Scare on the Square filled the streets goblins and ghouls

The festivities in Huntsville over the Halloween weekend were filled with laughter and kid-friendly activities.

The Main Street Program hosted the 10^th annual “Scare on the Square” Saturday which included ghost tours, a spooky fun house, bounce houses, face-painting and piñatas holstered from a fire truck.

“You can really see how Huntsville supports the community,” Meghan Kelly, senior at Sam Houston and volunteer at the Wynne Home Arts Center said. “It’s really cool to see how the community comes together.”

Student volunteers and community organizations lined the streets with games and prizes for children. Costumed characters of all ages could be seen migrating from venue to venue.

Many Greek organizations volunteered at the event. Among them, Delta Xi Nu painted children’s faces and gave out candy and Omega Delta Phi offered bowling for prizes.

“This is fun because we’re new to Huntsville.  We didn’t know this many people volunteered,” said Rachel Watkins, freshman.

The fire department gave children turns at hitting a piñata that hung from the ladder on a fire truck.

“We just love the Huntsville Fire Department,” Main Street Coordinator Kim McAuliffe said. “I didn’t know what to expect when they told me they were going to bring piñatas.”

The costume contest was the most anticipated event of the night.

Contestants were broken up by age into four groups and judged by a panel of Sam Houston student volunteers. A male and female winner were chosen from groups 6 months to 3 years old, 4 to 6, 7 to 9, and 10 and up.

A large crowd hovered around the gazebo to watch the contest. It was not unusual to see a 4-year-old Tony Stark, complete with facial hair, or any number of superheroes and zombies.

The next event the Main Street Program will be hosting is the Downtown Christmas Fair on Saturday, Dec. 1 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“I’m really looking forward to this event because it helps put people in the holiday spirit,” McAuliffe said. “We will have SNOW once again, an elf on stilts, live entertainment, arts and crafts vendors, unique food vendors, a children’s area and all of the downtown stores will have shopping specials.”