Oct. 27, 2011
Eighteen-month-old fairy princess Pearl Stoddard, who came to The Catholic University of America dressed all in pink, was trying to take off her wings.
The little girl with short brown hair had already shed her crown, which her mom, Jill Stoddard, was wearing instead. Pearl's big brother, Patrick, 4 was hopping around inside the Moon Bounce set up in the Great Room of the Edward J. Pryzbyla University Center.
As Jill helped adjust her daughter's gauzy wings, she glanced around the room decorated for Halloween, and said, "This is great. It's a safe place to trick-or-treat and my kids are having a wonderful time."
For the Stoddards, residents of the Northeast D.C. neighborhood of North Michigan Park, their participation in CUA's Oct. 26 Halloween on Campus marked the second time they had attended the event.
David Pennington, associate campus minister for liturgy and worship, described the party as "a nice way to give back to a neighborhood that gives so much to us." The party drew children from neighborhoods and schools near the University as well as little ones whose parents work or study at CUA.
The Stoddard children were among 250 at the annual event, according to senior art history major Mallory Guglielmo, who co-chaired it along with senior social work major Carmelina Gilberto. The students are members of Brookland Outreach, an initiative of the Office of Campus Ministry .
This year the event had to be moved indoors because of rain. But the weather hardly dampened the Halloween spirit inside the Great Room, where children decorated cookies, had their faces painted, and walked around in groups to trick-or-treat.
The CUA Cardinal walked by a graveyard with fake tombstones set up in the middle of the Great Room. Dressed in matching spider costumes, freshman nursing majors Claire James, of Warne, N.C., and Monica Peters, of Leonardtown, Md., gave candy to children milling about with their parents in tow.
As one of the newest members of the CUA community, James said the celebration was an example of the "friendliness" of the University community. "The party's also a perfect way to show people in the neighborhood what a great place Catholic University is."
Freshman Brian Clark, a psychology major from Charles County, Md., was disguised as the mummy. Wrapped from head to foot in toilet paper held in place with red duct tape, Clark described his costume as "tight."
Strains of the "Monster Mash," co-written by Bobby "Boris" Pickett, filled the Great Room. Outside on campus, trick-or-treaters continued filing into the Pryzbyla Center. To see more photos of the event, click here .