Monica Leyva enjoys coming to the annual trick-or-treat event in downtown Aurora, given the joy it gives her and her children.
“I’ve done this about five times and I bring all the children along. It’s a nice downtown Aurora event,” she said on Saturday as more than two dozen businesses scattered throughout the downtown offered candy and treats beginning at noon. “Kids get to start the holiday early and it brings the community out.”
For three hours during the event sponsored by the Aurora Downtown Alliance kids had a chance to show off their Halloween costumes early as well as get a head start on this year’s collection of treats.
Maps were given out at various locations including the Aurora Regional Fire Museum which allowed visitors to go from place to place in search of participating businesses which displayed a poster with a ghost on a purple background to show they were involved in the event.
Jesus Sachez, owner of La Quinta de los Reyes restaurant in Aurora, was one of those taking part in the trick-or-treating event and said his restaurant “has been participating since the beginning.”
Kids and parents enter La Quinta de los Reyes restaurant in Aurora on Saturday, one of more than two dozen businesses that participated in a three-hour trick-or-treat event in the city’s downtown. (David Sharos/For The Beacon-News)
“We like to participate because we like to see the kids with smiles on their faces. We like to see all these little faces come and go, and we always enjoy this time of the year,” he said.
Mike Nelson, director of community events for the city of Aurora, spoke the day before Saturday’s activity and said the original trick-or-treat experience downtown was organized by the Downtown Aurora group more than a decade ago “and it’s always the Saturday before Halloween.”
“It’s typically the same time and it brings in a large crowd. We’ve seen anywhere from 1,500 to 3,000 attendees when the weather cooperates,” he said. “It’s great to see the streets filled, the crosswalks, the sidewalks – you name it. People popping in and out with costumes and the interaction between the businesses and the families is a really nice thing to see.”
Nelson said the event serves as a “kick-off to Halloween week.”
“It makes it kind of a weeklong celebration of the Halloween season. I always look forward to it and the opportunity for kids to wear their costumes before the actual Halloween day,” he said. “You see kids weaving down the street with pure excitement on their faces and holding bucketfuls of candy. It really is an awesome experience.”
The crowd along Broadway and New York Street grew visibly during the first 30 minutes of the event on Saturday.
Gaby Rodriguez of Aurora brought her two children, Kellen, 7, and Frances, 4, to the event and said it is a tradition for her family.
“It’s fun. We’ve been coming since Kellen was 1 year old and, except for COVID, we’ve been here,” Rodriguez said. “If there’s Halloween, we’re doing it.”
Beverly Frye of Oswego said she is the grandmother of Kellen and Frances Rodriguez and that she has also come to the Aurora event a number of times.
“This is our fourth time coming down here and it’s a lovely day and a fun event,” she said. “I know the kids like to get out and show off their costumes.”
Edgar Renteria of Aurora brought his two sons, Lazaro, 8, and Mateo, 6, and said that Aurora “was a nice area to come. The kids can come and have fun and see others friends dressed up, and it feels safe.”
“We like that the kids can get out in their costumes and show things off,” he said. “It takes time to make it or buy it and so it’s nice to wear it more than once.”
Edgar’s sister, Yesenia Renteria, said she was visiting from Mexico City and that her son Galileo was also excited to be at the event in Aurora.
“Trick-or-treating never gets old,” she said. “We love it.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
