Comic book festival planned for Oct. 29

Fans of all things comics can rejoice as the popular Lorain County Comic Book Show & Trick-or-Treat along with a food drive will return Oct. 29 to 255 Park Ave. in downtown Amherst.

The event first started in 2019 thanks to the geeky minds of Alan Thompson and his wife, Stephanie.

“We are nerds and always have been,” Stephanie Thompson said. “But when you think of comic con festivals, they’re always really far away and super expensive.” That’s when the couple got the idea to host one right in their hometown of Amherst at half the price.

They also wanted to do something a bit different in order to give back to the community.

“We got the idea to do a food drive alongside the show to help benefit the community while also keeping the event economical,” she said.

Starting their first show in April 2019, the couple managed to bring in money and donations for over a thousand meals.

“We knew we had to keep doing it after that,” Thompson said.

While plans to host the show again in 2020 were axed due to the coronavirus pandemic, that didn’t stop the couple.

In October 2021, they brought the show back with even more vendors and donations.

At that show alone, the couple raised enough to provide over 15,000 meals.

The move to October also was a change.

“We moved to October with Halloween being right around the corner, so we could encourage more people to dress up and bring donations,” Thompson said. “After all, fall is the season of giving.”

This year’s show is expected to bring the biggest turnout yet with numerous participants from local comic book shops, Funko Pop! collectors, local artists and more all coming to join the fray, Alan Thompson said.

“We will have something for everyone here,” he said.

This year’s show is expected to bring the biggest turnout yet with numerous participants from local comic book shops, Funko Pop! collectors, local artists and more all coming to join the fray, Alan Thompson said.