The city of Ceres will host the 4th annual Trunk or Treat event at Whitmore Park on Saturday, Oct. 30 – the day before Halloween.

The event will be held from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., not in the evening.

“We are in the midst of a lot of stuff with it,” said Katie Lemburg, the city’s new recreation supervisor.

Groups, businesses or individuals that would like to participate by having a trunk or booth – typically decorated with a Halloween theme – should contact the city of Ceres by registering online at www.ci.ceres.ca.us or calling 538-5628. Individuals and businesses will be asked to provide candy or pay $50 so the city can give them candy to hand out to families which are encouraged to come out in costume.

Up to 30 booths or trunks will be permitted and roughly 20 have already signed up.

“We’re trying to space them out a little bit better this year obviously because of COVID and to just have them be able to have their whole setup that they want so without being on top of each other.”

The event will include games in the park, a dance floor with music played by a deejay, a photo booth and an arts and crafts table.

“It’s a little bit more activities so people aren’t just going through and done in 10 minutes,” said Lemberg. “They can stay and hang out.”

Three food vendors have been secured to set up so families can buy food if they so choose.

The city’s Halloween events have changed through the years. Last year, because of the pandemic, the city offered a drive-through candy giveaway. The longstanding tradition of the Halloween Safety Fun Festival – which moved in 2009 from Smyrna Park at the Community Center – became the Truck-or-Treat event on Fourth Street in 2018. The event was then moved to Whitmore Park.