by Kirby Lindsay, posted 26 October 2012

'Where to next?' After the Bubbleman show at Lenin, costumed kiddies head off to Trick-or-Treat In Fremont Photo by K. Lindsay, 2011

On Wednesday, October 31^st, Trick-or-Treat In Fremont will take place – perhaps for the 15^th year.  Unfortunately, as with most grassroots activities launched in this community, the meticulous documentation, tracking and detailed note-taking came later.  The first Trick-or-Treat I organized in Fremont was a much more slap-dash, make-it-up-as-I-go-along affair, and none of the materials remain.

Does it matter what the costume is supposed to be (a battery?) when the child is this cute? Photo from Trick-or-Treat In Fremont 2009 - by K. Lindsay

Yet, from humble beginnings, 2012 has developed into an event involving the majority of the business community here, and stands as possibly the family-friendliest of all Fremont festivities.  Each year Trick-or-Treat grows in some way, and this year will be no exception…in that regard.

More Business Participation

I organize Trick-or-Treat, and each year I attempt to get more businesses signed up to participate (I always attempt, I do not always succeed.)  This year, the goal was a record-breaking 150 – and I failed.  Yet, more businesses have signed up to distribute treats to children (in costume, and accompanied by an adult) than ever before – 112 at last count!

How It Works:  Trick-or-Treat is possibly the feel-goody-est of all Fremont events, as well as the simplest.  Each year Fremont businesses (retailers, restaurants, store-front offices, and even a brewery and a distillery this year) agree to distribute treats they provide (it does not have to be candy…but it usually is) to costumed kiddies between 3p – 6p on October 31^st.

The generosity of Fremont businesses (here at Carquest) can be best experienced at Trick-or-Treat on Oct 31st Photo by K. Lindsay, 2008

Trick-or-Treat In Fremont always takes place on Halloween Day.  Fremont may frequently fail at being traditional and/or conventional (case in point – the Lenin Lighting & Fremont Festivus celebration on December 7^th) but Trick-or-Treat takes place on Halloween Day.

In 2012, thanks to Cougar Mountain Productions, the reimagined Trick-or-Treat website contains an alphabetical list of all participating businesses – with links to websites (if they have one) – and a Google map by BatchGeo.

For many years, Trick-or-Treat had a printed map that showed locations of the participating businesses.  Distribution of the map always posed huge problems, and then got largely ignored.  To save resources, (and my sanity – just try to cram 100+ businesses on a map) that effort was abandoned in 2010.

The Good Guys – The Participating Businesses

Several Fremont businesses get into costume, and decorations, for the Halloween Trick-or-Treat. Here is Steve at Norm's Eatery. Photo by K. Lindsay, 2009

This list of the registered businesses participating in 2012 has been divided by streets (more or less,) as a contrast with the list on the website.

On N 36^th St (West to East) –

Cristy Carner Salon & Spa (100 NW 36^th St;) Ancient Arts Holistic Veterinary Services (110 N 36^th St;) Petapoluza Pet Supply (114 N 36^th St;) Condor Electronics (125 N 36^th St;) Wright Bros. Cycle Works (219 N 36th St;) Brown Paper Tickets (309 N 36^th St, upstairs;)  Kaosamai Thai (404 N 36^th St;) The Ballroom (456 N 36^th St;) Fremont Coffee (459 N 36^th St;) Norm’s Eatery & Ale House (460 N 36^th St;) Roxy’s Diner (462 N 36^th St;) Mishu (465 N 36^th St;) Qazis (473 N 36^th St;) Rudy’s Barbershop (475 N 36^th St;) Pete’s Fremont Fire Pit (501 N 36^th St;) Edward Jones – Marko Tubic (503 N 36^th St;) Clear Cut Plastics (507 N 36^th St;) Hub And Bespoke (513 N 36^th St;) Habitude Fremont (513 N 36^th St;) Bitters Co. (513 N 36^th St;) FedEx Office (600 N 36^th St;) Kylie’s Chicago Pizza (3601 Fremont Ave N  #101;) and Fremont Cigar (3526 Fremont Pl N)

Adorable, and imaginative, a diminutive poultry during Trick-or-Treat In Fremont 2007 Photo by Garry Hodgson

…And All Around Fremont Place –

Royal Grinders (3526 Fremont Pl N;) Pel’meni Dumpling Tzar (3516 Fremont Pl N;) e.t.g. (3512 Fremont Pl N;) Fremont Jewelry Design (3510 Fremont Pl N;) Silence-Heart-Nest (3508 Fremont Pl N;) Bliss (3501 Fremont Ave N;) and 9 Million In Unmarked Bills (3507 Fremont Pl N)

On the Way Along N 35^th St (West to East) –

Urban Earth (1051 N 35^th St;) Fremont Branch, Seattle Public Library (731 N 35^th St;) Literacy Source (720 N 35^th St;) Not A Number (720 N 35^th St;) Ooh La’s Hair Salon (711 N 35^th St;) Show Pony (702 N 35^th St;) Portage Bay Goods (621 N 35^th St;) Lamb’s Ear & Thistle (617 N 35^th St;) Essenza (615 N 35^th St;) Merge Boutique (611 N 35^th St;) Les Amis (3420 Evanston Ave N;) DesteeNation (3412 Evanston Ave N;) Wine Tea Chocolate (3417 Evanston Ave N #102;) The Sweet Spot (3507 Evanston Ave N;) Art F/X Gallery (420 N 35^th St;) Rich’s Products Corp (408 N 35^th St;) Theo Chocolate (3400 Phinney Ave N;) and Free Range Cycles (3501 Phinney Ave N)

An astronaut finds his way 'round Fremont during Trick-or-Treat 2009. Here at Yak's. Photo by K. Lindsay

Along (& Around) Stone Way –

Lama G’s Café (1060 N 39^th St;) Fusion Beads (3830 Stone Way N;) Daly’s Paint (3525 Stone Way N;) evo (3500 Stone Way N;) Speedy Reedy Multisport (1300 N Northlake Wy #103;) and Solsticio (1100 N Northlake Wy)

On Fremont Avenue (North to South)-

Video Isle (4459 Fremont Ave N;) Marketime Foods (4416 Fremont Ave N;) Naturopathic Family Medicine (4411 Fremont Ave N;) Uneeda Burger (4306 Fremont Ave N;) Pecado Bueno (4307 Fremont Ave N;) Via Tribunali (4303 Fremont Ave N;) Caffe Vita (4301 Fremont Ave N;) Dot’s Delicatessen (4262 Fremont Ave N;) ten22home (4258 Fremont Ave N;) Ha! (4256 Fremont Ave N;) Eyes On Fremont (4254 Fremont Ave N;) Book Larder (4252 Fremont Ave N;)

At Fremont Cigar, a pilot puzzles over the meaning of Halloween in Fremont - is it about treats (a la Trick-or-Treat) or bubbles? Photo by K. Lindsay, Oct 2011

Fremont Health Club (3601 Fremont Ave N;) Hunger (3601 Fremont Ave N;) Chiso Sushi Restaurant (3520 Fremont Ave N;) The UPS Store (3518 Fremont Ave N;) Fremont Spine & Wellness (3514 Fremont Ave N;) Bluebird Microcreamery (3515 Fremont Ave N;) Hotel/Hotel (3515 Fremont Ave N;) Pie (3515 Fremont Ave N;) Frame Up Studios (3515 Fremont Ave N;) Seattle Rental Group (3509 Fremont Ave N, #300;) Jive Time Records (3506 Fremont Ave N;) Ophelia’s Books (3504 Fremont Ave N;) GiGi Retro Inspired Clothing (3418 Fremont Ave N;) Homegrown (3416 Fremont Ave N;) Dream (3427 Fremont Pl N;) Simply Desserts (3421 Fremont Ave N;) Fremont Vintage Mall (3419 Fremont Pl N;) Willow & Bloom (3415A Fremont Ave N;) Starbucks Fremont (3415B Fremont Ave N;) Blue C Sushi (3411 Fremont Ave N;) Lucky’s Pho (3414 Fremont Ave N;) Dusty Strings (3406 Fremont Ave N;) Peet’s Coffee & Tea (3401 Fremont Ave N;) and Costas Opa (3400 Fremont Ave N)

On N 34^th St (East to West) including inside the Quadrant Lake Union Center –

At Frame-Up Studios (one of the businesses that has participated in Trick-or-Treat since the very beginning) an adorable skunk considers the candy offerings Photo by K. Lindsay, Oct '11

Fremont Brewing Co (3409 Woodland Park Ave N;) History House (790 N 34^th St;) Milstead & Co (770 N 34^th St;) Dragonfly Holistic Healing Center (760 N 34^th St;) Café Turko at Istanbul Imports (754 N 34^th St;) Carquest of Fremont (744 N 34^th St;) Groundspeak (837 N 34^th St;) Anytime Fitness (837 N 34^th St;) Blue Moon Burgers (703 N 34^th St;) Key Bank- Fremont (601 N 34^th St;) Union Bank, Fremont (601 N 34^th St;) Ageless (601 N 34^th St #C;) Google (651 N 34^th St;) EpiCenter Leasing Office (620 N 34^th St;) Cold Stone Creamery (624 N 34^th St;) PCC Natural Markets (600 N 34^th St;) Red Door (3401 Evanston Ave N;) Custom Smoothie & Sports Nutrition (462 N 34^th St;) Sound Mind & Body (437 N 34^th St;) MTI Physical Therapy (435 N 34^th St;) Math Whizz (400 N 34th St, #206;) and Fremont Mischief Distillery (132 N Canal St)

A Sea Change for Trick-or-Treat

While few participating businesses, and even fewer trick-or-treaters, will even notice it, the 2012 Trick-or-Treat changed very dramatically.  For the first time, the event has a ‘corporate’ sponsor – Theo Chocolate.

At Theo Chocolate, during Trick-or-Treat 2009, Death takes some chocolate. Photo by K. Lindsay

Deliberately organized to be run on the cheap, still Trick-or-Treat does take a bit of moolah to operate (beyond the cost of the treats distributed by the participating businesses, which they fund.)  For the first few years, the costs were in graphic design and printing.  For a brief year or two, a little money also went to getting posters (and maps) distributed.  Nowadays, the cost of website hosting, and design, has been added permanently.

In those early years, my bookstore – Ladybug Books – covered all costs.  About the time the store closed, the Fremont Chamber of Commerce took over funding.  That never worked well, as a large, membership based organization will always have members with ideas of how the money should be spent – while Trick-or-Treat operates as a benevolent dictatorship, not by consensus.  Also, in 2007, the City of Seattle Department of Neighborhood Small Sparks grant funded Trick-or-Treat.

Bubbleman and his amazing bubble art, during the 2011 Trick-or-Treat In Fremont Photo by K. Lindsay

While quite likely the least expensive of all activities organized in Fremont, Trick-or-Treat certainly delivers the biggest bang for the buck.  And, in its (possibly) 15^th year (plus two or three before that when it was run, in a different form, by Charlotte Buchanan of GlamOrama,) Trick-or-Treat will return to being funded by a local business – to the benefit of all.  Thank you, Theo!

Bubbles, On Halloween?

Bubbleman fills Fremont, and particularly Red Triangle, full of bubbles, and fun, during Trick-or-Treat In Fremont 2011 Photo by K. Lindsay

One of the best outcomes of the partnership between Trick-or-Treat and the Fremont Chamber may turn out to be Bubbleman.  When the Fremont Chamber asked for the event to be expanded, my mind went blank – and certainly, who would think of bubbles at the end of October?  Well, Garry Golightly (a.k.a. Bubbleman) would!

For the second year, Bubbleman will show off his bubble art – which can be displayed best in the crisp, cool weather of fall – in Red Triangle.  This year, Heritage Bank (a Fremont business not physically located in Fremont, and so ineligible to be a participating business) will sponsor the Bubbleman spectacular, from 4p – 6p.

A gothic angel collects a treat from Portage Bay Goods during the 2010 Trick-or-Treat In Fremont Photo by K. Lindsay

Free Range Cycles, Art F/X Gallery, Rudy’s Barbershop, Bitters Co, Les Amis, Essenza, Dream, Starbucks – Fremont, Bliss, Frame-Up Studios, Ophelia’s Books (then called Twice Sold Tales,) History House all participated in 1999 – on a Sunday!

Trick-or-Treat In Fremont offers fun for parents, children and business owners, year after year Photo by Garry Hodgson, Oct '07

An even bigger acknowledge of thanks to Portage Bay Goods, which not only participated from the start, but also helped distribute posters, maps, and the spirit of Trick-or-Treat for (possibly) 15 years!

Theo, Heritage Bank, Portage Bay, and 107 other Fremont businesses make Trick-or-Treat happen – but it is the children that make it fun!  Please, bring your child (your neighbor’s child, or your cousin’s-best friend’s-girlfriend’s child) along to join in the simple fun of Trick-or-Treat In Fremont – and become part of the tradition!

• Trick-or-Treat In Fremont, Please?
  • by Kirby Lindsay, October 26, 2011
• Simply Trick-or-Treat
  • by Kirby Lindsay, October 25, 2010

©2012 Kirby Lindsay.  This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws.  Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.

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