Families stopped by the Roche Sports Complex parking lot to grab candy and show off their costumes at the third annual Trunk-or-Treat.

The Student-Athlete Advisory Board hosted the event two days before Halloween, where campus groups gathered to hand out candy to children from the trunks of their cars.

“I think it’s one of the better things that our student body does,” Assistant Professor of Education Jonathan Gregg said. “Just getting together and giving out candy. I am honestly extremely proud of our students.”

Students decorated cars with tinsel and pumpkins, dressed up in costumes, and played Halloween music. 

Families walked around the parking lot with their children, stopped to take pictures at the photo-op, played at the interactive batting cage, threw mini footballs, and grabbed candy.

Junior Megan Clifford said she likes to volunteer at Trunk-or-Treat because it is a nice way to get more involved in the community and escape from college life.

“It has been really fun. There have been a lot of kids showing up and a lot of families which has made it a good community experience,” Clifford said.

Student volunteers wished the children a happy Halloween and complimented their creative costumes. Some families came dressed up together.

“My favorite family costume was Harry Potter,” Clifford said. “There was Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Harry Potter, and Hermione.”

Nikki Walbright, assistant athletic director and faculty adviser for SAAC, said the organization advertised the event with flyers sent to the local schools and preschools, but its popularity came from the fun and uplifting atmosphere. 

“I think it’s a staple that everyone looks forward to,” Walbright said. “I have a lot of friends in the area so it’s great to see them on the photo-op we do every year and just seeing a lot of community photos.”

Walbright said before Trunk-or-Treat, SAAC used to host dorm trick or treating, where kids would go through the dorm buildings collecting candy. After COVID-19, SAAC decided to host an alternative event that was outside and would allow all groups on campus to participate.

“I like that it’s all different groups of people on campus including sororities and the athletic teams and other organizations too,” Clifford said.

Sophomore Sophia Widmer said many kids walked around awestruck.

“It’s really cute. They don’t really want to say anything but they come up and are all smiling,” Widmer said.

Sophomore Izabella Sand said she appreciated Trunk-or-Treat because it allowed her to feel more involved with the community. Sand said spending time with the locals on a fall Sunday afternoon was very festive.

“I think it helps connect the college to the town in a really good way,” Sand said. “That’s because it’s not forced. It’s simply an opportunity to be here with them.”