If visitors need additional evidence that our region is a wonderful place to raise a family, they need look no further than these photos from the second annual Truck-or-Treat event on held Sunday, Oct. 20, to benefit Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum.
Organizers, including Wonderfeet Kids Museum’s founder and Board Vice President Paul Gallo, emphasized that beyond the fun, Truck-or-Treat is a vital fundraiser for the Museum, helping to ensure that Wonderfeet continues to be an affordable, enriching resource for the entire community.
“It’s so Rutland,” Gallo said to an attendee. “It was another proud moment of spreading happiness. It’s part of what gets me out of the house early each day.”
The event drew an estimated 4,000 children and adults, costumed in the spooky and the kooky, the cheery and the eerie, to downtown Rutland. It turned out to be a gloriously sunny and crisp fall Sunday, perfect for dressing up in capes, gowns, crowns, tutus, pumpkin heads, spaceman suits, alligator appendages, and other Halloween gear.
All told there were nearly 100 vehicles taking over Center Street and Merchants Row, courtesy of such local business partners as Casella, J.P. Carrara & Sons, Inc., Carpenter and Costin, La Valley, and the Vermont Country Store. Enormous trucks of all kinds, plus tanks, souped up cars and mega-motorcycles were decked out in monster mountains, swerving skeletons and ghoulish goblins. Kids and adults alike reveled in filling receptacles of all kinds with candy and other assorted delights pouring out of the vehicles.
Also on hand was Rutland’s beloved toymaker, Michael’s Handmade Toys, so kids and parents could see an old-fashioned craftsman work his magic up close. And, of course, dedicated leaders from Rutland City’s Police Department, including Project VISION director Matthew Prouty (in a Mountie-esque hat) were on hand to make sure everyone had a safe and sound environment for having fun. Lastly, what’s a children’s event without a bouncy house, wildly popular with kids of all sizes last Sunday.
Even adults who were not in costume or towing toddlers seemed in awe of all the time and effort families put in to costuming their children, plus the hard work of the event’s organizers and contributors. In that sense, everyone who attended could feel they were part of a big family – gathered on a sunny Sunday afternoon, as a small town celebrated wholesome fun for everyone.
Liz DiMarco Weinmann, MBA, is principal/owner of Liz DiMarco Weinmann Consulting, L3C, based in Rutland, serving charitable and educational institutions. lizdimarcoweinmann.com.
