Life Care Center of Valparaiso held its second annual Trunk or Treat event on October 19. With hotdogs, popcorn, raffles, prizes, and a variety of both fun and spooky trunks to visit, Trunk or Treat is a fun time for all ages.
The event has a different theme each year; this year’s theme is "Minions."
Angela Monahan, director of business development for Life Care Center of Valparaiso, expressed her excitement in hosting the event.
“We are striving for our community to know that we are here for them,” Monahan said. “This is a team event; our maintenance director and our administrator are making hotdogs. We’re really trying to be a face in the community and show that it takes a team to pull this together.”
Life Care Center of Valparaiso is an inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation facility that offers 24-hour skilled nursing care.
“We provide long-term and short-term care,” Monahan said. “The long-term residents live with us, and our focus for our short-term patients is getting them healthy and sending them back home.”
Vendors who attended the event and decorated their trunks include FirstLight Home Care, All Star Floor Cleaning, Franciscan Senior Health & Wellness, Winamac Old Auto Club, AseraCare Hospice Care, and Heart to Heart Hospice among others.
“We have a lot of vendors that we work with that believe in what we do and are here to support us,” Monahan said. “I am also grateful to Wheeler Football for donating their time making the popcorn as well as Brittany, Brooklyn and Bentley for running the raffle and voting tables.”
Jeannie Nowarita, hospice liaison with AseraCare Hospice, added that families who attend the event will find a plethora of fun things to do.
“It’s a safe, family-fun atmosphere,” Nowarita said. “They’ve got stuff for all ages; they have a cookout for the grownups, raffles, games, and themed cars. It’s really just a lot of fun.”
The children and adults were encouraged to dress up in their Halloween costumes and partake in a ring toss game, raffles, voting on decorated cars, and a showing of “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.”
Amanda Ross, from Hobart, Indiana, attended the Trunk or Treat event with her mom and her two children.
“My grandmother is a resident here, so we bring the great-grandchildren so they can visit with her and go trick-or-treating,” Ross said. “I think this is a fun event. It’s great that they put this on for the families. We really enjoy it.”
Glen Ewen, vice president of the Winamac Old Auto Club, attended the event alongside a few of the club’s members to hand out candy.
“We really enjoy coming here,” Ewen said. “We come to the Life Care Center of Valparaiso a couple times a year. It’s wonderful to see that all of these kids are having fun.”
The Winamac Old Auto Club is a big supporter of Life Care Center.
“They always show up,” Monahan said. “They bring toys and candy. Anything that we need for the community, they do for us.”
For a night of fun that the whole family can enjoy, come out to Life Care Center of Valparaiso’s annual Trunk or Treat event.
“We’re really here for the community. We’re a staple in Valpo,” Monahan said.
For more information about Life Care Center of Valparaiso, visit www.lifecarecenterofvalparaiso.com