Halloween activities in the Southern Columbia Basin
Families in southern Grant County and Adams County looking for events to take their children to this Halloween have plenty of options to choose from, whether in Mattawa, Royal City or Othello.
In Mattawa, the local police department will be teaming up with Fire District #8 to hold a Trunk or Treat event from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in front of Mattawa City Hall. Police Chief Joe Harris said the event is expected to draw hundreds. Attendees will decorate the trunks of their cars and pass out candy to children in the community from the City Halls parking lot.
Harris said he hopes the crowd will be large enough to necessitate shutting down Government Road, the main stretch through town, so attendees should arrive early to find parking. Harris and Mattawa Mayor Scott Hyndman will be judging trunks and awarding prizes to the three that are best decorated, with prizes ranging from bottles of fine wine (for the parents, of course) to gift certificates for local businesses.
Royal City’s New Life Fellowship will also be throwing a Trunk-or-Treat event Wednesday evening from 6-7:30 p.m. along Camelia Street near the church.
“We want to provide a fun, safe alternative to anything else that might be going on for Halloween,” said Lance Lewis, pastor for the Fellowship’s Royal City location. “It fits with the mission of our church to serve the community and reach out to the kids that live here in town.”
In Othello, those looking for something spooky this Halloween can get lost in the Othello Rodeo Association’s 17th annual straw maze, where a cast of scare actors in full costume can keep attendees company while they try to navigate through the maze’s dark twists and turns.
The maze opens at 6 p.m. at the Othello Rodeo Grounds with a no-scare hour, when younger or more sensitive mazewalkers can stroll casually through the straw. The maze’s “monsters” perform from 7 to 11 p.m., which the Othello Rodeo Association does not recommend for children under the age of 6.
Tickets for the straw maze are $5, with proceeds from the event going to support the Othello Rodeo as well as scholarships to area seniors interested in going to college to study agriculture, said Rebecca Wolfs, a member of the association and an organizer of the maze.
“Its a lot of fun to put on and we’re very proud as an association to be able to provide some fun and entertainment to our community,” Wolfs said.