Little kids, big kids, witches, wolves, orange pumpkins and blue pumpkins…
Generally, the universal rule is that a dark home on Halloween night means that the homeowners are not participating in the festivities. On the other hand, a decorated or well-lit home will entertain the miniature ghosts and goblins that may come knocking at the door. Now, a different shade of pumpkin is a grass-roots effort to signify something just as impactful.
You may see children carrying blue or teal pumpkins while trick-or-treating this Halloween. Those bluish buckets mean so much more than the sweet treats inside of them.
A blue pumpkin means the child has autism while the teal pumpkin means a child has food allergies.
The blue pumpkin campaign was originally started by a mother to raise awareness to neighbors that not all children with autism can speak. In today’s world, it is more important than ever to enforce inclusion—even on Halloween night. The blue bucket represents the fact that when children are trick-or-treating, household members will wait for someone to say “trick-or-treat” before putting anything into a bucket. Believe it or not, this can be a very stressful situation for children and parents alike. The blue bucket is intended to speak for the participant and carry the message that either the child cannot say the words or may need a little extra time or patience.
Teal pumpkins are used by children who have food allergies. Many people will display a teal pumpkin on their front porch or sidewalk to identify homes that offer non-candy treats for children with those food allergies. Some ideas for non-candy treats may be glow-sticks, bouncy balls or small cans of play-dough.
Halloween night can be hectic to those children that suffer from autism and other disabilities since this is a highly sensory-related activity. Please remember to be kind and understanding to those participants that may appear to be older, take a little longer, or those that may be having verbal outbursts or stemming. Everyone deserves candy or a treat on Halloween.