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Blindfolding her next kid, Lian Wong ’27 explains the basis of the game. Each child was given two eyes, a nose, and a mouth to place on the pumpkin while blindfolded. “It’s fun to watch them take off the mask and see the faces that they’ve made, and giggle a little to themselves, because they all turn out a little bit silly,” Wong said.
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Directing his next participant, Gabriel Oliveira ’26 catches the thrown ping-pong balls. After a winning throw, Oliveira challenged her to retry his game but with her eyes covered. “Halloween, it’s not just about candy and monsters,” Oliveira said. “It’s about everybody having fun and, you know, maybe if that takes a little trickery to happen, so be it.”
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Waiting for the next kid to shoot their shot, the Purple Sage PALS get ready to celebrate. Each PALS campus booth came up with a unique theme and game for the kids to play. “We’re doing a zombie eyeball toss where you toss like little Styrofoam balls into paper cups that are mounted onto a board,” Katelyn Wiley ’27 said.
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Holding the bowl of candy, Janelle Jones ’27 congratulates a kid upon participation in the game. The Anderson Mill PALS chose to do “Pin the Bee on the Flower” for their game. “[The best part was] just having fun with the kids and seeing the smiles on their faces when they get the candy,” Jones said.
The clock struck 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 28, as the International Baccalaureate (IB) organization hosted their annual Trunk or Treat celebration in the hallways and atrium, welcoming contributions from Drama Club, IB student volunteers, and the Peer, Assistance, Leadership, and Service (PALS) organization. Trunk or Treat is a yearly Halloween tradition that brings the surrounding Westwood community together.
Each booth, hosted by IB student volunteers, had creative freedom to pick an overall theme for their table and a corresponding costume and game. With bright posters, matching outfits between volunteers, and a welcoming atmosphere, the night was set up for success. From Star Wars and Harry Potter to Ratatouille and a Halloween rendition of “Pin the Tail on the Donkey,” student volunteers hosted a wide variety of activities to participate in.
“We saw some ‘Pin the Tail on the Donkey’ games, and thought that this would be a good way to make it a little bit more fun [and] a little bit more interactive for the kids,” Lian Wong ‘27 said.
The Trunk or Treat celebration invited the Drama Club, PALS, and other Westwood organizations to join in on this celebration with their own activity. Drama Club hosted a haunted house, attracting attendees with their jump scares and spooky decorations. The event blended different organizations and age groups through lighthearted competition and Halloween candy.
“I loved all the excitement and different costumes I saw with all the kids,” Katelyn Wiley ‘27 said. “It’s so funny [seeing] all the new shows and things that are out [in people’s costumes]. [It’s] really cool seeing Halloween kind of coming back from COVID.”
The activities not only brought the attending kids together but also their parents and older siblings with activities that the whole family could enjoy.
“The highlight of my night has not only been just how happy the kids have been, but also just how happy the parents are seeing their kids happy,” Gabriel Oliveira ‘26 said. “I just think that’s even more beautiful because it just shows just how much love they have. There’s a lot of love out at Westwood right now.”
