Michael Luna spent his Wednesday scaring children while volunteering at the Neighborhood House Halloween Party.

Members of Phi Delta Theta and other greek chapters created activities for children from Neighborhood House to enjoy Halloween.

“My frat did the haunted house and all the decorations for it,” Luna said. “I think the kids had a really good time; I mean, they all seemed scared.”

Neighborhood House is the oldest child-care facility in Utah.

“A lot of the kids come from low-income families, and this is a good opportunity for them,” said Lori McDonald, greek adviser.

This year’s activities were a haunted house, face painting and pumpkin painting.

“I think the greeks are a fun group of students because they reach down to the level of the kids and, in some ways, bring out the kid in themselves,” Karin Raso, an administrator at the Neighborhood House said.

“We try and have family-fun nights so the parents can have the opportunity to spend some more time with their kids,” she said.

Raso said the turnout this year was lower than prior years for two main reasons.

“We usually have around 300 to 400 people, but this year we got around 200 to 250, because it was not as close to Halloween as we have had it in the past,” Raso said. Another contributing factor was the fact that this year’s party was held during the week, she said.

But the lower turnout did not stop participants and volunteers from having fun.

“The kids had a good time, and the greeks showed a lot of support,” Luna said. “Overall, I think it was a good experience for everyone.”

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