A Spooktacular Celebration
The popularity of Halloween has been on the rise in recent years, although here on St. Simons Island, the occasion often takes a back seat to Georgia-Florida football festivities. According to Fortune magazine, Americans spend almost $7 billion on Halloween, with approximately $2.6 billion of that attributed to candy. That is about $74 per person, an amount that has doubled in the past decade. Most people know that Halloween originated with an ancient Celtic celebration called Samhain, which took place on October 31. Since that observance fell on the eve of All Saints’ Day, the Catholic Church made the event a religious celebration and renamed it All Hallows Eve. But how did candy and trick-or-treating come into play?
It was a Celt tradition to wear masks or blacken faces on Samhain to avoid being recognized by the ghosts that roamed on that night. They also tried to keep the ghosts from entering their houses by leaving bowls of food outside to appease their appetites, and these offerings were often sweets. Sometimes adults would go door-to-door carrying lanterns of hollowed-out turnips and “guising,” or begging for pastries, cakes, and fruits. It wasn’t until the mid-1930s that “guising” became known as trick-or-treating and became more widespread in America. Most early American Halloween celebrations had been fall festivals centered around the harvest. Once the sugar rationing during World War II was over, the Halloween door-to-door call of “trick-or-treat” was common enough to make the Peanuts comic strip in 1951. Candy companies realized the goldmine they were sitting on and encouraged consumers to avoid “tricks” like egging and TPing by giving out their confections as treats. Individually wrapped candies and today’s mini-size bars didn’t come along until the 1970s when spurred by fears of tampering. Once Halloween-specific packaging began, it changed the game altogether and opened a whole new world of confectionary marketing. From ghoulish treats spurred by the monster fad of the 1970s to the gross offerings like candy slime and gummi worms, candy makers were sitting on a gold mine and eager kids were waiting with orange jack-o’lantern buckets and wide-open trick-or-treat bags!
For kids, the best part of Halloween has always been scoring your favorite candy. When you saw the little bag of M&Ms or even better a “regular” size Snickers bar, your little heart soared. You'd take your bag home and sort all the candy by likes and hates. And then the trading began. Two SweetTarts for one $100,000 bar? Your nine-year-old negotiating skills were honed on whether you were willing to give up the Charleston Chew for box of Good & Plenty. Thinking about Halloweens past, we took a look back through the decades to revisit some of the classic popular candies.
A Trip Down Candy Lane
PEZ
Who didn’t love getting a PEZ dispenser in their Halloween sack? It was the ultimate score.
Pez was created in 1927 in Austria as a peppermint treat that got its name from the German word pfeffermintz. By 1948 it had its own unique dispenser and was used in the anti-smoking campaign “No smoking, PEZing allowed.” In 1952, PEZ made their way to the United States. Despite PEZ’s success in Europe, in the U.S., the company found the candy difficult to sell because of the strong peppermint flavor. That is when the fruity colorful candy we know today was created and marketed to children. The very first dispensers available were a full-body Santa, Robot, and Space Gun, and oh, how many hundreds of collectors’ favorites there have been since then! Recently an original unopened package of the space guns sold for $3,000!
Tootsie Pops
We have Clara “Tootsie” Hirshfield’s dad, Leo Hirshfield to thank for Tootsie Rolls back in 1896. They were the first penny candy to be individually wrapped in paper. In the 1930s, the first soft-centered lollipops, Tootsie Pops, were sold. How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? A student study at the University of Cambridge concluded that it takes 3,481 licks to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop. An official test by EIL staff has it taking 674. But to be fair, the last lick was a huge bite.
Bazooka Bubble Gum
Marketed shortly after WWII, the Topps Company used red, white and blue to show American pride. In 1953, the little comic strip we all know and love was added under the wrapper and the comic and protagonist Bazooka Joe become an instant hit. Today, Bazooka bubble gum is sold all around the world with comics translated to local language.
A Bit O Honey? A Mary Jane?
Asking the EIL staff if they could tell the difference didn’t bring an answer but stories of “They were my Uncle’s favorite candy” and “My Grandmother always had them in her candy jar.” Here’s the scoop on those little rectangles of deliciousness: Mary Jane is a peanut butter and molasses flavored taffy-type candy with peanut butter in the center, originally made in 1914 by The Charles N. Miller Co., later by Stark Candy Co., and now manufactured by Necco. Bit-O-Honey first appeared in 1924 and was made by the Schutter-Johnson Company of Chicago. The candy consists of almond bits embedded in a honey-flavored taffy that makes for a long-chewing candy. Whether peanut butter and molasses or almond and honey, both candies bring fond memories for us.
Wax Fangs
Was there nothing better than getting wax lips and fangs in your bag? Put them in, and run around scaring your little siblings just to hear them scream. Pretty soon your teeth marks had them fitting like they were made for just you. And those babies lasted forever. You would find them on the floor in your closet come Christmas time in exactly the same condition. Better to scare your sister when she wasn’t expecting it.
Candy Corn
Love them or hate them, but when you see those tidy, mutli-color triangles hit the market, you know fall is here. Created in the 1880s, candy corn was what kept the Goelitz Confectionary Company afloat through the Great Depression and WWI and II. You may not have heard of Goelitz before but you know them by their new name: Jelly Belly, where last year, over 9 billion pieces of candy corn were produced.
The Teal Pumpkin Project
But sadly, all Halloween candy isn’t safe for every child. Even though food allergies in children are on the rise, many people don’t give much thought to that when choosing candy and treats to hand out for Halloween. That means children with food allergies are often left out of the fun because many candies are off limits. The Teal Pumpkin Project aims to change that. Inspired by a local food allergy awareness activity in Tennessee and launched as a national campaign in 2014 by Food Allergy Research & Education, the Teal Pumpkin Project’s mission is to keep the tradition of Halloween trick-or-treating a fun a safe activity for all children.
How can you participate? Provide non-food treats as an option for trick-or-treaters. Display a pumpkin painted teal outside your home to let people know that you’re part of the project and have non-food treats available. There are free printable signs and posters with sayings “Non-Food Treats Available Here,” “We Have Candy and Non-food Treats,” “You Pick: Candy or Prize,” or “Toys and Treasures Found Here” at foodallergy.org. Use one of these or make your own to place outside to explain your teal pumpkin to people who may not yet be aware of the project.
What are some non-food trick-or-treat items that kids actually love? Glow sticks, necklaces, or bracelets. Bubbles. Bouncy balls. Halloween themed toys like vampire fangs, spider and skull rings. Trading cards or playing cards. Novelty pens, pencils and erasers. Most of these items are available at dollar stores, party supply stores or online shops at a low cost. For homes that still offer candy to trick-or-treaters, a way to make Halloween more safe for children with food allergies is to visit allergysf.com for annually updated lists of candies that are free of the most common allergens (peanut & tree nut free candy, gluten free candy, and candy that contains no wheat or dairy) and choose to offer candies from these lists. Just this small step makes a big difference.
If you do end up with a big candy haul on Halloween and want to give your kids an incentive not to eat it all, Weaver Orthodontics has an annual candy buy-back program with fun incentives and prizes. This year, it takes place from November 1-3. The Buy Back Weigh-In will be between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the Brunswick location. For every pound of candy OR for every 5 cans of food donated, Dr. Weaver will give you a raffle ticket to win a $200 Amazon Gift Card. All canned goods will be donated to Manna House of Brunswick. Candy will be donated to US troops through Operation Shoebox. Visit weaverorthodontics.com and follow Weaver Orthodontics on Facebook for more information.
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Halloween Happenings
Don't forget to get your pumpkins for carving or painting to adorn the front porch, and find somewhere fun to celebrate!
The St. Simons United Methodist Church Pumpkin Patch has been supplying St. Simons Island with pumpkins for at least 25 years. The area’s only non-profit pumpkin patch will be open October 14-31 this year. The pumpkins for sale are from Pumpkin USA in New Mexico, a farm that grows and harvests the pumpkins each year and ships them all over the USA to churches and non-profit groups. When the semi truck full of pumpkins arrives, the church youth and adult volunteers help unload the truck and set up the patch! The funds raised from the pumpkin sales help the church youth to take trips throughout the year, including mission trips with Studentlife each summer. Each year, local children come to the patch for field trips. Children from St Simons UMC preschool, all grades from St. Simons Elementary, and St. Simons Christian School attend these field trips. Other local Girl Scout groups and organizations come for special lessons at the patch as well. At these field trips, children hear pumpkin stories, learn math and science lessons, and each receive a small pumpkin to take home. If you have a group that would like to visit, please call Jennifer Meyers for information at 912.638.3317. Other events at the patch include Party in the Patch which will be held Sunday, October 23 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. Regular pumpkin patch hours are Monday-Friday 11:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m., Saturdays 9:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m. and Sunday 12:00-7:00 p.m. Please visit stsimonsumc.com for more details.
Poppell Farms in Odum is a fun fall field trip too. In addition to a huge pumpkin patch, they have hayrides, a children’s play area, a petting farm, a 10-acre corn maze and “The Haunted Woods.” This year’s corn maze celebrates the 50th anniversary of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” and featured Linus holding his sign in the pumpkin patch. The maze is open every Friday night from 5-10:00 p.m., Saturdays from 10:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. and Sundays 12:00-5:00 p.m. through October 30. Poppell Farms will also host a special screening of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” on Saturday, October 29 at 7:30 p.m. For more information, visit poppellfarms.com.
Another family-friendly event is Oglethorpe Elementary School’s Fall Festival. This is the school’s largest individual fundraiser, and will be held on Friday, October 28 from 5:00-8:00 p.m. This is the PERFECT way to keep kids entertained while guests are in town for Georgia-Florida weekend! This year's Fall Festival will have Games2U games such as laser tag, the hamster ball track, and inflatable obstacle courses. There will also be the Coastal Selfies photo booth, Glitterboxx Face Painting, Three Oaks Farm horseback rides, and the Jelly Bean Train, in addition to all of the normal festival games. If you’re hungry, pizza, hot dogs, Sonic slushees, cotton candy, popcorn, and bake sale items will all be available to purchase. All proceeds go to the OPES PTA to use for books, reading programs, and other programs and items that benefit students. $10 wristbands allow unlimited access to all games and activities, and can be purchased at the door of OPES the night of the event.
If you like things on the scarier side, you won’t want to miss the 3rd Annual Haunted Forest Extravaganza benefiting Safe Harbor Children’s Advocacy Center. The Haunted Forest takes place at Gascoigne Bluff Park on St. Simons Island, Wednesday, October 26, through Monday, October 31, from 7:00-10:00 p.m. Entry fee is $5. This year there are some new additions and ways to participate. There will be a Zombie Apocalypse Paintball Hay Ride for $15, and a Halloween Costume Contest Photo Booth with a $5 entry fee. Pictures will be posted nightly to the Haunted Forest Facebook page and winner will be chosen based on highest number of likes. Sponsors also have the option of showcasing their creativity in a Spooky Set Design Challenge. Contestants will use their imagination and wit to compete and construct innovative and frighteningly fantastic scenes to thrill and chill visitors to the forest. The creators of the winning design will take home a flamboyant trophy, PR/prize package, and, most importantly, bragging rights. Winner will be chosen based on highest number of attendee votes. Spooky Set Design Challenge entry deadline is Friday, October 14th, and this must include an intended Set Design. Entry fee is $5. If you’d like to enter or be a sponsor, contact Chris Morgan at cmorgan@safeharborcenterinc.org or 912.554.0609. If you’d like to volunteer at the Haunted Forest, see information on the 3rd Annual Haunted Forest Facebook page for announcements and forms or contact Beth Ann Tuerff at batuerff@safeharborcenterinc.org or 912.267.6000.
For information about additional Fall Festivals, Trunk-or-Treat, Oktoberfest, and Halloween Parties, keep an eye on the Elegant Island Living website calendar and social media. We’ll post events on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram regularly. Happy Halloween! We hope yours is filled with treats and the only tricks are the ones pulled by the Dawgs on the field against the Gators that weekend!
