By Ethan Zhang ’26
Whenever Halloween rolls around, Choate embraces the occasion as an opportunity to hold inter-dorm candy hunts and transform campus into spooky landscapes. With midterms coming to an end, House Mentors and prefects in dorms are concocting ways to participate in the Halloween festivity and destress.
Neon purple bats and black and orange decorations adorn the walls and exterior of Squire Stanley, a fourth- and fifth-form girls’ dorm known for its Halloween spirit.
In addition to these decorations, the dorm residents and House Mentor Dr. Amber Hodge are arranging a dorm trip to The Warren’s Occult Museum. The museum features haunted artifacts from famous paranormal investigators around the world and offers typical Halloween activities, such as pumpkin carving and creating candy baskets.
Led by Head of House Mr. Tim Yun, Memorial House, a co-ed dorm for fourth- and fifth-form students, plans to hold their annual nighttime manhunt this term. The event, known as “Mem-hunt,” will be held in the Worthington Johnson Athletics Center.
“Mr. Yun always makes very simple concepts very fun,” prefect Carter Foster ’24 said. He also noted their classic “trail-of-terror” activity, which occurred on October 17. “At eight o’clock, when it’s pitch-black, the prefects go out and scare people running on the cross-country trail,” he said.
Third-form dorms are also doing their part to make this spooky season exciting for freshmen. Third-form boys’ dorm East Cottage is considering handing out candy around campus in collaboration with third-form girls’ dorm Pitman House. “It’s important for freshmen, who aren’t yet accustomed to being away from home, to have a little fun to feel more integrated into the Choate community,” prefect Tyler Kwee ’24 said.
Amanda Benneh ’24, a prefect in the third-form girls’ dorm Nichols House, said, “When we’re constantly consumed with academics, it’s nice to be able to remember that there are events or days to look forward to throughout the year.”
Although this year’s plan is up in the air, Benneh spoke fondly about the dorm-wide pumpkin carving contest that she participated in last year.
Halloween is the perfect time for students to catch a break from their school work and enjoy themed activities that bring the dorm together. Ifeanyi Ndokwu ’25, a resident of Clinton Knight, said, “Halloween reminds me of home and being a kid again, which is hard at Choate.”
