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As the month of October continues, the Halloween season draws nearer. 

Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation is once again into the holiday spirit. 

Its Halloween Festival returns on Friday, Oct. 18-19 from 6:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at the building at 15 Wheeler Avenue.

Later in the month, the same site will play host to a free Halloween Family Movie Night on Saturday, October 26th. Doors will open at 7:00 p.m. with the movie starting at 7:30 p.m. 

WCCPR Assistant Programs Director Tiffany Fletcher spoke of the first event. 

“Upstairs we [will] have inflatables, pumpkin painting…and prizes and stuff like that,” said Fletcher, who estimates the festival as having taken place for approximately ten years. “Downstairs, our entire fitness area becomes a haunted house…the pool turns into a haunted swamp.” 

The fitness area becoming decorated as a haunted house comes courtesy of the Brown family – including Roni, Thom, Koda and Ben. 

Diventures, a business in Lexington dedicated to teaching scuba lessons and more, contributes to creating a haunted swamp inside the pool. 

The festival also includes additional games, popcorn and apple cider, and more. 

Fletcher adds that a family atmosphere adds to a positive environment. 

“The biggest thing for me is…it’s such an enclosed, safe Halloween event,” she said. “[There’s] lots of grownups around and then lots of times to go through the haunted house as many times as you want.” 

With the event welcome to children of different ages, WCCPR hopes for a solid crowd. 

“Our average is around 200 people per night and we do this for two nights,” Fletcher added. “We always prepare for a crowd because it’s a really popular event.” 

While the Halloween Festival is a recurring event, the Halloween Family Movie Night is the first of its kind presented by WCCPR. 

“That is actually new to us. We haven’t done that before,” Fletcher said. “We’re going to show Hocus Pocus 2 on an inflatable screen in our gymnasium.” 

Hocus Pocus 2 – starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimi as a witchful trio known as the Sanderson sisters – can be viewed freely by the public. 

“We’re going to sell concessions…we’ll have some seating, but we want to make it a nice, cozy meeting night,” Fletcher said, encouraging others to bring blankets, pillows or other items. “We’re just [going to] spread out in the gym.” 

In addition to providing entertainment, the event offers additional perks. 

“One of the best things about it is that our community ends up being involved in everything we do,” Fletcher said. “They really show up for us and we like to make sure that we’re doing our best for them.”