'Trunk or treat': Trick-or-treat tailgating for a rural Halloween

A Charlie Brown pumpkin patch, a friendly shark and a cheerful graveyard are all expected to make an appearance in a Cooks Creek parking lot this Halloween as costumes for local cars.

It's part of the rural community's first-ever "trunk or treat," a new plan to make Halloween easier and more fun for rural revellers.

Think of it as trick-or-treat tailgating: people park their cars in a central location as trick-or-treating stations, decorating their vehicles in fun or spooky setups and doling out candy from them.

Dominique Hyrtsay is the driving force behind the event. She said it's a creative solution to make rural Halloweens more fun for people passing out candy and easier on little legs than the long walks from house to house.

"The long driveways and the big spaces between houses — many people in the country now, in rural areas, don't necessarily decorate for Halloween because we only get one, two, three kids for Halloween, and they're usually immediate neighbours that we know," she said.

"This is a great place that all of the kids in the community can actually come to and meet everybody else in a safe and fun environment."

Hyrtsay said she got the idea on good old Google when she was seeking out ways to celebrate with her kids and neighbours.

Community embraces event

"I have so many fond memories growing up, I remember getting dressed up with my sister and my parents and going around our area when people still did decorate out here and going to family and a few friends' places out here and trick-or-treating, and it was amazing," she said.

"Now that I have two girls, I'd like to make sure that there's something fun for them to do in the community on Halloween, something safe and fun for them."

The Cooks Creek event will take place in the parking lot of the Cooks Creek Community Centre. The centre will also host the community's annual Halloween bonfire.

So far, Hyrtsay said she's got 11 vehicles confirmed, and the community response has been enthusiastic.

"Lots of parents [are] saying that they're so thrilled that there's something like this in our area, that they're happy that they don't have to take their kids to a different town or to Oakbank or Selkirk, some of our neighbouring towns, to do trick or treating. They're able to actually come to this local event and support their local community," she said.

Hyrtsay said she's hoping to see at least 60 and as many as 150 kids. She said she plans to turn her own car into a shark with a mouthful of candy, adding some teeth to the open trunk and fins on the side.

She said she's hoping more people will sign up to bring costumed vehicles, and the lot can hold up to 30 cars total.

The Cooks Creek trunk-or-treat event runs from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Cooks Creek Community Centre, which is at 30026 Zora Rd., east of Birds Hill Provincial Park.

Cooks Creek is in the rural municipality of Springfield, about 30 kilometres outside of Winnipeg.