ANNUAL FAMILY FUN RETURNS TO ST. MATTHEWS
Writer / Bilal Qazi
Louisvillians will be getting into the Halloween spirit a little early this year as the Chamber St. Matthews and the City of St. Matthews host the latest edition of their annual Halloween in Brown Park event. This day of festivities has been taking place every year since 1997, getting families excited for the month of scares. “We’ve recorded about 5,000 attendees, and that’s just counting kids,” said St. Matthews Chamber CEO Virginia Hart. The event takes place on the second Saturday in October every year, meaning this year it will fall on Oct. 10. It runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and families of all sizes can expect an action-packed and exciting time.
This totally free event will feature several fun and engaging activities for kids and parents alike.
“We have about 65 vendors on site,” said Hart. “That includes the police department, the fire department, city council, and then local vendors throughout the community.”
In previous years, vendors included everything from restaurants to the Animal Care Society, which brought dogs for adoption.
The police and fire departments are sure to draw a lot of attention as they will be bringing in different vehicles for the children to interact with.
Hart said, “The fire department and the police department both bring their vehicles that kids can climb up on. You’ll see the SRT unit, which is the tactical unit that the police department uses. So, it’s like a mini tank.”
Other activities at the park will include a mobile photo booth (which should help keep the little folks entertained), a live DJ and the returning favorite: hayride. The hayride is pretty much what it sounds like. It involves a tractor with a flatbed that will be full of hay, and kids will get a chance to ride around on the back. “The hayride is a big deal,” Hart said. “We do a loop outside and there’s another loop in the park that the hayride does.”
Not only will the hayride be a wonderful experience for any kids riding it, but everyone else walking through the park will also get the benefit of being able to watch it drive by on occasion. Not to mention the kids riding the hay bales having the chance to wave and look at everyone else walking down the main drag.
“The outside route that they take overlaps part of our trick-or-treating path,” Hart said. “So, while you’re working your way through the park, you actually get to see the hayride stop, which is fun.”
However, the centerpiece of the Halloween in Brown Park event will be a walking circuit around the majority of the park where kids and parents will line up and walk past all the vendors that have set up for the event.
Most vendors will bring candy and handouts for all family members to grab and enjoy as they walk through the park. The line for the walk will start moving around 11:30 a.m. and will be open until around 3 p.m. However, Hart asked that families avoid arriving as late as 3 p.m., since the line will shut down right then or even a little earlier, and some people arriving at the last minute may be turned away. In fact, large numbers of attendees will begin arriving far in advance of the event actually beginning, underscoring its popularity.
“A lot of people come as early as 9 a.m.,” Hart said. “We can have 1,000 people in line before the walk even starts.”
The line begins at the duck bridge and meanders from there through the rest of the park and back. Keeping a steady pace, anyone participating can expect the full walking circuit to last about 30 minutes.
Once families are lined up, they will gradually be welcomed to stroll through the park, collecting candy and other goodies. Anyone left waiting in line will be visited by the mobile photo booth and have music to listen to from the live DJ. The DJ will also be involved in setting up various activities for kids to take part in while waiting to join the line, or after already completing it. Hart said, “The DJ in the middle of the field does activities and different games and dances. And we actually have games on the other side as well.”
While the event is free, and most of the goodies, candy and handouts families receive will be at no cost to them, some vendors may also offer purchasable items, and in previous years the St. Matthews Chamber has operated a concessions stand. In either scenario, profits are donated toward the Chamber St. Matthews Foundation. This foundation is dedicated to helping fund education as well as helping local businesses get their feet on the ground.
“For our foundation, the two pillars are to send adults back to school for education, whether it’s GED all the way up to masters,” Hart said. “And the second pillar is to help small businesses open their doors.”
Anyone who decides to give Brown Park a visit during the event will find parking at Baptist East Hospital on Kresge, while handicap parking will be available in the regular Brown Park parking lot. Families are also encouraged to bring their own buckets or bags for collecting candy and other goodies, but for those who forget or are otherwise unable to bring their own, a limited number of complimentary bags will be provided at the start of the line on a first-come, first-served basis.
