Gerry Generazio, a Forest Avenue resident, says her house and block attract a big crowd on Halloween.
Parents, children, skeletons and ghouls abound on Forest Avenue this week with the biggest attraction and most treats at the home of John and Gerry Generazio.
On Halloween, you can’t miss the spooky place and no need to ask for directions, just look for a large, costumed crowd. The police are in on this, too. After closing off the street, they play “Monster Mash” from the patrol cars with the lights flashing.
“I’ve been doing this for 20-25 years,” Gerry said this past weekend at her home. “I guess I’m a kid at heart.”
About 3,500 adults and children came last year and she estimated 2,600 pieces of candy were handed out.
“It’s a safe block and we wait outside, with a table out front, so that parents feel comfortable,” she said.
Rain or shine, Gerry said, hasn’t stopped people from coming out. But most of the ornamentation is not displayed yet since it’s not waterproof. But when it is unboxed and set up, expect a dead-on-arrival Count Dracula.
“I have a coffin with a vampire in it,” Gerry explained. “He sits up and turns his head to the children. And we’ll have two smoke machines with different colors. There’s a light machine that puts out designs on the sidewalk. We had that last year. It takes three to five people to hand out the candy.”
The party started 45 years ago with Gerry and a new neighbor, Lou Valentino, throwing it. There were a lot of kids on the block which was reason enough. During the summers, they’d team up for an Independence Day water balloon fights, pool and breakfast parties and barbecues. But it’s her Halloween bash that people know. When the kids found out about it, she said they started coming in vans.
“I was in Fairfield buying candy and someone mentioned Forest Avenue in Glen Ridge was the place to go,” she said. “I told the woman that was me. My daughter lives around the corner. She said no one comes there. Why should they go there when they can come here?”
She started putting up the decorations at the beginning of the month and it takes a couple of days to remove it. She estimates the decorations cost $3,000 and $500 goes for candy. The smoke machines were borrowed from Triple S Inc., an audio repair and entertainment equipment business in Bloomfield her husband owns. Portable lights are used by the police to light the entrance of the street.
“I try to keep it well-lit,” Gerry said, “so kids don’t fall over things. Everything is outside. I don’t want anyone climbing steps — there are little ones. It’s peace-of-mind for the parents. That’s an important part of Halloween. But we get older children, too. People don’t believe me when I explain Halloween at my house to them. Then they come here and see the chaos.”
Of course, Gerry likes to dress up, too.
“My great-granddaughter will be here,” she continued. “I may make-up my face. Last year, she sat on my lap and handed out candy. I can’t say enough about Halloween.”
Trick or treaters are welcomed from 3:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
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