What Do You Want to Be for Halloween—or When You Grow Up?

As we get ready for Halloween, one of the big discussions in our house since the summer has been, “What are we going to be for Halloween?”

Over the years, the Dumon family has had some great family Halloween themes. We have been Barbie—with my daughter as Cowgirl Barbie and Mom and Dad as roller-skating Barbie and Ken. We have been Aladdin, with my daughter as Princess Jasmine and Dad as the Genie. We have even been The Little Mermaid, with my daughter as Ariel and Dad as Aquaman, inspired by Jason Momoa (my favorite). And there have been plenty of others along the way.

I bring this up because Halloween gives us a fun opportunity to ask another important question: What do we want to be when we grow up?

My daughter often talks about becoming a fashion designer and, at times, even the President of the United States. I would like to think that some of our conversations about being a confident, kind, smart, and determined helped inspire this year's Halloween costume. She has decided to be Elle Woods from Legally Blonde and Legally Blonde 2, two movies we happened to watch over the past eight months.

Elle Woods is fashionable, bubbly, determined, and confident. She starts as a sorority president and later becomes an attorney. More importantly, she is positive, kind, smart, and refuses to change who she is just to fit someone else's expectations.

So, when I think about what my daughter wants to be for Halloween and what she dreams of becoming when she grows up, I can't help but be excited. Halloween may be about pretending to be someone else for a day, but it can also give us an opportunity to think about who we want to become.

For me, this Halloween—and as I think about the year ahead—I want to model some of my own actions and practices after a character I recently watched on the big screen: He-Man from Masters of the Universe.

He-Man represents strength used for a purpose. He stands for the protection of Eternia and uses his power to help and protect those who cannot always protect themselves. His strength is not simply about being powerful; it is about how he chooses to use that power.

Adam transforms into He-Man by raising the Sword of Power and declaring:

“By the Power of Grayskull, I have the Power!”

As we enter this Halloween season and look toward the year ahead, I want to challenge all of us at Altar Valley to think about the power we have—not just individually, but together.

We have the power to encourage.
We have the power to support one another.
We have the power to make a difference for our kids, students, and families.
We have the power to help one another grow.

So, as Altar Valley continues to Build, Grow, Flourish, and Succeed, I invite you to join me in creating our own Altar Valley version:

“By the Power of Altar Valley, WE HAVE THE POWER!”

Happy Halloween!

Dr. Dave Dumon

Superintendent

ddumon@avsd.org

520 822 1484