Advocate

BELDEN — There hasn’t been any community events in Belden for so long . . . it’s downright spooky.

The calendar listing public events in Belden has been bare since its Q125 celebration more than six years ago.

“It’s about time we do something here,” said Misti Aldrich, one of the organizers of the first annual Boo Bash set for Saturday, Oct. 30. “People seem to be so excited. It’s contagious.”

The Boo Bash came about from Belden’s library board talking about hosting a Halloween party at the library. The more they talked, the more their plans grew - eventually expanding into a village-wide Halloween festival.

“It’s for all ages. For people who have children and those who do not, too,” Aldrich said and costumes for all are encouraged.

The evening events kick off with a chili cookoff at 5 p.m. at the Belden Fire Hall. Those who want to enter a batch of chili into the event should bring $10 and their chili to enter. Boo Bash attendees will serve as judges through a blind taste test and the winner takes all, Aldrich said. Taverns, chips and adult drinks will be available.

Downtown Belden streets will be blocked off for a Trunk or Treat event as well.

“The more cars, the merrier,” Aldrich said. “We are hoping to have streets lined with as many trunks as we can get.”

Carved pumpkins can be dropped off at the fire hall for judging and prizes, too.

Hayrack rides will begin at 5:30 p.m. along with a village-wide scavenger hunt in the style of the TV show “Amazing Race.” Scavenger hunt teams will be hunting around town based on clues and will be penalized for not doing a required activity accurate or fast enough.

A bonfire will start at the city park around 6:30 p.m. with hotdogs and S’mores available for roasting.

See HALLOWEEN, Page 4 of the Laurel Advocate for More.

Stay in the know!

To get news alerts on your cell phone, get the Cedar County News app in the ITunes store or  in the Google Play Store.