A Sweet Halloween Tradition

Since the late 1990s, the neighborhood of Nottingham has held an annual Halloween parade for families, which is a highlight of the season for residents of all ages. The idea was born around 1997, by a group of residents in the neighborhood during one of their neighborhood women’s club meetings. By 1999, the parade plan was hatched.

Each year on Halloween, families, dressed head-to-toe in costumes, line up at the east end of Pinerock Lane. Children eagerly wait for the start of the parade, and as soon as the “go” is announced, they proceed to walk down the street in droves, trick-or-treating down the block together. Neighbors stand out front passing out candy. 

The first year of the parade, it was a small gathering, recalled longtime resident Dianne Brody. It has since grown to become a favorite tradition. The parade consists of walking from one end of the street to the other – trick-or-treating in unison with all the neighborhood kids. 

Neighbor Ann Walker was president of the women’s club at the time the parade started to take root. She, along with her husband Steve, and their two kids, Sam and Stacy, enjoyed the parade year after year. Stacy now has a son, Aiden, who participates as a second-generation paradegoer, and a baby, Jett, a future parade participant.

Anne and Scott LeBaume offered their yard on the west end of Pinerock Lane to be the end point for the one-block parade. 

Lindsey and Matt Thomas moved into their home, the corner house of the street, three years ago with their four daughters. It turned out this isn’t just any house; it is known as the “Halloween house” among residents, as it’s the starting point of the parade – especially those who were there for the early days of the tradition. 

“We bought our house three years ago and were quickly informed by several neighbors that we bought the ‘Halloween house.’ We did not know just how lucky we were,” she said. 

Each year, families – children and parents and grandparents – decked out in their Halloween costumes, gather in front of the Thomas’s home, which marks the starting point of the parade route. Neighbors then walk the block together, before heading off to trick-or-treat throughout the rest of the neighborhood.

"The parade is a long-standing tradition in our neighborhood that was established almost 25 years ago, shortly after the Nottingham Women's Club was formed,” Lindsey said. 

TRADITION Each year, Nottingham families, decked out in Halloween costume, walk the block together before heading out to trick-or-treat.

For their family, and their four girls, twins Mimi and Cate, 8, Lucy, 6, and Emmy, 2, Halloween is not just about the parade. It is a day to make lifelong memories with neighbors and their community. “My family likes to prepare a big pot of chili for friends to meet back at our house for a quick dinner before heading back out to trick-or-treat,” Lindsey said. 

Over the years, the Thomas family has embraced their home’s reputation, even setting up a spooky tent in their front yard where they hand out candy. On Halloween, there are hundreds of residents walking west on their street to kick off trick-or-treating. 

“We learned the hard way to buy way more candy than you think you will need, when we ran out within an hour the first year,” she said, laughing. Now, the Thomases are prepared for the crowds, and their daughters eagerly look forward to the parade. “It is truly a special event that makes me appreciate our tight-knit neighborhood every year,” she said.

In the middle area of Pinerock, Dianne has witnessed the parade evolve over time. She offered her home as a gathering point once her three kids were older, and she was a “trick-or-treater empty nester,” as she affectionally called it. 

Dianne moved into the neighborhood in 1993. “Our house became the ‘after-parade gathering house’ once our kids were too old to trick or treat,” she said. Neighbors would bring a dish, and the kids would eat dinner in their yard after the parade. “We started with one table and ended up adding as many as five tables as neighbors brought along their goodies,” she said. They set up spooky decor, decorated tables, food, and adult beverages. 

The tradition has continued all these years, and today, even without young children in the house, Dianne and her neighbors still come together on Halloween night to keep the spirit of the parade alive, passing out candy together to the next generation. 

For families like the Thomases, Walkers, Brodys, and many others who helped the parade become what it is today, Halloween is not only about costumes and candy – it is about an annual tradition that has brought joy to their families. 

Halloween can be more than just a spooky night of costumes and candy – it can also serve as a chance to connect with neighbors, just as the neighbors of Nottingham do every year.