By Peter Lyons Hall
Hundreds of residents attended Greenwood Lake’s Annual Halloween Festival, encouraged by a perfectly mild October evening, with clear skies and a full moon, live music, and plenty of food and beverage vendors and food trucks, on Saturday evening, October 19, 2024.
The event began with a 10AM Howlaween costume event for canine companions at the Village Dog Park, and later continued with the requisite Trick or Treat among local businesses on Windermere and Jersey Avenues, when kids were able to fill their pockets with sweet treats. Later that afternoon Winstanley Park opened for another round of Trick or Trunk for those who may have been unable to stroll through the community earlier, and the beginning of the food vendors’ dinner service.
At 5:30PM the Costume Parade began at the Elementary School and ended back at Winstanley Park. Upon arrival at Winstanley, the little ones, accompanied by adults, were able to begin their trek through the Terror Trail, minus the scare initiatives that would begin at 7PM and last through 10PM, through a nearby wooded area that was filled with ghosts, goblins, and gore, together with many opportunities to scare or be scared. Meanwhile there were hayrides, bouncy houses, pallet mazes, and other games for kids to enjoy while parents enjoyed the mild weather and adult beverages.
The band, Voodoo Strangers, entertained the crowd all night long, accompanied by a giant animatronic-enhanced Frankenstein outside the pavilion where the band played. Every time someone would pass him, the creature would move and gesture in a creepy fashion.
The Greenwood Lake and Warwick EMS volunteers were on hand to safeguard attendees in case they were needed. Warwick EMS covers the Villages of Florida and Warwick; the Village of Greenwood Lake and the hamlet of Pine Island have their own ambulance corps. Warwick Town Supervisor, Jesse Dwyer, is an active member of the Warwick EMS Corps, and for more than five years served as a member of the Greenwood Lake Volunteer. Together with nearby police and firefighters, festival-goers were guaranteed a safe and secure event for friends and family members throughout the evening.
Festival organizers sent out a special Thank You to all the Boy Scouts, Boy Scout parent volunteers, and community members, whose dedication and creativity were the heart of the Terror Trail; to Richard Brennan for his visionary ideas, hard work and ability to bring people together always result in amazing creations; to Karen Minns, whose hard work and attention to detail ensures that every event runs smoothly; to Matt Buckley, whose animatronics added an extra layer of spookiness to the trail and field; to Voodoo Strangers for entertaining the crowd all night long; and to the Village of Greenwood Lake for providing the band, movie, and for the hard work of our parks guys, Brendon and Eddie, in preparing the trail, tables, and garbage cans.
Photo credits: Peter Lyons Hall
