Thousands Seek Safety at Halloween Village Trick-or-Treat Trail in Downtown Clearwater

On October 31 over 1,000 Tampa Bay residents flocked to Clearwater for a safe Halloween Village Trick-or-Treat Trail. The family-friendly Halloween experience, sponsored by the Church of Scientology, covered two city blocks in eight community centers on Fort Harrison Avenue in Downtown Clearwater. The centers include the Florida headquarters for international humanitarian outreach programs in anti-drug education, human rights, disaster response and more.

When the event began at 6 p.m. gargoyles, ghosts, aliens, superheroes, dinosaurs and mythical creatures had already swarmed the block thirty minutes earlier. “We were looking for events nearby and our neighbor told us about the Trick-or-Treat Trail that was happening,” said Clearwater resident Anthony Mitchell. “Our neighborhood isn’t the safest so it was very nice to come here and not have to worry about any of that for our child.”

“This was our first time really going outside with this many people since the start of the pandemic,” said Meenakshi Sundaram from Tampa. “We really enjoyed this experience.”

While filling their pillow cases and jack-o-lantern baskets to the brim with candy, over 300 children and families also signed the pledge to live drug-free for life at the Foundation for a Drug-Free World center and parents learned about their parental rights at the Citizens Commission on Human Rights Florida center. Each center had kid-friendly activities such as scavenger hunts, ring toss and arts and crafts.

“A safe environment is the best environment for our community,” said Pat Harney, public relations director for the Church of Scientology in Clearwater, which sponsored the event. “We are very happy that everyone who visited enjoyed the event and we are already preparing for a great holiday season for children and families in our community.”