Hello and welcome to the first installment of Around Town! I don’t know about you, but my Halloween night was spent roaming the streets of my neighborhood Sherman Hill for this year’s Halloween on the Hill. This is an annual event that the Sherman Hill Association hosts to get residents in the Halloween spirit while also to giving back to the community. Part of the appeal of Halloween on the Hill is that a collection for the Des Moines Area Religious Council (DMARC) Food Pantry is held all night. In order to get a map of all the events, you must bring either non-perishable food, other needed items, or a money donation. It was a chilly night, so hot chocolate was also sold with all purchases going towards Beacon of Life, a nonprofit for women in crisis.

Halloween on the Hill happens every year on October 31st. The main festivities take place on 15th and Center Street in the neighborhood and at Hoyt Sherman Place. The entire neighborhood goes pretty hardcore on decorating their houses, but 15th and Center Street is where most of the action is. Games, extravagant decorations, and live dancers can be found all along these streets. The biggest crowd formed around a live performance of Michael Jackson’s Thriller, which has become a bit of a staple of Halloween on the Hill over the past few years.

After seeing all the great decorations and performances, why not head over to Hoyt Sherman? There a handful of vendors were selling a variety of Halloween-esque items from real animal bones, to 3D printed decorations, to handmade clothes and jewelry. You could even get your fortune read if you’d like!

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The evolution of this event has been phenomenal. I remember when I was younger that Halloween on the Hill was just a day when cars would drive by and look at all the decorated houses. As I got older, people started getting more extravagant in their decorations. Eventually people would roam their yards or even the streets to scare onlookers. Now, there are multiple live dancers in the neighborhood and vendors selling some really high quality things at Hoyt Sherman. Although this year’s Halloween on the Hill is over, next year’s is something you should definitely mark your calendars for. Not only can you dress up, have fun, and maybe pick up a souvenir, but you can also make a small donation and help someone out in our community!