St. John the Evangelist Church hosted their third annual Halloween Trunk or Treat Event.

Taking place on the church lawn, the event featured over 20 well-decorated trunks.

Throughout the evening, kids participated in a variety of games and challenges. They danced through the Monster Mash Number Walk for a chance to win prizes, played bingo, and went head-to-head in a pumpkin decorating competition.

Kids also had a chance to learn a moral lesson with Susan Garcia, a former librarian, who read them various children’s stories at the Reading Steps on the front of the church.

Father Albert helped organize the event alongside Malise Buford. According to Albert, they initially started the Trunk-or-Treat to give kids a chance to celebrate Halloween with fun costumes in a safe environment.

Albert said they also wanted to inject a religious focus to a holiday predominantly focused on monsters and fear.

“We wanted to bring a touch of Christian spirit and evangelism to Halloween,” Albert said.

For Buford, the event serves as an opportunity to build a stronger community. She also said this was the church’s first time presenting the Eucharist at the event, which gave many people an opportunity to participate in a way they never have.

The event concluded with a Saint-Off costume contest where any kid dressed as a Saint competed to win a prize. Both a Joan of Arc and a guardian angel costume won a prize.