Get ready for ghosts and goblins and every halloween costume you can think of as Cloverdale’s “Spooktacular Halloween Market” returns next month.
The sixth annual Halloween market will be held Oct. 21 in both the Alice McKay building and Shannon Hall on the Cloverdale Fairgrounds.
Organizer Kelly Ewing said because of the event’s popularity, she’s had to double the space.
“We’ve expanded because it was so busy last year,” she explained. “We want to be able to accommodate everyone.”
Ewing said she’s booked more than 90 vendors into the two halls. There’ll be kids activities, food trucks, and lots of entertainment.
She’ll have new decorations this year too.
“People won’t be seeing the exact same things they’ve seen before,” she said. “I think that’s what sets us apart from some of the other Halloween markets. The fact that we tend to have some really big decorations. And that we are 100 per cent for charity.”
Admission to the market is by donation with all monies collected going to the Surrey Hospital Foundation. Ewing said there’ll be donation boxes set up at both entrances.
Last year the event raised nearly $5,000 for charity and this year she hopes to double that.
“We always do the market for charity,” she explained. “It’s a community event, but it’s also a fundraiser.”
Ewing said the market is family-focussed with lots of activities for kids and all are free.
“We’ll have face painting. We’ll have a bouncy castle. We’ll also have a balloon twister,” she said. “We will have award-winning clowns Mrs. Picasso painting up faces and Korki Clown twisting up balloons and many other surprises.”
There’ll be costumed characters walking around for people to snap pictures with.
Mario and Luigi will be around from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and members of the 501st Legion will be onsite throughout the day. The 501st are a costume guild in which members dress as Stormtroopers and other Star Wars characters to help promote charitable causes.
Ewing is encouraging everyone who attends to come in costume as she’ll have a photo zone agian this year with a spooky backdrop. The free photo area is being run by Shutter Up Photography, who are donating their time for the event.
“We put all the pictures up on a website,” Ewing noted. “That way no one has to pay to get them.”
The Spooktacular Halloween Market will also feature a raffle prize draw with proceeds also going to the Surrey Hospital Foundation. All the raffle prizes were donated by local merchants.
Ewing is a registered nurse and works at Surrey Memorial Hospital. She was inspired to start the Spooktacular Halloween Market because she “loves Halloween and wanted to give back” to the community.
“Raising money for the Surrey Hospitals Foundation assists the foundation in purchasing much needed equipment for our local hospitals.”
Ewing added the market would not take place without the generosity from the City of Surrey through a community grant, a private citizen sponsorship, and the Spooktacular vendors.
The sixth annual Spooktacular Halloween Market will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 21 in Alice McKay and Shannon Hall on the Cloverdale Fairgrounds, 6050 176th Street.
For more info, visit the Spooktacular Halloween Market’s Facebook page.