Fall festivals offer fun options for young trick-or-treaters

A few Spokane Valley churches are celebrating fall and Halloween with special events this weekend. They can be a fun alternative to sending kids out in the dark and the cold on Halloween night.

• Zion Lutheran Church will have its annual Fall Festival on Sunday following the 11 a.m. service. Kids are welcome to come to the service and the festival, which begins at noon, dressed in costume. The church is requesting no scary witch or devil costumes. There will be a costume parade, games, hot dogs and, of course, lots of candy. The church is at 8304 E. Buckeye Ave.

• A Harvest Fun Night is planned for 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Foothills Community Church, 11102 N. Forker Road. Children can dress up in costume and play games, win prizes and collect candy while parents have pie and coffee. There will also be a chili feed in the community center across the street from the church beginning at 5:30 p.m. Donations will be accepted for the meal.

• Spokane Valley United Methodist Church will serve its annual Harvest Dinner next Saturday from 4:30 to 7 p.m. at the church, 115 N. Raymond Road. The menu includes turkey with dressing, mashed potatoes with gravy, vegetables and a pumpkin dessert.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 3-10. Children under age 3 are free. Proceeds from the event will benefit mission projects. Call the church office at (509) 924-7262 to purchase tickets.

Concert

Millwood Presbyterian Church will host the Selkirk String Quartet in concert as part of the church’s Music in Millwood series. The concert begins at 4 p.m. Sunday at the church, 3223 N. Marguerite Road. Quartet members Margaret Bowers, David Armstrong, Angela Mitchell and Louise Butler will perform music by Mozart and Shostakovich. Admission is free, but those attending are asked to bring a food item for the food bank.

Food distribution

Second Harvest will have a mobile food distribution truck set up to hand out free food to anyone who needs it on Thursday at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 2511 S. Pines Road. The food will be distributed from noon to 2 p.m. in the church parking lot.

The food is available to anyone in need. There is no paperwork to fill out and it does not count as the one food bank visit families are allowed each month. Those attending are asked to bring bags or boxes to carry their food.