Connoquenessing fire company holds annual Halloween parade, costume contest
CONNOQUENESSING — Monsters, princesses, heroes and villains took over Connoquenessing Community Park on Sunday afternoon, Oct. 27, for the borough’s annual Halloween Parade and Costume contest.
Paradegoers, big and small, came dressed in costumes of characters including Mario and Luigi, Yoshi, Charizard, Optimus Prime, Beetlejuice, Batman and the Joker. They lined up at the park’s softball field before making their way toward the pavilion, led by a truck from the volunteer fire department which helped organize the event.
“I dunno, I just like the Joker,” said 11-year-old Bryor Cox, who came dressed as the iconic Batman villain.
This marked the fifth year of the Halloween parade at the park after moving from its former location.
“We used to have it on Main Street of Connoquenessing,” said Matt McConnell, a captain with the Connoquenessing Volunteer Fire Department. “In 2020, we weren’t allowed to have it at the fire station, so we had it here at the park, and it went over so well that we’ve kept it here since.”
Eerie Acres Farm, an annual haunted house attraction on Eagle Mill Road in Connoquenessing Township, also contributed to the festivities by putting together what it calls a “Not-Too-Spooky Trail” for children along one of the trails in the park.
“It’s a trail with some scary stuff up there,” said Justin Krenitsky of Eerie Acres, who came dressed as a clown. “We’re going to be handing out candy and giving back to the little kids.”
The centerpiece of the event was the costume contest, which offered prizes to three winners each in age brackets of 3 and younger, 4 to 6, 7 to 9, 10 to 12, and 13 and older.
Judges for the contest were Tyler Friel of Butler Radio; Jeff Kroner, music department chairman for the Butler Area School District; and Barb Tanski, who, according to McConnell, has been judging the costume contest for more than two decades.
One of the more-unique costumes at the parade was worn by 13-year-old Nathan Cox of Evans City, who came dressed as a plane — more specifically, a Cessna 172.
“I wanted to be one because my dad’s into flying, and it’s actually one of the planes he flies,” Cox said.
