U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria community members got into the holiday spirit at the USO Grafenwoehr Halloween Spooktacular program, hosted at the Tower Barracks Exchange Complex, Oct. 30, 2021.

U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria Garrison Commander Col. Christopher Danbeck joined the USO Halloween Spooktacular festivities to lead the official costume parade through the Tower Barracks Exchange, Oct. 30, 2021.

Young community members of U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria learn how to do the Time Warp dance at the USO Grafenwoehr Halloween Spooktacular event, Oct. 30, 2021.

GRAFENWOEHR, Germany – U.S. Army Garrison Bavaria community members got into the holiday spirit at the USO Grafenwoehr Halloween Spooktacular program, hosted on Oct. 30 at the Tower Barracks Exchange Complex.

Participants enjoyed truck-or-treating, face painting, dancing, a photo booth, Halloween themed coloring, prizes, a costume parade and community connectivity.

To help make this event happen, organizations and individual families from across the garrison volunteered with USO Grafenwoehr to host an array of decorative trunks. Furthermore, each station prepared several thousand pieces of candy to distribute among the young trick-or-treaters.

According to USO Grafenwoehr Center Manager Gabe Foist, his organization purchased more than twice the amount of candy for this year’s event, compared to 2019.

“I think this event is a fantastic opportunity for USAG Bavaria community members to come together and engage in something that we previously couldn’t last year, due to COVID-19,” said Foist. “We’ve made a lot of changes – like hosting the main trunk-or-treat lineup outside and providing hand sanitizer at the stations – to ensure a safe, responsible event for everyone to enjoy!”

USAG Bavaria Garrison Commander Col. Christopher Danbeck also joined the festivities to lead the official costume parade alongside his children. He was donning a “fancy ketchup” costume.

As the event wrapped up, USO Grafenwoehr awarded door prizes to guests. And based on popular vote, community members decided on the best decorated trunks:

  • First Place – Service Credit Union | World First Candy ATM Trunk
  • Second Place – American Red Cross | Hotel Transylvania Trunk
  • Third Place – UMGC Bavaria | Graveyard Trunk

View additional photos of the event, including the winning decorative trunks, on Flickr: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmX2XEsG