4 Haunted Rooms, 350+ Guests, and Safe Trick-or-Treating are just a few highlights that took place during this year’s Annual Spooky Haunted Open House.
As usual, we kicked off our Haunted Halloween festivities here at SPC Allstate with the Door Decorating Contest. We welcomed each department to join in on the fun this year with hopes of winning a pizza party. The door decorating competition added festive flair throughout our beautiful campus, while displaying the creativity of the staff, faculty, and students. All participants were given a list of rules to follow and two weeks to decorate the door of their choice. Several themes included zombies, vampires, and even a cemetery! With so many events, we were sure to grab the attention of our visitors. But the spookiest door of them all belonged to Police Recruit Class #202 and Public Safety Academy Coordinators. Congratulations again to you both, as you are this year’s winners!!
Shortly after announcing our Door Decor winners, we shifted gears to prepare for our 3rd Annual Haunted Halloween Open House! As one of SPC Allstate’s largest and most exciting events, we worked hard to open our campus to all the brave souls who were spooking for a ghoul time. Staging, make-up, and wardrobe all occurred during the final hour before show time. On Friday, October 28th we welcomed in everyone within our community from 5-8pm. Faculty and staff from our fellow SPC campuses, our very own friends and family members, and anyone in our surrounding area received an open invite.
Seeing that we are the home of the College of Public Safety, it was very important to keep the thrills both scary and safe.
Our “safe” trick-or-treating area was primarily for the little ones accompanied by their parents. For those who desired a fun yet less intense environment, the scare-free zones were to be found on the first floor. We had several volunteers dressed in costume to hand out candy and trinkets, while others assisted with our special activities. Some of these included:
- Bowling games, ring toss, and coloring
- Popcorn machine and Halloween candy
- Photos with the firefighters
If you were looking for the spooky thrills, more than likely you made your way upstairs to find our haunted house!
Staff transformed what would normally be our courtroom, crime scene lab, jail cells, and mock apartment into a winding and spooky haunted house. If you weren’t a fan of clowns you might have stayed far away from the mock apartment. Flashing lights, disoriented clown shadows, and the fear of the unknown circulated throughout this room. Witch lovers enjoyed the pitched-black maze inside of what used to be our courtroom, but was then an eerie witch’s home. And we can’t forget the mad scientists who took over the crime scene lab! With only way in and one way out there was no avoiding them. Or your fears.
With a hundred more guests than last year, it’s safe to say it was a huge success. We made sure over three hundred and fifty guests would leave in the Halloween spirit, but we also gave our attendees the opportunity to learn about St. Petersburg College programs and local community vendors. We’re looking forward to next year, as we plan to make each year bigger, better, and even scarier!
Blog Author: Breanna Bass, Student Support Assistant, SPC Allstate Campus.