You Asked: Where can you trick or treat this year?
Published 10:19 pm Tuesday, October 9, 2018
Q: Where can I take my children trick-or-treating this year?
A: Brookhaven, Wesson and Monticello are all beefing up the candy-filled holiday to make it safer and more enjoyable for families.
Brookhaven plans to close streets in one neighborhood near the downtown area, Wesson is offering tent-or-treating and Monticello is planning trunk-or-treating in the downtown area, all on Halloween night.
The Brookhaven Police Department will have the South Jackson Street area closed from 5:30 to 9 p.m. for trick-or-treating in the area.
South Jackson will be closed at Natchez Avenue and Chickasaw Street. West Minnesota Street will be closed from McCormick Court to South Church Street, and West Chippewa Street will be closed from South Railroad Avenue to South Church Street.
Police Chief Kenneth Collins said the practice started last year after officers responded to several near misses with children crossing the street in traffic.
Parking will be available at Brookhaven Elementary School, the lot at Chickasaw and Jackson, the downtown parking lots, and in any legal parking along area streets not closed.
Residents in the area will be given access to drive cautiously to their homes, he said.
Wesson’s Play It Up volunteer organization will be hosting tent-or-treating in City Park from 6-8 p.m.
This is the second year for the event, which drew 700 to 1,000 people in an unofficial count, said Town Clerk Angela Hester.
“It was huge,” she said.
Those who want to participate should call Town Hall at 601-643-5221 to register and get information. A tent is not mandatory.
“If you want to bring a rocking chair and sit in a rocking chair dressed up and pass out candy, that is perfectly fine with me,” she said.
Play It Up is looking for groups, churches, businesses or individuals to host a spot as well as donations of candy for games and activities that are planned for the kids.
Refreshments will be available at no charge.
“The whole idea of it was to have a safe place for people to bring their kids to trick or treat because a lot of people don’t do door-to-door anymore,” she said.
Monticello is offering a rerun of last year’s trunk-or-treat event in the downtown area from 5:30 to 7 p.m. A specific location has not been determined, though the Civic Center lawn is a possibility, said Mayor Martha Watts.
Local churches and businesses will be participating to decorate trunks of vehicles and give out treats to the children. Tickets will be available at the entrances that can be redeemed for a free meal — hot dog, chips and bottle of water.
The event will be followed by a 30-minute Halloween-themed movie.
More than 1,500 people attended the celebration last year, she said.
Thursday is the deadline to register a trunk to participate. Call the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce at 601-587-2211 to reserve a spot.
In Monticello, trick-or-treating is 5-7 p.m.