Monday, November 10, 2025
Halloween Family Fun Day will return to Arthur J. Hendrickson Park in Valley Stream on Oct. 18 — a longstanding village tradition that has been held annually for more than two decades.
The free event, organized by the Valley Stream Recreation Department, draws hundreds of children and families each year for a day of costumes, crafts and seasonal celebration. A rain date is scheduled for Oct. 25.
“Halloween is a ‘spook-tacular’ time for our children and families in Valley Stream,” Mayor Ed Fare said. “There are so many aspects of our Halloween Family Fun Day, and it never gets old watching the excitement on children’s faces as they create their unique pumpkin designs and show off this year’s special costumes. The Village Board and our village staff work very hard to bring this joyful event to our families, and each year, it gets bigger and better. I hope everyone, young or young at heart, will attend.”
The day will begin with a special sensory-friendly hour from 10 to 11 a.m., a feature introduced in recent years to make the event more accessible for children who prefer a quieter environment. Music will be turned down, crowds limited and activities paced differently to accommodate families who may find the atmosphere of the regular event overwhelming.
According to Recreation Director Jimmy Fitanzo, the idea for a more serene environment grew out of conversations with local PTAs, and it has become one of the most well-attended hours of the day. Recreation staff members, many of whom work as teachers during the school year, will oversee this portion of the event.
The event will then open to the full crowd at 11 a.m., when the park will come alive with music from a DJ, costumed characters, a bouncy house and giveaways. Each child who attends will receive a goodie bag, with organizers preparing around a thousand bags in the weeks leading up to the event. Planning begins shortly after Labor Day, with staff taking inventory of supplies, filling bags and coordinating logistics with other village departments.
“We have a really good crew who’s done it for quite a few years, and it runs top-notch,” Fitanzo said. “And they enjoy doing it. They really do. All our events are great. This one, we take a little bit more to heart because you’re dealing with kids, and it’s great to see the kids coming in smiling, and especially because of Halloween.”
Pumpkin painting will be one of the featured activities, scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. All pumpkins, paint and craft supplies will be provided, and families are required to register by calling the recreation department at (516) 872-6003, which helps organizers plan for the number of participants. Children will decorate their own pumpkins and take them home, a simple tradition that remains one of the most popular parts of the day.
The excitement will then build towards the costume contest at 2 p.m., when families will line up to show off creative and spooky outfits. Prizes will be awarded for the scariest and most creative costumes and pumpkins, with judging often done by members of the Valley Stream Youth Council, the Valley Stream Chamber of Commerce and senior recreation staff.
“Every year, we are more amazed by the creativity,” Fitanzo said. “This is why Valley Stream is so special — the creativity of the costumes that they come up with. A lot of them take this seriously. They make their own costumes. But some of the costumes from years’ past are just memorable. You’re like, ‘Wow, that’s elaborate.’ And you can tell they put a lot of work, a lot of detail.
“It’s a good thing, because it’s families that are doing this together,” he continued. “They’re getting ready for the event. They take the time to make a costume — something creative, something that the child wants to be — and they make it work. And then they get to come over, and we display it in front of everybody.”
When the daytime activities end at Hendrickson Park, the focus will shift to Barrett Park for Halloween Movie Night, where “Wicked” will be screened outdoors. Gates will open at 5 p.m., and the movie will begin at 7 p.m. The movie screening was introduced last year, allowing families who can’t make the daytime activities to still participate in the evening’s Halloween celebration. The remaining treat bags will be brought over to Barrett Park so children attending the movie could also take some goodies home.
Running both events in one day involves careful coordination by the recreation department. Staff members are scheduled weeks in advance to cover both the morning and evening shifts, and the village’s maintenance department manages the technical setup of the movie screen and sound system.
Holding the Halloween celebration in the two parks helps reach families from different parts of Valley Stream, making it more accessible to the broader community, organizers said.
