As a child, Halloween was undoubtedly my favorite day of the year. It was almost too good to be true, that for an entire night, as long as I lugged an empty pillowcase around the neighborhood, people would fill it with more candy than I knew what to do with. My parents always ensured that my siblings and I had costumes big enough to fit our snowsuits under, and as a result of, my twin brother traipsed the community one year as a mailbox.Â
I’m twenty years old now, and Halloween is less about homemade costumes and candy, and more about putting on bunny ears with a scandalous dress and heading to the bar for a messy night with the plethora of university students, dressed up in costumes that took just as little effort, and produce just as much sex appeal.Â
We often complain that holidays have become too commercialized, a constant marketing strategy for corporations to take advantage of. As students, we have less money to spend on expensive store-bought costumes, which usually leads us to resort to last-minute devices like duct-tape dresses. But there’s no shortage of drink specials for us to take advantage of in Canada’s capital; we pass advertisements for bar events on telephone poles everywhere, and it seems like every other person on Facebook is an event promoter.Â
However, this Halloween, there’s an important event taking place that may not show up on your social radar like events in the Byward Market may. It’s an event called Trick or Eat, and its a charity fundraiser hosted by MealExchange. In short, university students register online, and trick-or-treat door to door in their cities to collect non-perishable food items. The ultimate goal of the nation-wide campaign this year is to raise $550,000 worth of food, and complement this with $50,000 in online donations. These funds and supplies will be donated to over 100 local food banks, soup kitchens and shelters across the country.Â
We’re unbelievably lucky to live in a country like Canada, but even though we may not see it everyday, hunger is more prevalent than you might think. Almost 1 in 8 Canadian households experience food insecurity, meaning that 1.1 million children do not have consistent and reliable access to food. In a country as prosperous as Canada, we should not overlook the 1.6 million households that experience hunger.Â
This year, uOttawa’s Trick or Eat campaign is being organized by Paige Reno, a third year University of Ottawa student. The campaign team has distributed flyers door to door to make local residents aware of the event. The team plans to begin canvassing on Halloween at 5 pm, focussing on areas surrounding the University. If you’re worried that participating might hold you back from going out on Halloween, don’t be – the canvassing ends by 8:00, so you’ll have plenty of time to get ready to go out!
Whatever your plans are for Halloween, whether you’re going to a party, the bar, or just staying home (because it is, after all, still midterm season), think about getting involved in this great program. Embrace your appropriately-costumed inner child and head out to explore your neighborhood with fellow Gee-Gees, and if you can’t commit to going door to door, please answer your door for the canvassers while you’re getting ready to go out. We may be starving students, but we should all be able to donate a can (or a few) this Halloween.Â
Learn more about Trick or Eat and check out the U Ottawa campaign page.
RSVP the University of Ottawa Trick or Eat Facebook event!
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