Halloween falls on a Sunday this year. Credit: Getty Images
Halloween 2010 falls on a Sunday. While sending kids out to roam the streets and ingest large amounts of candy on a Sunday night may not be an ideal situation, you can't change the calendar, right?
Actually, you can. And some cities are doing just that, celebrating Halloween on a day other than the traditional October 31st.
Purists may balk at the idea of rescheduling a holiday in this way, but those who are doing it claim to have good reasons. And those reasons may not be what you think.
In Oklahoma City, trick-or-treaters are being officially encouraged to do their thing a day early. According to Kristy Yager, Public Information Officer for the City of Oklahoma, the change was made as a matter of convenience.
"With families and school the next day, Mayor [Mick] Cornett thought it would be easier on everyone to go trick or treating on a Saturday rather than a Sunday," she said.
In the Columbus, Ohio area, they celebrate Halloween according to guidelines adopted in a 2009 resolution by the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission. They call the annual night of trick-or-treating Beggar's Night and for safety concerns as well as potential conflicts with local football games, avoid celebrating on a Friday through Sunday. This year, the ghosts and goblins in and around Columbus are expected to hit the streets on Thursday, October 28.
In Pewaukee, Wisconsin, Geri Coen says that is has always been a town tradition to trick or treat on the eve of Halloween regardless of the day of the week. This year, the Common Council voted to continue that tradition and are encouraging trick or treaters to go out on between 4 and 7pm on Saturday, October 30.
But the real question here is not why some cities and towns reschedule Halloween, but how. Press releases and local news stories may reach some of the residents, but what about those who aren't tuned in to mainstream media? Oklahoma City's Kristy Yager admits that she doesn't quite know what to expect this year.
"We've never attempted to do this before and in a city of half a million people there are bound to be some who don't get the message," she says.
Have you gotten the message? Is your city rescheduling Halloween?
From our friends at ParentDish: Halloween Spending is Up, but Trick or Treaters Not Making Crazy Hauls
Keep your kids safe, no matter the night, with Trick-or-Treating safety tips from Celebrations.com
Holidays Central also has a quick list of tips for safe trick-or-treating here.
