KENT COUNTY, Mich. — Along streets in northern Kent County, what first appears to be regular neighborhoods reveals homes that have taken on a spooky visage.
“There's just something magical about kids being able to come out at night and pretend to be something else, just for one evening,” said Angela Welch, walking through her haunted house display that takes up her entire front yard and even the front side of her home. “And they get rewarded for it with candy!”
On the northwest side of Grand Rapids, Welch’s yard includes a mausoleum and faux siding that transformed her home into a haunted attraction.
“I just use rebar to get everything in the ground, the headstones, the mausoleum and even the fake siding up there is all made out of insulation foam board,” explained Welch.
Piece by piece people throughout the area have conjured up their own haunted creations, becoming ready to welcome the little ghosts, heroes and creatures approaching for treats.
“I love just seeing the awe and wonder of kids,” said Welch. “But the other piece for me too is I do dress up, so I do like to scare the older ones if I can.”
Welch added that parents are not exempt from receiving a scare as well.
In the Westgate neighborhood in Comstock Park, neighbors have built displays that attract trick-or-treaters from across the area.
One of the most known is The Haunting of Storybook Hollow, a house that transforms itself into an immersive fantasy experience each year. Trick-or-treaters are led up the winding path full of fairy-tale characters to a dragon emerging from the garage.
On the other side of the block, Hunter Anderson stands next to the sinking pirate ship he built on his front yard, surrounded by a frightfully fun arrangement of skeletons.
“I say there's probably twice as many people come through West Gate,” said Anderson about how many people visit for Halloween. “I love sitting out here. I'll sit in a chair out and just, you know, people come up, they want to ask questions, or people want to set up their own haunts even.”
For both Welch and Anderson, their crafts are a family affair, and traditions they maintain each year.
“My husband inherited the job of helping me set up this stuff. We don't have kids, so I do this for everybody else's kids,” said Welch. “And for myself.”