Will Oct. 31 bring treats or tricks?
It’s a debate that happens once every seven years.
Oct. 31 falls on a Sunday this year, and some north Jefferson County families are considering doing their trick-or-treating the day before Halloween.
Some parents say they back trick-or-treating up a day every seven years when the holiday falls on a Sunday. Some of them cite the fact that Sunday is a school night as a reason to move the festivities earlier; others say they don’t feel right about celebrating the spooky holiday on the same day they go to church.
The Warrior City Council passed a motion to officially declare Oct. 30 as Halloween at its regular meeting on Monday.
“We’ve had a couple of requests from parents to move it to the 30th,” said Warrior Mayor Rena Hudson. “We’re not trying to dictate what the churches should do, but we feel like moving the day would keep from interfering with church services and make it more favorable for families to get out.”
Gardendale Mayor Othell Phillips said the city doesn’t officially endorse either day, but that the general consensus among the public seemed to be to have trick-or-treating on Oct. 30.
“It’s really up to individuals,” he said. “Halloween is not recognized as a federal or state holiday, therefore there’s no local government that has regulatory authority over trick or treating.” Phillips said residents should be prepared for trick-or-treaters on both nights.
However, some north Jefferson County residents oppose the idea of moving the holiday.
“I would prefer our cities leave good enough alone,” said Judi Crawford, a Pinson resident. “The confusion is not something needed as a form of control. People do know how to control themselves as to whether they participate or not.”
Many churches and schools are having fall festivals and “trunk or treats” as alternatives or supplements to trick-or-treating, and many of them take place on Halloween eve or in the week leading up to Halloween. Many churches are also canceling their evening services Halloween night.
“There are churches in Warrior that are having morning services and no evening service to accommodate the evening for families and communities to celebrate Halloween, as should be usual, on Oct. 31. We live in an area that is fully safe for that each year,” said Crawford.
Gardendale native and parent Andrew Barckley also said he feels having Halloween on its traditional date wouldn’t be a problem.
“Definitely going on the 31st, since my calendar says that day is Halloween. If there’s fewer doors with candy, no big deal; it is trick-or-treating after all, and not trunk-or-treating wherein candy is guaranteed.”
He said he thinks most trick-or-treating is usually done by 8 p.m., and that having church festivals on Saturday and Halloween on Sunday would allow families to do both.
“I think, sometimes, folks like to make religious mountains out of molehills in an effort to show how fervent their faith is,” he said. “It seems the primary reason people like to bring up for the switch is because of Sunday being God’s day… but if that precludes them from celebrating Halloween, then on the same token, they shouldn’t do anything that doesn’t lift His name on that day, including football, fishing, hunting, lunch at a restaurant, or whatever else.”
Phillips said Gardendale is considering issuing some sort of statement on the matter before Halloween.