A pervasive fear hovered over the heads of Student Council advisors Laura Doub and Collin Ferebee as the date for the group’s Trunk or Treat neared. With this being the first time since the pandemic that the event had been organized, there was already a great deal of uncertainty. Combine this with the last-minute reschedule due to Hurricane Melissa, one question lingered: What if nobody shows up?
Those fears would soon be laid to rest, however, as by 5:40 p.m. a line already stretched across the entire front school entrance—a full twenty minutes before the event even began.
By the end of the night, over 1,500 families and community members would show up for the evening’s festivities, making it one of the most successful gatherings organized by a student group since COVID.
“We were so incredibly proud that the school was able to gather together to make this happen,” Doub said. “The line didn’t get shorter until 7.”
Since the attendance was so high, the fear of running out of candy for the Trunk or Treaters became the most present ghoul in attendance. Fortunately, as Doub recalled, Student Council had bought enough candy that they were resupplying other trunks as their stashes depleted. When the event was over, the students and teachers involved were able to take a deep breath and focus on the treats of Halloween.
Students and teachers kicked their Halloween spirit into full force with several clubs and all of the Freshmen Academy teachers setting up trunks for this event. Trunks themed around Scooby Doo, Marvel, Star Wars, fairy tales, and more filled the front parking lot of the high school, giving everyone in attendance the opportunity to explore a variety of worlds as they traversed the trunks in search of treats.
Donna Dunn, a Freshman Academy English teacher, dressed up as Cruella DeVil and made an appearance at the fairy tale trunk. Dunn was elated at being able to connect with a number of community members and former students.
“Seeing people that I know from the community—maybe even former students with their own little children—that was probably my favorite part,” Dunn said.
While for some participants, this event was a new experience for them at Davie, advisor Collin Ferebee is not new to the Trunk or Treat grind.
“I did a Science Club one,” Ferebee said. “We had a couple people in lab coats, and we had little fog machines and stuff like that. Like we were mad scientists, and we did that out in the bus parking lot. It was really fun. And then, unfortunately, next year, COVID happened.”
While teachers dove headfirst into the Halloween festivities, students also had their fair share of involvement. Students voted on themes, helped set up trunks, handed out candy, and dressed up. Students enjoyed participating in the Trunk or Treat. Junior Corbin Drum helped set up the trunk for Key Club, which was themed around Candyland.
“My favorite part was seeing all the kids’ costumes,” Drum said.
With the rows of cars decked out in decorations, it’s no shock that the attendance was astronomically high. Student Council’s Trunk or Treat served as a reminder of the joy that can come from the simple magic of Halloween.
