Whether they be positive or negative OHS students certainly have a lot to say about Halloween. Some students have favorite activities and traditions for the holiday that they look forward to each year, and this year is no exception.

As summer comes to an end, and fall sweeps through, students are ready for the season and the excitement of the holiday coming at the end of October.

“I really like Halloween; I am not a huge party person, so Halloween’s not a super crazy holiday for me, but I just really love fall, and I love dressing up in fun, pretty costumes, and—you know—just hanging out with my friends,” said Lauren Bauer, junior.

Many students have delicious recipes for the Halloween season that they look forward to eating each year and for good reason.

“Another tradition is roasting pumpkin seeds once you carve the pumpkin. My best friend, Marli Brown, has the most amazing pumpkin seed roasting recipe with all these random spices. I don’t know the recipe myself, but it’s so good” Bauer said.

When it comes to classic halloween treats, one OHS student has very good taste in which sweets are worth OHS students’ time and money.

“Candy apples, I think those are so good. I used to be a candy corn person, but not anymore,” said Ashley Preston, senior. 

When it comes to Halloween activities, many students know what they like and one OHS student has her holiday season all planned out. She knows what she likes and recommends it to fellow students looking for fun endeavors.

“The Tolmachoff Farms haunted maze, it, in my opinion, is so much scarier and so much more fun than Fear Farm. Fear Farm’s low key lame, the haunted maze at Tolmachoff Farms is just so much more authentic and everytime I go it’s like a whole new experience,” Bauer said.

Some students look forward to other Halloween trips this season in which they will be accompanied by either friends or a school team. 

“Some of my friends are planning on going to Fear Farm. I’m on the swim team and we usually do team bonding at Fear Farm,” Bauer said.

Many students have visited a pumpkin patch in the past and would recommend the experience to their peers sometime during the holiday season for the memories and entertainment that is involved.

“Going to a pumpkin patch, just any pumpkin patch and taking cute photos of it, [and] buying a pumpkin, that’s another tradition that I really like. It’s calm, it’s fun,”Bauer said.

OHS students point out that as fun as it is to go out and do enjoyable activities, there truly is something magical to staying in and watching Halloween movies through this fall season.

“I just like to be at home and watch movies and stuff, so nothing really too interesting. I wouldn’t say this is a Halloween movie, but I really like watching Twilight, and I love Hocus Pocus. I’m so excited for the sequel,” Preston said.

Over the years, some students at OHS have changed their opinions toward Halloween, one way or the other. Some people  have grown on the fun and excitement of the holiday.

“I know in middle school I thought it was really lame because I thought I was too cool for trick or treating, and I wasn’t a huge fan of Halloween, but now that I’m in high school and I’ve kind of gotten over some of that stigma, I’m just like ‘Okay, it’s just a holiday and I can celebrate it how I want’,” Bauer said.

Other students have found the holiday to be less exciting for them as they have gone through their school years. 

“I think it’s gotten less exciting. I love fall and autumn, but I think Halloween has just gone down, just because you’re not doing anything fun anymore. You don’t have the little Halloween parties you did,” Preston said.

Many OHS students have had exciting holiday traditions as a kid, but since those have started to fade away, the holiday has seemed less exciting for them.

“When I was in elementary school, we would host a Halloween party every year for all my classmates, but I think it ended around fifth or sixth grade,” Preston said.

Students’ opinions on Halloween have changed a lot over the years, but most agree that it is a chill and lively holiday for students to celebrate.

“I think that a lot of people for Halloween like to go out to parties and stuff, but I think it’s a good night just to invite your close friends over and have a chill night,” Preston said.