Give the Gift of Halloween

With Halloween on the horizon, a lot of us have costumes, parties and candy on the brain. But Halloween is actually a fantastic time to volunteer. There are a lot of kids who don’t get to participate in Halloween for various reasons, and as an activist you can help bring them a bit of fun. Here are a few suggestions:

Take Halloween to the Hospital. When my daughter was in the NICU, I was able to see firsthand how awful it was to have children in the hospital. There were plenty of kids up on the children’s floor who were stuck there for the holidays. The staff brought in costumes, candy (for those who could have it), treats and games, and those kids looked happier than I’d ever seen them. See if your local hospital, hospice or resident care facility will let you do the same thing.

Host a Halloween Costume Drive. More kids may experience some hardship during this Halloween than previous years. How cool would it be to have a costume drive where they could pick out a free costume? People could donate old clothes, face paint, hats, you name it. You could even have stations where volunteers could help assemble the costumes, give the kids ideas, and help prepare them for trick-or-treating. Local businesses might even be able to chip in for trick-or-treat bags.

Have a Healthy Halloween. It’s no fun to trick-or-treat when you’re diabetic, on a strict diet, or simply cannot have candy for some reason or another. Spread the word about having a healthy Halloween on your block or the neighborhood and see if everyone can aim for sugar-free treats, or other fun prizes like bubbles, stickers, Halloween masks, and other small toys. You could also encourage kids to give up candy by keeping a small portion and donating the rest to a children’s home or shelter.

Host a Safe Halloween. Sure, these kids probably have access to good pickin’s in their own neighborhoods, but is it really all that safe? Aside from poisoned candy scares (which usually prove to be false), there’s always a chance of getting hit by a car. Trick-or-treating is pretty safe for kids with parents around—but a safe Halloween event would be much safer. Host it at school or a park—somewhere indoor would be ideal—and decorate it like crazy. Host apple bobbing, face painting, a tame haunted house, and of course, plenty of candy.