It was a tough decision for the Mayor of Bradford West Gwillimbury (BWG) and members of council to decide on a winner for this year's annual Halloween/Fall House Decorating Contest that they had two tie-breakers.
Mayor Rob Keffer, Deputy Mayor James Leduc, Councillor Jonathan Scott, and Bradford resident Lt. Col. Ferguson Mobbs (Ret.) hand-delivered prizes to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners Saturday afternoon in the town's Halloween House Decorating contest.
Residents were encouraged to submit photos of their spooky lawn decorations and/or fall creations by noon on Friday for a chance to win a prize and official bragging rights.
The town received 17 submissions for the contest. Criteria used to judge each entry included creativity, originality, effort/time, and attention to any hand-made decorations were also taken into consideration.
"We wanted to give residents an opportunity to recognize their hard work while making the community a better place and putting smiles on people's faces," expressed Mayor Keffer.
"And that's what it's all about, the smile!" adds Deputy Mayor Leduc. "We've been in Covid for so long now, and this weekend is going to be our first great celebration for the children to come by and see this. We wanted to be a part of this and acknowledge your efforts so these kids have a great night."
This year's first place winner was the 'Queen of Halloween' Helen Garrett and her son William who reside on Brittania where every-inch-of-their-lawn is decorated with ghoulish creations.
"I wasn't about to let Covid stop us from decorating," shares Garrett, who uses a 'chute' method to hand out candy safely to kids from a distance. "People can still at least walk by and admire the display."
Garrett started decorating on Oct. 1 and adds a little bit every day until the 31st, building her creation with her son.
"Everyone hands out candy on this street because it's just so popular," says William, who hung all the fake bodies in the large tree that drapes over their property.
Garrett donates the discarded pumpkins to the Wishing Well (animal sanctuary) in Bradford after the fun of Halloween has ended.
Second place winner (which came down to a tie-breaker) was Nicholas Button who lives on Maplegrove Avenue. He made a lot of the decorations on his lawn by hand.
"I really appreciate this!" exclaimed Button who was surprised and happy to win. "Thank you all so much!"
Button's Halloween attraction included a CRA (Canada Tax Revenue) display which had the judges howling in laughter.
Third place winner was the Pereira family (also a tie-breaker): Angelo and Katelyn Pereira and their four-year-old daughter Madison.
Angelo personally made many of the large pieces by hand including a wooden coffin that sits on the lawn with a skeleton inside, and a dummy he 'impaled' on one of many tall, home-made spikes that lines the front pathway to door of the home.
"How does a ghost get upstairs?" Madison asked Mayor Keffer as he handed the family their prize for winning third place. "The SCARE-case!"
The couple share their daughter is not scared of any of her father's creations and many of the spooky dolls were originally hers (and she has names for all of them).
"We love driving around town and looking at everyone else's creations too!" expressed Katelyn Pereira. "Everyone did such an amazing job!"
Each winner received a hand-painted wood-plaque in the shape of a house that reads: "Home Sweet 'Haunted' Home".
Additionally, each winner's names will be printed on an official plaque that will be on display for the community to see, and each year new names will be added to the plaque.
"This is a great idea that the town has implemented," commented Lt. Hobbs who adds he loves this holiday.
Honorable mention was given to home-owner Celine Galaise for her fall decor at her residence on County Road 88 in Bond Head. The mayor stopped by to present her with a prize.
Thank you to everyone who submitted their entries, and to all residents of Bradford West Gwillimbury who took the time to decorate for this season's Halloween holiday!
