Grandma got all gussied up for the occasion.
Wearing clothing from her own wardrobe, Clara Roll spent time Monday walking around downtown Seymour with a cane collecting candy and other treats from businesses during Seymour Main Street’s Downtown Trick or Treat.
Then she followed the Seymour police and fire departments and Seymour High School Marching Owls and color guard in the Seymour Evening Lions Club’s 54th Halloween costume parade.
Finally, she wrapped up a busy evening by participating in the Lions Club’s costume contest in the Smalltown Plaza parking lot.
Roll’s costume, which also included a purse, glasses, a scarf and baby powder in her swirled blonde hair to make it look gray, won over the judges, as they named her not only the winner in the ages 7 to 9 category but also the overall sweepstakes winner.
“I always wanted to know what it would be like to be a grandma,” Roll, 8, said of choosing her costume.
Her mother, Rachel Roll, said the decision came at the last minute.
“She literally told me this morning, ‘I want to be a grandma and dress up like an old lady,’” Rachel said. “It’s all from her closet. (The scarf) actually was mine in high school. We had (the cane) in the garage. She’s wearing my knee-highs.”
Clara was happy to earn $40 from the contest and looks forward to spending her winnings. Her mother said the win capped off a fun night.
“It was awesome,” Rachel said. “We’re usually here every year. I think it’s just something fun for the kids to do, and you get to see people that you may not get to see all the time.”
More than 40 participating businesses were involved in Downtown Trick or Treat. If they aren’t located downtown, they were allowed to set up along the streets or in parks and hand out candy and other Halloween items.
Accents Hair Salon owner Stephanie Ulrey and nail tech Kimberly Tran stood outside the shop as Tran’s son, Landon Mobley, handed out candy to kids.
“It’s just fun to get out and see people and contribute,” Ulrey said of participating in the community event.
They like checking out all of the costumes, too. Mobley said his favorite was Michael Myers from the movie “Halloween.”
“The creativity is great,” Ulrey said.
“I love it,” Tran said. “Seeing all of the smiles on all of the kiddos’ faces, it just brings a lot of joy to the community.”
Since it’s opening downtown in a couple of weeks, F.C. Tucker Real Estate Experts felt it was important to participate in Downtown Trick or Treat, owner Jessica Risacher said.
“Any event downtown, we plan to be a part of, just our token of appreciation to the community, giving back to the community any way we can and letting people know we’re here,” she said.
The company already has offices in North Vernon and Columbus.
“I had no idea that this event was so large,” Risacher said of Downtown Trick or Treat. “It’s very well-organized, and I think the Main Street program is phenomenal here in Seymour. That was one of the reasons why we wanted to expand into the market and invest in downtown.”
On Monday night, Risacher dressed as a cheetah while handing out candy, trick or treat bags, coloring pages and wooden coins with the message “Kindness is contagious, pass it on” inscribed on them.
Realtor Andy Spurling caught people’s attention by dressing up as Carl Fredricksen from the movie “Up” and holding colorful balloons.
“My costume was really pretty simple to put together. When you get old like me, just go to the closet, most of this stuff is there,” he said, smiling. “My wife and I saw this and thought, ‘Hey we could do that.’”
He enjoyed interacting with kids and adults.
“Everybody is taking pictures, and it’s fun,” Spurling said. “This is a great little town, awesome little town. I love it. It has been so fun to come out here. The kids get real excited, and some of these costumes are awesome. These kids have done a great job.”
In front of city hall, Seymour Fire Department Firefighter Mitchell Flinn handed out candy while mascot Sparky gave high fives and hugs and posed for pictures.
Flinn said it was a great community outreach event.
“Just so many people come out and absolutely enjoy it,” he said. “It’s very nice.”
He was amazed with all of the different costumes he saw people wearing, but he couldn’t narrow down his favorite.
“That will be a hard one,” Flinn said, smiling. “I didn’t know there were so many.”