the retirement option of choice Walter Used To Eat Frozen Dinners Alone Mealtime was mostly a chore forWalter. Living alone, he would simply choose what was easiest to prepare and eat it in front of the TV. Nutrition was rarely a consideration. At Chartwell, the chef changes the menu daily, so Walter not only gets to choose from a variety of balanced meals, but he enjoys them with a side-dish of laughter and conversation. Now he enjoys a varied menu and great company. To find out more call Chartwell Classic Oakville at 905-257-0095 or visit www.chartwellreit.ca UPCOMING EVENTS November 12: Bridge luncheon - 11:30am lunch, 12:30pm bridge November 18: Honour - 4:30pm Chartwell Classic Oakvilles National Book Launch. Honour is a photo journalistic book reflecting on the stories of our heros. Mayor Burton as special guest speaker. 7 Friday , O ctober 29, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m neighbours lawns on either side of me now. Im on the driveway and the boulevard. What started out as a regular trick or treat- ing event at the Banbury Crescent home has turned into more than just that. The adults get treats as well. Kathy bakes some witchs finger sugar cookies that are handed to the parents while the children must sum up the courage to enter the field of horrors if they want some candy. The kids, if theyre brave enough, they have to go to the front door and get candy, Gary said. Then we have somebody, a friend, who hands out candy at the street to the really little kids who are just too afraid to go up to the front door. Each year the family adds two or three new displays to go enlarge the haunt. Gary said put- ting everything together is a lot of work, but it is also a lot of fun. I might as well go out on a high note and my kids are all grown up and Ill let some of the other neighbours take over, he said. He added he will miss the yearly projects. His children, all of them in their 20s, get involved in the spirit. His two sons help build and get dressed up on Halloween. His daughter moved away to school in Calgary several years ago, but prior to moving she helped make the displays, as well. One of his sons builds an entire display every year. He gets into it and hes like one of the dead bodies out there. He jumps out and scares the mothers and the teenage girls. Hes part of the show, Gary said. When his son was still in Grade 9 he built a coffin in his shop class. Ive still got the coffin. Ive got gallows that are probably 20 years old. Ive got some stuff from 20-21 years ago. I just keep hauling it out and storing it away, Gary said. Gary said he and his wife originally did this for their children. Theyre all grown up now, but I had three young kids at the time so (I did it) for entertain- ment for them and, as we did more, it was for the expressions on the kids faces, he said. Its gotten to the point now where the neighbour- hood kids come down and help me build. The displays have attracted some attention as well. During the last four to five years the Shortts have added a guest book for people to sign. He figures hes had about 650 people each of the last two years. He added that when neighbours have visitors from outside the country, they bring their guests out to sign the book, too. I meet all kinds of people in Oakville and they tell me where they live and I tell them where I live and then they say, Isnt there a Halloween House up there? Thats my house, he laughs. As large as the displays are, Gary said they arent too costly. Because he and his children build the dis- plays they only have to pay for the construction materials. They begin building in September and spend a few weekends on the work. Haunted house a neighbourhood treat Continued from page 1