- December 6, 2025
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Some people might move to Mallory Park because of its coastal architecture or resort-style pool, but for Brian and Maryann Goetsch, it was the Halloween spirit that sold them.
Every October, the neighborhood turns from great to ghoulish. Skeletons break through the ground to tower overhead. Witches hover on broomsticks, and monsters line the streets.
“How big Halloween was here is one of the reasons we decided to buy and move to Mallory Park,” Maryann Goetsch said. “It’s very events and family focused.”
The adults have fun, too. Jello shots are a staple of the trick-or-treat route Halloween night.
The neighbors also like to “Boo” each other, which should not be confused with heckling. Maryann Goetsch described the game as a gift-giving version of “ding dong ditch.”
After getting booed, a sign goes up that reads, “We’ve been booed.” Then, that person or family has to boo someone else so the fun continues all month long.
“We booed like five people,” Maryann Goetsch said. “She (5-year-old Victoria Goetsch) likes to run away, but there are no secrets because everyone has a Ring doorbell.”
And with such elaborate decorations, everyone has their own tricks for haunting Mallory Park.
The 16-foot phantom in Jeannie Gast’s front yard is zip tied to a palm tree after wind gusts blew it over one too many times, and Jon Pilz keeps his pile of skeletons in a storage unit because he might not fit his car in the garage otherwise.
The Goetsch family uses their attic as storage because there’s room to expand. Each year, another couple of animatronics or inflatables are added to the display.
“My wife does all sorts of stuff in the community and takes care of all the holidays,” Brian Goetsch said. “I picked one thing. It’s Halloween, and I go big on it.”
He's been accumulating Halloween decorations since 11-year-old Olivia Goetsch was a toddler, so just about every inch of the yard is spoken for by a spider or a gargoyle at this point.
Alex Bajgrowicz said he had a “special relationship with Halloween growing up” because his birthday is Oct. 21. But like Brian Goetsch, that relationship has intensified since becoming a dad.
He and his wife Melinda have two boys — 8-year-old Eli and 11-year-old Jacob.
“(Decorating for Halloween) is like a generational thing,” Alex Bajgrowicz said. “My mom decorated, but never like this. Now, people are doing this everywhere.”
The scarier the better for the Bajgrowicz boys. The only exception is that dad doesn’t care for creepy clowns.
But Melinda Bajgrowicz said her Halloween style most matches the inflatable minion dressed like a vampire.
She could do without the mannequin next to her garage holding a blade saw, but her family loves a good scare.
“As creepy as all this stuff is, going to that Spirit Halloween store is a family ritual,” Alex Bajgrowicz said. “Seeing the new things is always a blast because so many of the animatronics have buttons you can press.”
