Posted on 10/30/2018 at 10:39 AM by Troy Cummings
Happy Halloween!
It was always fun to go trick-or-treating every Halloween. With our large treat bags, we would stop at as many houses as possible in the neighborhood. Never once did I blink an eye when grabbing a popcorn ball, caramel apple, or candy bars. Other than the local dentist, who gave out toothbrushes, almost every house gave some sort of candy. At the end of the night, I would dump the candy onto the kitchen table and sort through what I wanted to eat first. I never had to stop and think about picking out candy I couldn’t eat.
Many children today suffer from food allergies which can take the fun out of Halloween. According to Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE), there are close to 6 million kids living with life-threatening food allergies. To put that number into perspective, that is 1 in every 13 children with a food allergy. Trick-or-treating with a food allergy can be a tricky endeavor.
To help with this issue, the Teal Pumpkin Project was started in 2014. By placing a teal pumpkin on your doorstep or a sign with a teal pumpkin on your door, it informs children and families that you provide non-food treats. This allows kids with and without food allergies to enjoy Halloween.
Below is a list of nonfood items to make every child’s Halloween enjoyable!
- Glow sticks, bracelets, or necklaces
- Pencils, pens, crayons or markers
- Bubbles
- Halloween erasers or pencil toppers
- Mini Slinkies
- Whistles, kazoos, or noisemakers
- Bouncy balls
- Finger puppets or novelty toys
- Coins
- Spider rings
- Vampire fangs
- Mini notepads
- Playing cards
- Bookmarks
- Stickers
- Stencils
Check out FAREs Teal Pumpkin Project page for more information on you can get involved!
Written by Kailey Kaestner