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For West Philly resident Dyresha Harris, Halloween is “her thing.” For a decade, she and her partner have been decking out their house with decorations each spooky season.
“We’ve put up everything from a 20-foot robot to a reenactment of ‘Stranger Things’ to an underwater cave,” she said.
People began to walk by and get to know Harris’ house as she kept up the decorations. Residents passing by got Harris thinking.
“You hear folks sharing information about what’s going on, but you also hear about people missing things or getting there too late because they didn’t know it was there,” she said. “Or sometimes we’ll talk to neighbors who got all decked out and bought lots of candy, but they live on a side street and they didn’t have very many people show up.”
Harris found herself thinking of the nearby Garden Court Community Association, which shares a list of Christmas decorations to go and see in the neighborhood. She said that inspiration, their support and community motivation led her to create her own Halloween tool.
“What I really love is that we often have folks stop by our house who will say things like, ‘Oh, see, you didn’t have to go out to the suburbs to have a good Halloween,’” she said. “And I love that energy, that kind of neighborhood pride. So I thought the map would also be a fun way to kind of hype each other up, to promote that neighborhood community pride and to showcase the creativity of our neighborhood while helping families kind of have the best Halloween they can.”
From there, the West Philly Fright Registry was born. The new tool lets neighbors share nearby Halloween-themed events, haunted houses, decorations and more.
“It’s a Google form where community members from approximately 45th to 60th streets and Market to Baltimore streets can register their house to let folks know what spooky things they’ll be up to during the Halloween season,” she said.
“And that might be giving out candy, decorations, events and then from there, we take that form and upload it into a Google Map and a list, and kind of format it so that it’s usable to allow families and other Halloween revelers to know where to go as we are on Halloween or kind of in the days and weeks leading up to it,” Dyresha said.
Engaging West Philly
The tool is now in its second year, which Harris said is a reflection of lots of residents loving it the first time around.
“People were getting excited to show off their homes, feeling more inspired and helping to build communities. So, we had folks who were like, ‘oh, it was so cool to see that our part of the city is so engaged and enthusiastic on Halloween,’” she said.
Right now, the tool has over 70 entries – including Halloween and fall festivals, spots with Beetlejuice and Hocus Pocus decorations and trick-or-treating houses.
Harris said she has also seen examples from all over the neighborhood of people building connections – including seeing a local librarian engaging others.
“She shared that one of her neighbors actually saw that she was registered, and so she came over and joined her in handing out candy,” she said. “It was kind of this cute opportunity to use the registry to connect with neighbors, which is ultimately what it’s really all about. And now this year, Claire isn’t just signing up her own house, but she’s getting the children’s department of her local (library) branch in on the festivities also.”
Harris said this holiday provides a special chance for this kind of engagement and networking.
“I think of it really as a time to imagine who you could be if there were literally no limits, and it’s also the only American holiday that has this element of like interacting with your neighborhood specifically, and not just your nuclear family,” she said. “So like going door-to-door and connecting with folks who live like right around you.”
Harris said she especially enjoys interacting with her own neighbors for this cause.
“My favorite part of it, in some ways, is getting an excuse to just go around the neighborhood talking to my neighbors about fun things, and some people get really excited,” she said. “We’ve had some of the business owners on Baltimore Street be like, ‘Oh, it’d be really fun to do something, provide something for the community, or have a parade down here,’” she said.
For those signing up, she said there is space for all kinds of entries – whether residents are showing off decorations, events or more.
“So that’s something that we want to make clear, is that whatever you’re bringing to the table is most welcome, and that it’s mostly about finding each other as a community and getting to celebrate and have fun together,” she said.
Continuing to expand
This year’s Fright Registry is up and running, and is open through Oct. 31. There is still time to sign up your spooky spot and go explore the ones that are already there.
Harris said she is inspired by the reception of the registry, and hopes to expand in years to come.
“We’re trying to figure out how to get more participation, get the word out more, going farther west into Cobbs Creek and other little pockets,” she said.
Harris said she and her partner are the only ones doing this project, and that next year they may look for volunteers or other helpers.
“We’re really hoping that it moves from being kind of this neighborhood project to being a community practice and something where every year you’re kind of like, ‘oh, OK, like I know that we can kind of log on and know what’s going on,’ and that people can use it as a resource that they’re planning for because they know what’s going to happen,” she said.
At the end of the day, Harris said she is hoping to spread joy in the community.
“These rituals of joy and creativity and connection can actually mean a lot more than we think, and we are now in another really like hard historical moment for many people,” she said. “And we can’t always take away all of the bad in the world. As we work to do that, we can make the joy bigger.”
You can find more about the West Philly Fright Registry, including sign-up info here.
