BALTIMORE — Not every family feels comfortable with the idea of going door to door, especially with really small children, so they look for other ways to celebrate Halloween.
Luckily, families in Baltimore did not have to look far.
Hundreds of parents decided to take their young ones to Elijah Park on the Baltimore Peninsula.
Instead of just going door to door for candy, the children got to play games, jump in a bounce house, get face paint, and meet other children.
“Kids can come out here have lot more fun, like with the music and the bouncy house; obviously you have the candy and stuff too, but it's nice to kind of bring the community out together for everyone to come together and have a great time," says Nate Williams.
Their parents got to have some fun as well while keeping an eye on them.
Ashley Faulkner says it's why she brought her daughter; she says she felt her daughter was safe while having fun activities in one location.
“I just thought it was so organized just to hover in one spot, and we couldn’t miss it. We saw the bouncy house, we saw the food and games, and I thought it was just great to trick or treat, and also she can have fun and play."
Many parents say they love the idea of bringing their children to a safe environment where they can let loose and have fun.
“This is a lot of security out here; it's still secluded somewhat, but I do love that it's in the middle of no where they are redeveloping the area, and they are just doing a great job at making this feel at home safe and all together.”
“With everything that has been going on with our kids and things like that, it's just so nice to have somewhere safe for them to come and really like enjoy and let loose and not to worry about any little thing, like its really a good time, like I really enjoy this.”
Along with the safety, many of the people I spoke with say they felt a sense of community seeing so many other families filling up the park.
The event was fun for the entire family, including furry friends, with the grand opening of the Baltimore Pawninsula, a new dog park, which included special treats for pets as well.
Officials say over a thousand people registered for the event this year, which is double the amount it saw last Halloween.
