TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — With Halloween just around the corner, Second Harvest of the Big Bend increases its presence with more food distributions and activities.
Second Harvest will be distributing boxes of food for the drive-thru trick-or-treat parade on Halloween at Governors Square Mall.
Ahead of that, Second Harvest was at Griffin Heights on Friday greeting families as part of their Fall Festival.
Children played catch with police officers, took home pumpkins, and could even get their flu shot.
They were also able to bring boxes of food home for their families.
Monique Van Pelt, the CEO of Second Harvest, said they want to start focusing on communities that may feel left behind, like those in the 32304 zip code.
"We really thought it could be holistic," said Van Pelt. "Our goal today was to really pair together medical services, food services, and make it really fun for children. We have the Moore agency here; they brought in pumpkins, we made sure that families felt that every member of their family could feel included."
Taqari Rivers loves fall. He also loves Festivals.
"Pumpkins," said Taqari Rivers." Lunch, bags."
There were plenty of pumpkins around, and everybody got bags to put all their candy in.
"Everything is going good," said Kacey Rivers, Taqari's mom. "We're having fun and hanging out."
All of those elements combined for a successful Fall Festival by Second Harvest of the Big Bend.
"This is a really hyper-focused local event where we came out to a very specific neighborhood to provide services, and I think that our community can expect going forward there are more events that look like this," Van Pelt said.
The festival wasn't just for kids.
"As a resident, I don't know who doesn't have food," said Kacey Rivers. "So coming out here, being able to bring food back that you can eat. If this is all you got, you know you go something."
It was estimated that about 200 people from the neighborhood attended, exceeding everyone's expectations.
The drive-thru trick-or-treat parade occurs in the parking lot of Governors Square Mall from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
