A national movement is making trick-or-treating accessible for every child.
Now in its ninth year, Treat Accessibly has been organizing events for children of all abilities and encouraging neighbourhoods to join in by thinking about how to make Halloween night fun for all.
The organization’s founder, Rich Padulo, says it all began with an observation.
“My daughter was putting pumpkins on our stairs. It was 2017. She looked up and like any six-year-old, she thought about things nobody else does. And she said, how does that little boy that she saw using a wheelchair trick-or-treat at our home? And we immediately jumped into planning,” said Padulo.
“That Halloween, a week later, we (handed out treats) from the end of our driveway … And that is the movement that we’ve carried on.”
Padulo says the goal is to ensure children with mobility, sensory and neurological disabilities can easily join in the festivities.
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“I had one dad race up to me to tell me that his daughter had never said anything to a stranger before saying trick-or-treat at one of our villages,” he said.
This year, 19 cities and towns in seven provinces are taking part with either a dedicated street or a special event.
In Moncton, N.B., there’s a whole village set up for little ghouls and goblins.
“We are New Brunswick’s only Treat Accessibly Halloween Village. So this Saturday, our event will demonstrate what an accessible Halloween can look like,” said organizer Amanda Martin.
“Instead of facing stairs, closed doors, children are going to visit decorated community stations inside the Resurgo Place museum.”
In Nova Scotia, Southampton Drive in Cole Harbour is Halifax’s official Treat Accessibly Halloween street.
Beginning at 4 p.m. on Halloween night, 22 homes on the loop street will bring their treats to the end of their driveways to make trick-or-treating more accessible for people with mobility challenges.
“Just the joy and delight that they experience mixed with the parents’ gratitude of not having to worry about their children’s happiness for a night — it makes it all worth it,” said street captain Calum Sencabaugh.
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