By Grace Krane

Thursday, September 22 marked the first day of Fall, and spooky festivities are quickly following. As COVID-19 precautions lighten in Bellbrook, many Halloween events are returning to the district. 

The Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Halloween in the Park is back for the first time since 2019. The family-friendly event is Saturday, October 15 from 3pm – 6pm. Halloween in the Park is run by the Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Park District with help from Bellbrook high school students and members of the National Honor Society (NHS). Halloween in the Park is planning to continue their tradition of fun Halloween-themed games for kids, a costume contest, and pumpkin patch. 

Halloween in the Park will be followed by the Funtober Fall Festival on Sunday, October 16 from 4:00pm – 7:00pm. The Bellbrook Sugarcreek Education Foundation (BSEF) will continue their annual tradition of hosting this family festival at Bellbrook Middle School. The event contains a silent auction of themed baskets donated from local businesses in Bellbrook, as well as themed craft stations for kids. The money collected from the silent auction will be put towards student scholarships and funding for Bellbrook classroom projects. 

In addition to the silent auction and craft stations, a Haunted Hallway and Spooky Space will be set up. Both the Haunted Hallway and Spooky Space are run by student volunteers from the high school’s National Honors Society and members of the middle school’s theater program. 

The Haunted Hallway will be set up at the middle school, and divided up into different spooky attractions. NHS member and Haunted Hallway organizer Natalie Rodenroth explained, “There will be separate sections for each area of the hallway that will be decorated accordingly, such as a spider area, a haunted circus area, and a graveyard area. Expect a lot of cobwebs and skeletons.” 

Rodenroth, like others in the community, is excited to have the Fall Festival back. “Halloween is my favorite time of year. Being able to help our community return to traditions we’ve missed out on is another huge reason I choose to help. Also being able to set up a Haunted Hallway is also really cool since I love haunted houses and attractions,” said Rodenroth. She encourages pre-teens and up to check out the Haunted Hallway, and suggests younger children to explore other activities such as the Spooky Space, as the Haunted Hallway is looking to scare. 

The Spooky Space will be set up alongside the Haunted Hallway in the middle school’s Large Group Room as a space where young children and people can go to experience the spirit of Halloween in a less thriller way. NHS members and Spooky Space organizers, Grace Neal and Rachel Holbrook explain that the Spooky Space will contain games for kids and Halloween party music. While the Haunted Hallway is suggested for pre-teens and up, Neal and Holbrook recommend young children aging from toddlers up, or anyone looking for something not as spooky, to stop on by.