Plenty of Activities for Young and Old on Halloween

There will be an assortment of activities for young and old alike during the upcoming Halloween season. One of the first events will take place the weekend before Halloween.

The Chinook Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Murder Mystery Weekend on October 25 and 26. The mystery has a 70's theme and centers around the apparent death of Mrs. Black. The event is the brainchild of Senior Center Director Ginger Hansen who participated in one in Townsend, Montana. "It was a lot of fun, and I thought, 'Why couldn't Chinook put something like this on?'"

The event is designed to be a Merchant booster and will take place over two days beginning Friday night Oct. 25 when four person teams will pick up their list of clues and plan their strategy at the commercial building at the fairgrounds. There will be snacks provided that night and a charcuterie board, as well as a no host bar provided by the Mint Bar. Steve Warburton will be the DJ for both nights providing music for dancing. There will also be a Calcutta auction on Friday night to bid on your favorite team. "I also have an actress who will be playing two roles during the event," said Hansen.

The fun heats up Saturday when the teams will visit businesses in town to do some interrogation and pick up more information. "Every merchant has clue sheets and every clue is different. Each business also has more information they can give you to help solve the mystery," said Hansen. Each team will have a who, what, when why, and where sheet they will fill out and turn in Saturday night when they meet back at the commercial building before the prime rib dinner is served, prepared by Doug Mitchell. Hansen will also be providing Death by Chocolate. Participants are encouraged to wear costumes that evening and during the interrogation. Prizes will be awarded for the best costume on Saturday night along with the winners of the mystery contest.

"I hope to make this an annual event," said Hansen. "I'm super excited about this and is a great opportunity for the local merchants to get more exposure," she added. Businesses participating include, The Blaine County Museum, Shores Floral, Prairie Pieces, Chinook Pharmacy, The Pastime, The Eagles, ACE Hardware, Brickcent$, The Mint, and Finley's Food Farm.

There are still spots available for teams. Give Ginger a call at 406- 265-0803 by noon on Thursday Oct. 24 to reserve a spot.

The Blaine County Health Department is once again sponsoring Trunk or Treat. Individuals and businesses can set up their vehicles on the 400 block near Finley's Food Farm between 5 pm and 6 pm and candy dispersion will begin at 6 pm until about 7 pm. Participants are asked to have individually wrapped treats only and no homemade products.

The FOE Eagles will also be hosting a haunted house, October 28-31. The younger goblins can attend from 5pm to 6pm for a scare free adventure. Older kids and adults can attend from 6pm to 9pm for the full haunted house effect. Sunday, November 3, there will also be dinner and a movie for the kids showing Casper the Friendly Ghost at 7 pm.

Meadowlark Students will be able to pick up treats at the Chinook Senior Center from 3:30 – 5 pm. The Senior Center staff along with residents of the Villa will be decked out in costumes for the day.

The Sweet Nursing Home will also be entertaining trick-or-treaters from 5pm to 7 pm on Halloween, with residents passing out treats.

Wishing everyone a safe and fun Halloween. Watch for little ones that night.