Festival of Treats provides spooky fun
The annual Festival of Treats transformed Rockmart’s downtown into a gathering spot for vampires, witches, goblins, and pop culture icons who came together to celebrate the tricks and treats of Halloween. From top to bottom, Marble St. was lined with games, shops, costume contests, face painting stations, and plenty of candy available for any and all.
Among the mass of the festival’s entertainment, the costume contests proved to be one of the most prominent attractions. Several different age groups showed off original, scary, and overall unique costumes with the hopes of winning a medal.
“Costumes will be judged on four categories including cutest, scariest, most original, and best overall,” Rockmart Chickfil-A owner and festival staff Zach Thomas said.
Some notable winning costumes include Pennywise the Clown from the scariest category, a Rubik’s Cube from the most original category, Lilo & Stitch from the cutest category, and a headless person from the best overall category. Fan favorite costumes proved to be The Legend of Zelda’s Link, a cast of Star Wars characters, and an old couple costume among many more.
Moving down Marble Street, citizens found that even local animals were getting into the Halloween spirit with a pet costume contest that promised awards of treats, toys, and groomings to the most creative, original and bestfitting costumes.
“It takes a lot of creativity, but the costume also has to fit the dog’s overall look,” local dog groomer Mattie Taylor said. “Originality is also important. If your pet is one of 50 Supermans, it won’t stand out.”
Award winning pet costumes include goat Pumpkin’s cowgirl outfit that snatched first place from the various canines present at the event and dog Ozzy Mac’s Bob Marley costume that earned the pet a homemade treat from Chick N’ Scratch. Other notable pet costumes include Bat Dog, Harley Quinn, and Wonder Woman. Pumpkin was the only non-dog of the bunch, but seeing man’s best friend dressed as man’s favorite characters made the event more than a worthwhile stop.
Not having a costume didn’t stop locals from enjoying themselves, however, because live music, games, and food was offered at nearly every turn. While kids were playing miniature bowling, trunk or treating, or listening to the broadcast radio, parents could be seen grab- bing a bite to eat at the shops or shopping at the booths locals set up.
This year’s Festival of Treats had an explosive turnout. Hundreds upon hundreds of citizens lined downtown Rockmart from start to finish, and the traffic was flowing consistently. Special thanks should be given to the Rockmart Business Alliance that organized and hosted the event. Local businesses and sponsors such as Chick N’ Scratch Bakery did their part by handing out candy throughout the 2-hour event. The event seem genuinely well received.
“It’s nice to see the com- munity come together. I’m here for the pet costume contest but I’m enjoying the event as a whole,” attendee Hailee Brand said. “I just gave my friend a ride here, but this is a pleasant surprise because I didn’t know Rockmart really did anything like this,” citizen Brandon Graham said.