HORACE LANGFORD JR. / PVT Cheryl, restaurant manager at Saddle West, and Nikki, a new hostess, are as amazed as anyone would be at the fully-carved, 600-pound pumpkin on display at the casino and hotel. A carver from Las Vegas was hired to create the intricate bas relief as Halloween approaches. Advertisement

Children can't complain about not having a place to go on Halloween, while parents can rest assured their youngsters will have a safe way to spend Tuesday night.

Some neighborhoods traditionally see a good turnout of children trick-or-treating. Areas like Winery Road and the Bourbon Street section have lots of apartments close together. Otherwise, there are two major events available Halloween Tuesday night, that will make it one of the most enjoyable nights of the year for area children.

The Safe Night celebration, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Bob Ruud Community Center, is coordinated by the Key Club, the youth branch of the Kiwanis Club.

Individual booths are fundraisers for various school organizations like the Spanish Club and the Honor Society.

Kiwanis Club member Paula Glidden said during a typical Safe Night there might be eight to 12 booths or games.

"All the money goes back to the groups that sponsor the games," Glidden said.

Attendees can buy tickets for 10 cents each. Some games may cost four tickets -- still a bargain at 40 cents. There will also be a raffle for a large, stuffed animal, with all of the proceeds going to the Key Club.

All children attending will receive a bag of candy when they leave. Glidden said they handed out 890 bags last year. Fortunately, organizers received a discount on the cost of candy from Albertson's Supermarket, she said.

Glidden outlined a few reasons why they put on Safe Night every year during Halloween.

"It gives it a family atmosphere, number one. Families can participate in the games," Glidden said. "It brings the community together and it gives the kids a safe place to be for a couple hours."

While the Key Club doesn't hold a costume contest, many people, children and their accompanying adults alike, show up in costume anyway. Glidden said the volunteers working the booths will also be dressed up in an array of costumes.

The array of different games varies with the creativity of the students, Glidden said. Games usually include fishing out a duck for a prize, a cake walk or a dart toss, but there can be other interesting diversions.

"Actually, every year it's different because kids come in with different ideas," Glidden said.

The community center won't be decorated until Tuesday afternoon.

Many children and their parents go to Trinity Assembly of God Church on 750 S. Big Five Road after the community center event, where the annual Fun Fest takes place from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Pastor Larry Krake said the Fun Fest began about 20 years ago.

"It was set up to be an alternative Halloween event and safe place for the children to go to. It started out fairly small, only a couple hundred people came. Now we have over 1,000 kids and probably 2,000 to 3,000 people," Krake said.

The children will be able to bounce up and down in jumping booths, slide down inflatable slides, get locked up in a makeshift jail and frolic around in the water, among a bunch of other activities that turn the church grounds into an amusement park.

Of course there will be free candy for the children. Kids entering the event will also receive a free hot dog and soda, Krake said, with more food will available for sale.

Area businesses have been very supportive in donating to the event, the pastor said.

"Typically, we need about a ton of candy to do what we need to do," Krake said. That's no exaggeration.

"It's a safe place for kids and it's an alternative to, what we would say, the witches and goblins. It's all just fun and happy," Krake said. "It's something we plan for all year long, but the heavy duty stuff starts in August."

The Nye County Sheriff's Office will provide glow-in-the-dark bracelets at the Bob Ruud Community Center instead of glow sticks, so children will be visible when trick-or-treating after sunset. They will also receive souvenir clip-on sheriff's deputy badges in a goody bag that will have safety tips and a coupon for a 50-cent discount on a Happy Meal, a promotion with McDonald's Restaurant.

Sheriff Tony DeMeo advises children not to trick-or-treat alone. Parents should check their children's candy. Those handing out treats should hand out wrapped candy, not prepared treats.

DeMeo said there hasn't been a problem with tainted candy in Pahrump Valley so far, but children should play it safe.

He recommended Safe Night and Fun Fest as good places to go. "The community has pulled together to make it safe for the kids," DeMeo said.

The more dense development coming to Pahrump will probably contribute to more trick-or-treating in the future, when children don't have to walk so far between homes, the sheriff said.

One thing is certain, children will have their fill of fun and candy by the time Nov. 1 rolls around Wednesday.