It’s the spookiest time of year. In a few short weeks, Halloween will be here! That means haunted houses, trick or treating and tons of haunts and thrills. While Halloween has traditional activities set in stone, there is an opportunity to make this year’s frightening holiday into one of joy. Check out these ways you can take a classic holiday and turn it into an altruistic opportunity.  

Donate Candy and Costumes

Millions of children will dress up this year and go door to door trick or treating. Next year, many of those same children won’t be able to fit into their costumes from the previous year. Children grow quickly. Consider donating your gently used costumes to a secondhand store or an organization that will give away the costumes to children in need. 

Likewise, it can help the environment to shop secondhand for your own Halloween costumes. Reusing clothes can often help avoid the landfill and slow production of new items. 

In addition to costumes, there are some who won’t be able to afford candy for their children or to give to the neighborhood this year. If you’re able, consider donating candy to local organizations or even a neighbor you know who may be in need. 

Try Reverse Trick or Treating

Instead of going door to door asking for candy, consider giving back items that are needed at a local organization. Some communities offer the idea of “reverse trick or treating” where you can go from person to person to give them things they are collecting for a local organization or people in need. If this doesn’t yet exist in your community, consider being the first to introduce the idea. 

Host a Fundraiser

Charge a fee to get into a costume party and donate the proceeds to charity. Ask the community to donate items for a raffle and sell raffle tickets for charity. There’s always a great idea for a fundraiser just waiting to be discovered. Get with your family and friends to think up something that’s both fun and for a great cause!

A fall festival is a great idea to raise money for an organization of your choice. Get local food vendors involved, come up with games and prizes and involve some fun decorations. You can charge a fee to get into the carnival and donate those proceeds to a local organization or multiple charities. 

While Halloween is normally reserved for scary-good fun, that doesn’t mean you can’t get involved to benefit a scary-good cause. Talk with members of your local community to come up with an idea that will best suit your needs. Use this as an opportunity to come up with a new Halloween tradition that you’ll love to add to your list of holiday traditions.