3-Day Halloween In Evergreen Park

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — Mayor Jim Sexton isn’t going to stop parents and kids from trick or treating a few extra days in Evergreen Park. If they can’t get in trick-or-treating on Halloween due to inclement weather, the village will allow superheroes and Disney princesses to make the rounds of their respective neighborhoods on Friday and Saturday (Nov. 1 and Nov. 2).

“We’re trying to give a couple different options to parents and kids if they can’t get in trick-or-treating [on Halloween],” Sexton said. “Naturally if someone has their door closed or the light off, we tell people to pass that house by.”

Trick-or-treating will be allowed from 3 to 6 p.m.; after 6 p.m., kids must be accompanied by an adult until 8 p.m. On Saturday, trick-or-treating will be allowed from noon to 2 p.m.

The village’s decision to extend trick-or-treating for two extra days has drawn some controversy in the various neighborhood Facebook groups from the “Halloween purists” who believe that trick-or-treating in rain and snow builds character in kids.

“That is crazy! Pick a day and let that be it! I am not buying candy for three days or handing out candy for three days!”

“Absolutely ridiculous......and I will not be turning my porch lights off....they are on for a reason and not for 3 days of Trick or Treating.....silliest thing I ever heard....”

“THE most absurd thing I have ever heard.”

Then there is this conversation starter that’s been circulating Facebook since the doom-and-gloom Halloween weather forecasts:

Personal injury attorneys Levin and Perconti state that the riskiest time for trick-or-treaters is between 4 and 10 p.m. on Halloween, although accidents can occur anytime of the day or night. The attorneys cite three major reasons why child injuries on Halloween are high, which include homeowner negligence (make sure a clear, well-lit path to your front door is available); tragic pedestrian accidents due to poorly or loosely fitting costumes and masks making it hard for kids to see sidewalks or approaching vehicles; and drunk drivers. October 31 is well-known among police to have higher-than-average numbers of drunk driving from adult revelers attending parties or hitting the bars after work, striking pedestrians walking on sidewalks, crossing streets or waiting in driveways.

As for the naysayers to Evergreen Park’s decision to extend Halloween to three days, Sexton, who remembers trick-or-treating in rain and snow as a child said, “you’re damned if and damned if you don’t.” He just wants kids to be safe.

“We made a decision to try to let them get it in today,” the mayor said. “I would hate to be the one to tell the youngest folks that they can’t go out trick-or-treating. It’s like canceling Christmas.”