More than 600 people turned out Saturday, Oct. 17, for Stickney’s annual Haunted Hayride and Pumpkin Patch at 43rd and Ridgeland.
Mayor Mitch Milenkovic and the village’s Parks and Recreation Committee hosted the event, two weeks ahead of Halloween.
“We have a lot of people this year,” said Trustee Lea Torres, co-chair of the committee.
Four wagons, each holding 40 people, kept circling from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., Torres said. The ride cost $5 and was open to everyone.
The minimal cost goes towards keeping the event going.
The pumpkin patch was for Stickney residents 12 and younger, who could browse and pick a free pumpkin from more than 300 the village had on hand, Torres said.
Trustee Jim Hrejsa, who chairs the committee, recruited the volunteers who dressed up and acted as the hayride’s scare crew. Torres said he did a fantastic job.
The Stickney Fire Department thrilled everyone with a huge bonfire for folks to sit around while sipping their free hot chocolate and enjoying free hot popcorn that was handed out.
“It’s a good day. The weather is good and everyone is having a good time,” Torres said. “We are looking forward to next year.”
Milenkovic was equally pleased. “Everyone did a great job putting this together. We had perfect weather and the four wagons running kept the lines down. It was a great turnout and we had many scary volunteer actors hiding along the trail. We had no problems at all,” he said.
