The spooky time is upon us, and there is no shortage of fun planned for Halloween this year.

Things kick off this Friday and Saturday as the New Franklin Park Board hosts the Haunted Harvest Festival at the Park, a fundraiser for park improvements. The fun starts at 8 p.m. on both nights. A festival with a chili dinner and crafts will start off the events at 4 p.m. on Saturday.

A highlight of the festival will be the haunted trail. For five dollars, you can brave a haunted trail through the woods. Survivors will enjoy a hayride back to the park. 

The festival will feature family games, a bounce house, crafts, and photo opportunities. On the menu Saturday will be chili, chili dogs, hotdogs, and Frito pie, with fall flavors of hot cocoa and apple cider. Prices range from two to four dollars.

On Sunday, the popular Trunk or Treat returns to the Fayette square from 3 to 5 p.m. The event will once again be held on Main Street, with cars lining both sides of the street with candy, games, prizes, and a variety of Halloween fun.

The event is sponsored by Downtown Fayette (formerly Fayette Main Street) grows larger each year.

Those providing a trunk for the event will set up between 2 and 2:45 p.m. A sign-up form is available on Downtown Fayette’s Facebook page. Questions should be emailed to events@downtownfayette.org.

The Trunk or Treat is usually heralded with the annual Golden Study Club’s Halloween parade and costume contest at the courthouse. But, the club has had to abandon the event after 70 years due to a decline in membership.

However, club members stated they are willing to turn over the Halloween parade to another group or organization. So far, no one has taken over. So, after seven decades, it appears the Fayette tradition will fade into the annals of history.

Morrison Observatory at Central Methodist University will open to the public for two more special open houses this month and include a unique Halloween event.

Located at 504 Park Road in Fayette, the observatory will be open on the nights of October 24 and 31 from 6 until 8 p.m. 

A unique Haunted Observatory Tour will be a feature on Halloween night. Besides costumes and decorations, students will hand out candy to trick-or-treaters. There will also be a movie and a tour. If the sky is clear, the big telescope will be open for observation.

Questions? Contact observatory director Paul Temple at ptemple@centralmethodist.edu.

Back for its fourth year will be the annual Pumpkin Fest, presented by Linn Memorial United Methodist Church. The annual event takes place on Halloween from 4:30 until 6:30 p.m.

The fun is centered at the church’s parsonage at 203 West Spring Street in Fayette.

“Our neighborhood is beginning to look a lot like Halloween,” said Bill O’Neal, pastor of Linn Memorial UMC. “We will have plenty of tables with folks giving away candy.”

As always, the event features free hotdogs and drinks, with fun games and prizes for all ages. There will be an array of selfie stations to take time-treasured photos.

“Lots of candy, lots of fun! It is the perfect spot to begin your night of Trick or Treating,” Rev. O’Neal said.

And, of course, Halloween would not be complete without good old-fashioned trick-or-treating. The scariest night of the year falls on a Thursday, but that should be no reason to expect that fewer goblins, vampires, ghouls, princesses, astronauts, sports stars, and monsters of all varieties will be roaming the streets of town. So, stock up on those treats, turn on your porch lights, and make this a memorable small-town Halloween for our kids.

Popular trick-or-treating areas in Fayette include West Davis Street and surrounding neighborhoods. However, just about every neighborhood in town will have on at least a few porch lights ready for trick-or-treaters.