Henry Daily Herald

Photo by Jeylin White Michelle Eno, store manager at the Stockbridge Dollar Tree, stacks bags of Halloween candy.

STOCKBRIDGE — For parents who may be a little apprehensive about taking their kids door to door for Halloween to trick-or-treat, there’s another safer alternative — taking your youngsters to an organized event.

“There are a lot of churches, local stores, and malls that [host festivals] and pass out candy to children,” said Michelle Eno, store manager of the Stockbridge Dollar Tree.

She said her store will host a Halloween event from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. for all Southern Crescent residents.

“Any kid who has on a costume, or no costume, we will give them a bag of candy,” said Eno.

Eno said being a mother herself, she would rather see parents take their children trick-or-treating to an organized event rather than scouring neighborhoods for goodies.

“At least in the store, you know what you are getting,” said Eno. “It’s a safe environment, kids, and parents usually have a lot of fun.”

Eno, who has been working at the store for four years, said she brings her 7-year-old son, Ethan, who attends Woodland Elementary School, to the event each year.

“It’s much easier for me to keep an eye on him, and I think that’s the case for most parents who bring their kids in as well,” she said.

Eno said the employees will be dressed in costumes and will pass out the candy to customers as they come in that day. She said they will even have an arts and craft table set up.

“Every year we get a lot of people who bring their kids into our store on Halloween,” said Eno. “Many know we do this because they come in and by their own candy. Everything is a dollar, so we got the best prices in town.”

However, Eno said if parents insist on taking their kids out into their neighborhoods to trick-or-treat a few things they may consider buying are the glow in the dark stickers and wrist bands, and flash lights.

“You can never be too safe,” she said. “You have people who like to speed through neighborhoods at night and they do not like to slow down for children, so the flashlights and stickers come in handy.”