Kiwanis plans a new Halloween event for Ives Park, and you're invited
Kiwanis adds another holiday celebration to the list of community events they host
Do you live on some far-flung rural road or somewhere in town where there are no trick or treaters? Have you sometimes wished you lived on Florence Avenue so you too could dress up like a witch, decorate your porch with bats and spiderwebs, and partake of the joy that is giving out candy to adorably dressed tykes on Halloween?
Then Craig Litwin wants to talk to you!
Litwin and fellow Kiwanis member Lawrence Jaffe (last year’s Sebastopol Citizen of the Year) have dreamed up a new Halloween event for Ives Park, and they’re working with Myriah Volk of the Sebastopol Chamber of Commerce to make it happen.
“We’re inviting people who would love to have trick or treaters at their house, if only they lived in town, to come and set up in the park,” Jaffe said. “It will be like an extension of Florence Street, especially for young kids,” he said, noting that the Kiwanis Halloween event is earlier in the evening, before Florence really gets hopping.
In addition to inviting interested individuals and families, they’re also inviting other organizations around town to pitch a tent, decorate it and give out candy.
How did Jaffe come up with this idea?
“I was out walking around in costume last year,” Jaffe said, “I live downtown, so I walked past the park, and it was just so sad, because I knew exactly what was up at Florence, right? I knew there were a ton of people, lights, action, people have put in effort, and the park was just this dark, uninviting place. Then I just had this vision, like, if you could line up people from outside, add the trick or treaters, and the lights. I mean, it doesn’t have to be super fancy, but just so that the park was alive on Halloween night instead, like a dark place that’s inviting mischief.”
“So this year, Kiwanis is adopting Halloween in Ives Park,” Jaffe said, noting that Kiwanis also does the other major Ives Park holiday event, the annual Easter Egg Hunt. (Kiwanis also does the annual Fourth of July celebration at Analy.)
“It’s exciting to have a new project to work on,” he said, “to lighten up the park and make it work for the town.”
There will be a costume contest as part of this new event, as well as food and beverages, including fresh local cider.
Volk said the Chamber of Commerce is getting in the spirit by renting those giant, colorful, illuminated blow-up botanical sculptures to place around town. She is also hoping to get the illuminated jellyfish troupe to wander around town, as well.
She noted that the downtown businesses will also be getting in on the Halloween action by giving candy away to children during the day.
Volk views the new Ives Park event as a way to market Sebastopol to the rest of the county for Halloween.
“Florence is already known as a Halloween destination county wide.” she said. “People come here for that. Why not make Sebastopol the place to come for Halloween? Like it’s the downtown businesses, it’s in the park, it’s Florence. It’s the whole package.”
For questions or to volunteer or participate in this event, contact the Kiwanis’ Craig Litwin at cnlitwin@gmail.com or call him at 707-849-1622. You must sign up and be approved by Kiwanis to hand out candy at this event.
I’m from the generation of Sebastopuddlians who rode or marched in the Halloween parade, painted storefront windows under the tutelage of Charles Schulz and waited to be old enough to Trick or Treat on Main Street where the merchants stayed open until 8 and often gave out full size candy bars. The idea of making Ives Park a destination is just delicious! Sign me up!!!
Great job, Myriah Volk. Thank you for leading the charge to make Sebastopol a more vibrant community. It's too bad Litwin wasn't doing this sort of thing when he got the $200,000 Co-Mission contract!