Harvest Fest
Growing up in the United States, little kids learn about the tale of the Headless Horseman. The legend goes that a soldier from the Revolutionary war got decapitated by a cannon ball in Sleepy Hollow, NY and his restless soul still rises from his grave around Halloween. Furiously, the solider seeks his missing head and tries to replace it with that an unlucky wanderer that may encounter him. The American folklore of the Headless Horseman came from the book, the Legend of Sleepy Hollow written by Washington Irving.
On October 19, 2019, Phi Theta Kappa members participated by volunteering in the Passaic County Historical Society’s Sleepy Hollow Harvest Festival at Lambert Castle, that was open for families around the area.
The event was full of games, such as the bean bag toss. The event also included arts and crafts stations, roller skating and historical insight from the Passaic County Historical Society by demonstrating on how to use a musket like the soldiers back in the 1700s.
“...The musket firing made it like all the best because he would like fire it and then everyone was so shocked and afraid, but it was so cool!” said Edwin Nava, a Theater Major and also a full member of PTK, who volunteered for the event.
At the end of the festival, the Passaic County Historical society planned a big finale, where they read to the little kids about the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The little ones gathered around, while one of the volunteers read the story. Once the story was finished, one of the officers, who was present on Lambert Castle dressed up as the Headless Horseman and galloped around the families on a stunning brown horse.
The families enjoyed the surprise and had the chance to take pictures with the Headless Horseman and his horse, before leaving the festival.
“Oh my god that was pretty cool, I really really love it... it was pretty cool how an officer dressed up as the headless horseman, to be able to participate with the kids--he decided to do that with the kids, that’s pretty neat to have that!” said Jenny Garcia, a provisional member of PTK who helped organize the volunteers for the event.
A total of seven PTK volunteers participated for the event and were put into booths where they directly interacted with the children and parents. The event, even though it was small, it had an estimated 75 people who enjoyed their time with their families, making it a success.
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