From Tennessee-
In the Killen family, some traditions are better left untouched. Especially on Halloween.
“I'd get written out of the will if I didn't take my kids up to their grandmothers' ” to trick or treat, Mark Killen said, laughing.
But his children will make the visit to grandma's in addition to attending the Harvest Festival at their home church, Cross Point Church of Christ in Florence. Beginning at 5:30 p.m. today, they'll join hundreds of other families from the Shoals to enjoy games, inflatables, free food (including 3,000 hot dogs) and trunk or treating — a type of event Killen himself never attended as a kid.
“I'm 41 years old and churches didn't do anything when I was a kid,” said Killen, recreation and outreach minister at Cross Point. “You just went out into your neighborhoods.”
Halloween is more popular, and profitable, than ever, and the National Retail Federation estimates about 148 million Americans will celebrate the holiday this year. But a lot of those Americans are young adults and adults relishing in a holiday that once was focused on children. And with increased concern about safety, many families are opting for trunk-or-treating events or festivals at churches instead of going door to door for goodies.
Trick-or-treating evolved out of the late medieval custom of children asking for treats in exchange for praying for the dead of the household, said Hans Broedel, a University of North Dakota history professor and expert on early traditions.
More here-
http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20101031/ARTICLES/310319994/1004?Title=Not-your-parents-Halloween
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