Halloween: Military Community Tradition

Depending on your duty station and how obsessed your community is about Halloween, celebrating on base can be a lot of fun for the whole family.

Usually, weeks before Halloween you will start seeing installation flyers about future celebrations and activities you can enjoy such as a spooky bowling night at your base bowling alley, a fun run coordinated by your local stroller warriors, trick-or-treating activities, a car parade and more.

While we were stationed in Hawaii, we were able to do all things Halloween and it was the best. Everyone would forget about the humid air, put on a costume and take the kids to get candy. Each individual housing community and even different commands on the installation would get together for fun trunk-or-treats and other themed events that brought cheer to everyone. I also appreciated how the installation’s military police handed out candy while they made sure the streets were clear and safe for families to walk around.

One of our family favorites was our community’s car parade where participants from our base housing area would plan a drive around the area. Everyone who signed up to drive would dress in costume and decorate their vehicles with all sorts of spooky items. Families would line up on the sidewalks and wait for the parade to start. Once we saw the first car slowly drive up, everyone got excited and all the kids threw their hands in the air ready to grab candy. Individuals in each vehicle threw candy that was donated and collected by neighbors for community children. As each car passed, candy was thrown towards the sidewalk and families would quickly grab the candy. This became a tradition within our housing community and even started happening during Christmas since it was such a big hit. I believe times like these are what sets our military community apart. We strive to do something for the greater good, to bring joy, fun and families together to enjoy the moment. This event was created by local neighbors, and they did an amazing job at executing the mission. They got garrison involved, the MP’s helped and it kept everyone safe while delivering some good Halloween fun.

I feel this is another example of when the military community stepped up to create happiness. So many neighbors participated and donated so many pounds of candy and many more decorated their personal vehicles to share the Halloween spirit. Seeing all the families come back each year, crowding the sidewalks in our community and cheering on the drivers will always be a special memory for me. Being part of our military community has shown me how everyone working together can do a lot of good!

Dani is a writer and blogger, veteran, military spouse, and mother of two. Currently living in Southern California. Loves hiking, beach days, crafting, volunteering and spending time with family.