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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Keeping the spirit alive


Vicki and Eric Hixson pose with their Halloween creatures in their yard at 3010 S. Sunnybrook Drive. The Hixsons expect about 400 visitors on Halloween.
 (Joe Barrentine / The Spokesman-Review)
Jennifer Larue Correspondent

The leaves are turning orange, the nights are growing long and Halloween’s cold breath is awakening dreams of candy in area children.

But driving around the neighborhood, there’s little hint of the scary holiday ahead. Sure there’s the occasional bright orange pumpkin-faced bag of leaves in a yard, bundles of dried corn stalks, wreaths and smiling scarecrows, but the good old-fashioned fright factor seems scarce.

Paige McKee believes vandals may be the reason.

“People have gotten frustrated with vandalism,” she said. Just last week, vandals slashed inflatable yard decorations in Otis Orchards but McKee is not fazed; her decorations went up on Oct. 1, starting with a 9-foot-tall ghost on the roof above the front door. “My daughter, Maggie, calls him the Pillsbury Doughboy, and every year we put him up a little earlier.”

McKee’s home on South Rockwood Boulevard lacks gore, but includes ghosts, skeletons and a lighted garland along the rail that flanks the front steps. Spiders and neon skeletons adorn the fireplace.

“We went through six bags of candy last year,” said McKee, “I think we became a ‘drive to.’ “

Another recommended “drive to” is 3010 S. Sunnybrook Drive in Spokane Valley, where 18 life-sized ghouls reside. They are the brainchildren of homeowner Eric Hixson. Hixson suits up on Halloween night, keeping still until kids approach but being careful not to scare the little ones too much. You also can expect some special effects.

Frankenstein looks down from a second-story window, “the butler” looks out from the main floor, and Freddy Krueger stands by the front door. Outside, a lean-to houses some creepy types roasting eyeballs over a fire while one of their buddy’s brains is being snacked on by rats near the garage.

There are spiders, webs and zombies in a graveyard with headstones that read things like: “Here lies Fred Ragots … guts got ate by a bunch of maggots.”

Hixson has been creating his ghouls for 20 years. “Some people collect stamps. I make monsters.” He builds the bodies out of lumber and old clothes stuffed with newspaper. His 3 1/2-year-old granddaughter, Hailey, calls his creations “the uglies.”

He started doing it for his own kids but now that his youngest is 18, he does it for other people’s kids.

“It’s just about having fun … the spirit of playfulness, art and expression,” he said.

“He looks forward to it every year,” said his wife, Vicki, who decorates the inside of the house in a more Martha Stewart way, with Halloween ornaments, wreaths, happy scarecrows, autumn angels and warm scents.

Nancy Perez, of 811 E. St. Thomas More Way on the North Side, also gets into the Halloween spirit. In her front yard, two gruesome figures appear to have left their graves to join in the festivities. A short picket fence with lighted skulls barely contains them. A bat swoops at the front door and more skulls light the area.

“I look forward to Halloween night when all the children come in their costumes for candy, and I hope that it adds some fun to their night,” she said. “I look at Halloween as a fun time, a time to be creative.”

All three homes have run out of candy in years past, giving them hope that the Halloween tradition is still undead.

Their attitudes have paid off with hordes of happy children, whose laughter lights up their neighborhoods, keeping the darkness at bay.