Our Central West End neighborhood hosts the region’s most legendary Halloween party, which kicks off this Saturday, October 25. In addition, a new "Trick or Tree" campaign has been launched to collect donations for tree restoration St. Louis' tornado-damaged neighborhoods. Don’t be surprised if the kids knocking on your door ask you for money instead of (or maybe in addition to?) telling a joke. They’ll be part of the Trick or Tree brigade that the Clark-Fox Family Foundation plans to send out across St. Louis as fundraisers.
The foundation plans to distribute 200,000 boxes to kids around the metro area, along with encouragement to take them when they trick or treat and solicit cash donations as they do. Boxes will be distributed through libraries, schools, and other community organizations. (You can request them through the Trick or Tree website.) After Halloween, families can drop them off at any of the 26 Commerce Bank locations across the region. From there, they’ll go to homegrown nonprofit Forest ReLeaf to replant trees in neighborhoods that lost them in the tornado.
So while you’re picking out costumes or stocking up on candy, consider grabbing a Trick or Tree box—or donating when one comes to your door. Halloween is all about community, and this year, St. Louis has a chance to show just how strong and giving ours can be. With a little help from the next generation of do-gooders in costume, we can turn a spooky night into something truly meaningful—planting hope, one tree at a time.