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Carrie Bradbury, Senior Editor and Review Desk Lead
Photos by Carrie Bradbury
Candy, costumes and members from all over the Watauga community filled the Watauga High School parking lot on Oct. 30 for the annual trunk or treat event. Put on by Student Council, the event welcomed community members of all ages to stroll by club tables and pick up candy. The trunk or treat is not only beneficial for the young children hankering to satisfy their sweet tooth but is also a good experience for the high school students who volunteered their evenings to run the event.
"The event returns every year because of the community involvement that we see from the Trunk or Treat that you can't necessarily get out of a dance or pep rally," said Keatyn Wuest, Student Body Vice President and organizer of the event. "It's special to see parents bring their kids to a high school event, and it really shows the environment that Watauga students bring. We see groups of all ages come out to represent their clubs and schools, which makes a great space for everyone to find a booth they enjoy."
Freshman Tallulah Childers, May Thompson and Eliza Owens, dressed in DC super hero costumes, hand out candy at the student council freshman table.
Sophomores Lilly Jarema and Kayden Kaufman hand out candy while dressed in all camo outfits.
Clubs are encouraged to set up a table and hand out Halloween candy and other tangible items to the families who pass through. Most clubs went with the classic candy basket, but in the case of Interact Club, who did fairy hair, and Student Council's senior car, who put on their annual cookie walk, a handful of the clubs deviated from only handing out candy.
The event lasted from 5 to 7 p.m., with the heaviest crowd being around 6 p.m. Some WHS students volunteering or collecting candy at the event transitioned straight into attending the home football game happening on the same night.
Sofia McEvoy, senior, gives Julianne Bagley, senior, fairy hair at the Interact table.
Senior Keatyn Wuest orchestrates monster walk at the senior student council car.
Sophomore Eleanor Connell refills the candy bowl at the sophomore Student Council car.
Senior Nora Shepherd-Powell hands out candy from a large bucket while dressed in a cow onesie.
Julian Martin, senior, guides trick or treaters to the Interact table for candy.
Sophomore class president Riley Morgan directs trunk or treaters throughout the event.
Wuest said that she had a simple time planning the event and felt that it went as smoothly as possible. Contacting participants and organizing the parking lot took up the majority of her planning time, allowing for Wuest to relax instead of feeling stressed.
"Planning the Trunk or Treat first consisted of sending out a Google form about parking spaces to all clubs, sports, and the K-8s," Wuest said. "After I received the responses, I began working on the parking spot arrangement for each club. I sent out a few informational emails through the process, but other than that it was super smooth planning."
Owen Young, dressed in an elf costume, hands out candy at the Book Club table. The Book Club cordinated all of their outfits into a Harry Potter theme.
Seniors Emma Lail and Tessa Hartley hand out candy at the Young Women's Christian Outreach club car.
Sophomore Bella Brooks dumps out a large buget of candy onto the table for FFA.
Naomi Smith, senior, and Xitlali Luna, junior, hand out candy and science experiments at the STEMKids table.
From loud laughs to lingering crowds, the event was a success. Since the Trunk or Treat is an annual event, locals can expect it to return each Halloween season, but Student Council cannot always expect how many people will attend.
"I think that it would be a success even if we had lower turnout, mainly due to the impact it has each year," Wuest said.
Watauga's Trunk or Treat event bring the community together if nothing else. For Wuest, that is a perfectly good reason to continue the tradition and invite the community back year after year for the annual trunk or treat.
"I see the event as a huge success. I feel like anything that brings a community of people together is successful, and it made for a really nice time," Wuest said. "I was working at the StuCo trunk, and watching seniors in high school interact with toddlers throughout the night was so sweet."
Mr. Binotto, Assistant Principal, dresses as a unicorn with his family.
Seniors Roz Rabinowitz and Gracie Jackson hand out candy at the Pacers table.
Senior Kaitlyn Meyer, dressed as the fairy god mother from Shrek, runs the monster walk at the senior car for Student Council. The monster walk allowed for parents and children to participate, encouraging community engagement.
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