The official date of Halloween may be October 31st but for several small towns in northwest Ohio, October 29th was the day for all of the fun!
The Village of Antwerp was one such place. The annual Halloween Parade and costume judging started off the afternoon as ghouls, creatures, TV characters and many others corralled themselves in front of the Antwerp Manor and then paraded down Main St. to the Antwerp Fire Department. The Antwerp Marching Band were setting the pace with some mood-boosting tunes, and give a mini concert with songs such as Thriller and the Antwerp Fight Song!
The Antwerp Fire & EMS also had chili, hot dogs, and hot cocoa available for the attendees of this event. Delicious!
Antwerp Fire Chief, Bob Addis, hosted the costume judging along with judges from the Antwerp Chamber of Commerce.
Prize money was awarded to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place costumes and all who participated received some candy to get their treat buckets started. The following are the categories and placers:
Little Treats (under 18 months):
1st Sophia; 2nd Scarlett; 3rd Juliet
Little Tykes (18 months to 3 years):
1st Kinsley; 2nd Hadley; 3rd Nolan
Miscellaneous #1:
1st Ulrik; 2nd Akaciya; 3rd Avett
Miscellaneous #2:
1st Anna; 2nd Gage; 3rd Jordyn
Disney & Storybook Characters:
1st Nash; 2nd Makenzie; 3rd Albany
Monsters, Hairy Scaries, Witches, Ghosts, & Devils:
1st Brooklyn; 2nd Clayton; 3rd Rylan
Cartoon, Movie & TV Characters:
1st Clare & Alyssa; 2nd Brooklynn; 3rd Jensen
Cowboys, Cowgirls, & Indians:
1st Elsi
Animals:
1st Nora; 2nd Avery; 3rd Madison
Groups:
1st Alice in Wonderland; 2nd Sanderson Sisters; 3rd Addams Family
Grand Prize:
1st Alice in Wonderland; 2nd Kinsley (Cruella DeVille); 3rd Sophia (Old Lady)
After the judging was finished, all the little costumed halloween-ers trotted off to their homes or neighbors to wait for the trick or treat time which started at 5:00 p.m. The village was crawling with all sorts of trick or treaters, and as always the hot spot was Park Ave. where people flooded the streets in droves to visit all the houses for some annual treats from generous residents. Not only was there the traditional candy offerings going door to door, Antwerp Manor also had their residents lining the halls to pass out candy to those passing through. But that’s not all — a Trunk or Treat at the Presbyterian Church on W. River St., Hot Dog tent on North Main (Riverside Christian Church), and I heard there was hot cider too!
What a day! Thank you to all the households who gave out candy to everyone, to the Antwerp Fire Department and EMS for hosting the costume judging, to the Antwerp Police Department for leading the Parade and patrolling the streets to keep our children safe, and to the Antwerp Chamber of Commerce for providing prizes to all the exquisitely costumed kiddos.
Small Town America is where it’s at folks. Happy Halloween!
