C2E thread now dEdmonton — Canada's Halloween festival!
Friday October 02, 2009

A little over one year ago dEdmonton was born as a lunch-hour musing on C2E. Now it has grown into a not-for-profit dedicated to the celebration of Halloween in and around Edmonton. Our goal is to promote Halloween-related events and organizations, and to turn the whole of October into a celebration of the mischievously morbid and macabre. “The More…The Scarier” is our motto, and we have tirelessly dug up all-things Halloween – from fiendishly fun family activities; to devilishly diverse nightlife; to horror happenings. We've stitched, bolted and brought them all together to give Festival City another attraction, and we will reanimate Edmonton as the Halloween Capital of Canada!



View more images from the Capital Ex Parade >>

dEdmonton truly burst forth into the world with the 2009 Capital Ex Parade. With the help of the Edmonton Bonewagon Association; the River City Zombie Committee; Karrie's Costumes; Bloody the Clown; Freezone Zedmonton disaster preparedness group; and DEDfest: Hellberta's Horror Festival, we created Halloween in July. And then we took the show on the road around the province to parades in Vegreville, Lamont, Spruce Grove and Westlock.

View our Events Calendar >>

Now Halloween is fast approaching, and we want to help you to make the most of the scariest month. Our Events Calendar has over 100 events taking place throughout the month - from the corn maze to horror movies to a night at the symphony there is something for everyone. If you can't decide what costume is right for you, or if you are looking for that perfect prop to complete your haunted house then our list of all the spooky Retailers will help you celebrate dEdmonton in style.

Speaking of haunted houses, every year frightfully fun Haunted Houses and Grisly Graveyards rise throughout the city - sometimes in the most unexpected of places. That's why we have created dEdmonton's Most Haunted. We want everyone to know about all these E-ville extreme makeovers; whether they are across town or just down the block. So plan a tour of dEdmonton’s Most Haunted, or add one of these mansions of the macabre to your route for trick-or-treating. And since many of these amateur abattoirs collect donations for the Food Bank you can scare yourself silly while supporting a good cause.

Halloween offers many other opportunities to do good while being bad. The River City Zombie Committee are using their Zombie Walk on the 16th as a fundraiser for the Edmonton Food Bank - to feed their food, as it were. On Halloween St. Albert and Clyde will both be filling hearses with food for the Food Bank. The Haunted Hike in Sherwood park is raising money for the Stollery Childrens Hospital. The Scarecrow Festival for ABC Headstart is now in its amazing 17th year at Northlands from the 16-18. Elves Special Needs Society are bringing Mardi Gras to the Mayfield with their Masquerade Ball on the 24th. ACTSS' 9th Annual Halloween Extravaganza on the 23rd for pet cancer therapy gives you a chance to put your pets in costume and take them out for a night on the town. And if you don't have a pet, then dress yourself up and join the Wildlife Rehabilitation Society of Edmonton for a fun-run through Hawrelak Park on the 25th. Canadian Blood Services is also having a month-long blood drive, and since the vampires are going to get you anyway you might as well make a visit to CBS first. With all that and more, the Halloween season really is all about giving.

We have also started the search for the very first Miss dEdmonton. We are looking for the most gorgeously gruesome and delectably decaying damsel in all of dEdmonton. The winner will be selected on October 13th, and will be outfitted in a Corset, Crown and Converse, courtesy Sweet Carousel, Karrie's Costumes and Divine, as well as other prizes from Amber’s Brewing, amokphoto and Rowena. Miss dEdmonton will be our spokesperson for the coming year - including a "Nightmare Before Christmas" themed entry in the Santa Claus parade this December.

So have you planned you October yet?

Boo!

-- Rona Anderson, Kenn Bur, Derek Clayton, Christian Nelson, Darryl Plunkie

The dEdmonton Board of Directors
email – info@dEdmonton.com
www.dEdmonton.com
Follow dEdmonton on Twitter
dEdmonton on Facebook

Column ID#: 114

**Opinions expressed by guest columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of Connect2Edmonton members, partners or sponsors.**

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