Peggy Dover

Another Halloween is fast approaching when I will once again fail to model my ham costume after the fashion of Scout in “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

With each passing year, I have to readjust my calculations to allow for more chicken wire and papier mâché. When I was a kid, buying a costume at the local Woolworth was easy —a black cat mask with some sort of pullover, non-flammable, pseudo cat bodysuit — add black tights and a tail from a bathrobe and I was set.

Trick-or-treating with a friend was always the much anticipated highlight. Parties were not the norm. Now, the whole family gets into the action and into a costume. There are valley-wide choices, but one event has flashed a large blip on my radar, and it’s right here in my little town.

The Eagle Point Chamber of Commerce, along with Eagle Point Community Church and Trail Christian Fellowship, have joined forces once again to hold their 1st annual Downtown Hoedown, a family-friendly neighborhood party, from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26.

All are as welcome as pumpkins on a porch, and it promises to be a memorable time of amusement, games and of course, candy. Downtown Hoedown was so popular last year in its inaugural year that the event coordinator, Debbie Conley, a human dynamo with a huge heart for kids, said there were at least 1,000 attendees, with an even bigger crowd expected this year.

“We love to see the smiles on the faces of those who attend,” Conley said. “We try to encourage fun costumes without making it too scary or ghoulish for the littlest ones.”

It sounds like my ham outfit would fit right in.

Included in the festivities will be carnival games, hayrides, a jump house, a DJ for line dancing, food trucks, and a variety of Trunks-and-Treats filled with candy for kids who show up in Halloween costumes. Have a photo taken under the balloon arch, play a rousing game of cornhole, and have your face painted by local artists. I wonder if they could do a possum?

The best part is, with the exception of food for purchase, the entire event is free, as in, no admission fee and no charge for any of the activities. Thank the churches for their community love, time and effort here.

Main Street in Eagle Point, from City Hall down to the empty lot by the old fire station, will be closed to traffic in order for the party to spread out and welcome children of all ages. Eagle Point will provide police security as well. Conley shared how the popular event came to be:

“The Downtown Hoedown was dreamed into existence by Travis Connick, senior pastor of Trail Christian Fellowship; Mike Bull, senior pastor at Eagle Point Community Bible Church; and Amber Hardin, president of the Eagle Point Chamber of Commerce.”

The idea is to bring the entire community together in a safe, friendly atmosphere.

I wish we would have had something like this in our neighborhood when I was a kid. But wait, I’m still a kid so much of the time that I don’t think anyone will notice my height. I might even don my cowgirl boots and slip in line to be a dancing ham as I have been in the past, without the costume.

A tremendous amount of work goes into an effort like this. Please contact Debbie Conley at 541-261-2605 if you’re able to volunteer last-minute. There are many different areas where they could use extra hands, or if you happen to own a dump truck full of candy. No, I’m kidding again. But donations of candy are welcome.

You could bring it to my house if it’s chocolate and I’ll be sure it gets to the Hoedown. Really. Snickers.