More than 400 trick-or-treaters attend First Annual Parkstead Gouverneur Halloween Trunk N Treat

by Rachel Hunter

More than 400 trick-or-treaters got their fill of candy and other treats at the First Annual Parkstead Gouverneur Halloween Trunk N Treat on Saturday, October 31 at 500 Sleepy Hollow Road, Gouverneur. While respecting social distance guidelines amid the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, costumed youth made their way down the sidewalk, visiting each decorated trunk offering candy and treats. Each Parkstead Gouverneur resident or community member wore gloves and masks as they handed out individually wrapped candy. Delightful squeals and smiles (behind masks) abounded as the youth filled up their treat bags.

Parkstead Gouverneur Property Manager Stormy Cox, Assistant Property Manager Sean Peck, and Leasing Agent Vaughn Butler (dressed in costume as Alvin and the Chipmunks) along with many other staff members and volunteers made the event possible. Much gratitude is extended to Henry and Christine LaQuier for their traffic control efforts. Mr. Peck said that many community members were able to park on Pooler Street, so ample parking space was not an issue at the Trunk N Treat event.

Abiding by the 4 to 6 p.m. time suggested by the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees, many trick-or-treaters were able to collect all the treats offered in daylight conditions. Many trick-or-treaters then also chose to go trick-or-treating at homes around the Village of Gouverneur during the 5 to 7 p.m. time. Assistant Property Manager Sean Peck extends gratitude to the Gouverneur community for coming out to Parkstead Gouverneur and supporting the event.

“This is not going to be a one-time thing,” Mr. Peck said. “We are going to do it again next year. We hope, if there’s no pandemic, that they will remember who was there for them last year, and come back to us next year. I just want to let the community know how much we appreciate everything – and if they are ever looking for a new home, come see me at Parkstead. There has not been one negative about the event. I have not heard one negative thing at all… There was no negative. We had to hand out very few masks. We appreciate the fact that everyone listened, came, and wore a mask. And you could tell everybody was social distancing all the way through.”

Assistant Property Manager Sean Peck said that the event also included many donations from businesses around the Gouverneur community. Fidelis Care in Gouverneur donated Halloween-themed treat bags along with hand sanitizing wipes that were readily used by all those in attendance. Dunkin’ Donuts in Gouverneur donated coffee mugs and gift cards for youth winning the costume contest. Kinney Drugs in Gouverneur donated glow sticks and other treats to hand out to the youth in attendance. The Gouverneur and St. Lawrence County Fair Association also donated 10 traffic cones that were used to show the Trunk N Treat start point and also to outline the walking areas.

In addition, Parkstead Gouverneur also hosted a guessing game where youth were able to guess how many pieces of candy were in a jar. Trevor Sixberry won the contest, and was awarded a Dunkin’ Donuts thermos for his win. Parkstead Gouverneur also hosted a costume contest. The winners will be announced at a later date in the Gouverneur Tribune Press once the evaluation is finalized. Mr. Peck said the winners will receive a mug from Dunkin’ Donuts and a $10 gift card. The photos will also be posted on the Parkstead Gouverneur Facebook page.

The creativity of the decorated trunks amazed many of those in attendance. From witches and warlocks to Hocus Pocus, and so much more… the costumed youth approached each trunk with excitement as the walked down the sidewalk. The largest and most anticipated trunk was the one designed by the Gouverneur Cub Scouts Pack No. 2035, organized by Cubmaster Chris Gates of Gouverneur. The display was a country farm theme and all costumed youngsters were invited to put their treat bag underneath PVC pipes for a bag of individually wrapped candy and a gift certificate from 7-Eleven in Gouverneur for a free medium Slurpee Drink.

Parkstead Gouverneur Assistant Property Manager Sean Peck said he was touched by several community members’ willingness to come back and thank Parkstead Gouverneur for organizing the event for the kids on Halloween night.

Mr. Peck said: “They told me: “You were the only game in town.” I said, “What do you mean? There was regular trick-or-treating.” They said, “Rowley Street was a ghost town. There was literally like five houses that were set up to give out candy on Rowley Street, and that is usually the mecca of trick-or-treating.” I got a lot of messages from people saying: “Thank you again for what you guys did. The kids would have had nothing if it weren’t for you.”

“Every kid that left said they had a bagful of candy… There was plenty of candy on hand to give out… One girl that came at the very end, she made out like a bandit, because everybody just dumped what they had left and she walked out of here with two bags full. I thought everybody was going to hit us early, and they did because the last 30 minutes there weren’t very many. But the community came out, and we appreciated that. The community, as we are, to have 400? That’s huge. A lot of work and effort went into it, and we appreciate it. We are going to plan more events, as the pandemic ends, that involves the community. We want to be a part of the community and we are going to be here.”

Mr. Peck said that Parkstead Philadelphia also had a Halloween event – a party for the kids living in the apartment complex. He said there were about 20 youth in attendance – but that it was nothing like the draw in Gouverneur at the Trunk N Treat event.

“I had expectations of what it would be,” Mr. Peck said. “It met and exceeded every one of those. It did. I did not expect 400. I told everyone, maybe 200-300. And we hit 400-plus. That was awesome. We appreciate the community being respectful and everything else through the pandemic, wearing a mask. We maybe used a half of a box, 20 to 25 masks. That by itself says a lot about this community, being respectful and listening to the COVID-19 regulations.

“It gave the community, the kids, something to do that kind of just took their minds off of everything else for that 15 to 20 minutes that they were here and walking the property. The event was to bring attention our way, which we know we did. We do have a couple apartments to rent, so I am hoping we do get some allocations off of it – but it was to bring the community together. I think that this location we have is perfect for something like that. We’re spread out enough… so social distancing wasn’t going to be an issue. We had Pooler St. that we parked the cars on. Parking was not an issue whatsoever.. There was a lot of people who did a lot to help us. It was just beyond successful.”

The results of the First Annual Halloween Trunk N Treat Costume Contest will be released in an upcoming edition of the Gouverneur Tribune Press. Follow Parkstead Gouverneur on Facebook for the announcement of future events and activities in the Gouverneur area.