Stratham Sets Trick or Treating Date

Halloween is coming!  The Select Board has established Saturday October 31st from 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. for Halloween “trick-or-treating” in Stratham.

Each year, the Select Board traditionally establishes a “trick or treating” date and time in Stratham as a public service to promote safety and to define a period of time for door to door activity.   The designation of this year’s date and time was done in consultation with guidance from the federal and state authorities as well as health and public safety officials serving our community.  Based on this guidance and best practices we urge Stratham residents and families to read about appropriate precautions and practices at the links provide below.  A summary of suggestions is provided below. 

We encourage members of our community who do not to wish to participate in traditional door to door trick or treating to turn outdoor lights off as a signal you are not participating. 

Some ideas recommended by health agency officials include the following:

• wear masks to minimize the spread of Covid-19 (and other communicable diseases)[i]. 
• avoid congregating (i.e. socially distance) and wait patiently at each door if others are ahead of them,
• routinely use hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of germs between candy bowls and homes,
• routinely sanitize commonly touched surfaces (e.g. doorbells, candy bowls, etc.),
• consider setting up a station outside to distribute candy or otherwise distribute candy with little contact between persons, (e.g. monitoring a table where candy is spread so that trick-or-treaters can each take a piece with sanitization occurring as the table is restocked, or individually prepare packages/candies, rather than provide a big bowl that trick or treaters reach into)

Links for More Information on Halloween Safety

State of New Hampshire - Halloween COVID Guidance and General Safety Tips
https://www.readynh.gov/documents/halloweencovid-19safety.pdf

Centers for Disease Control - Halloween Guidance
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html#halloween

[i] Additional guidance from CDC related to use of cloth masks during Halloween festivities (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html):

·     Do not use a costume mask (such as for Halloween) as a substitute for a cloth mask unless it is made of two or more layers of breathable fabric that covers your mouth and nose and doesn’t leave gaps around your face.

·     Do not wear a costume mask over a cloth mask because it can be dangerous if the costume mask makes it hard to breathe. Instead, consider using a Halloween-themed cloth mask.