The Return of Trick or Treat Under the Sea

Looking for somewhere to have a spppooo-tacular time for Halloween? Search no further, the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher has just the event for you! The Aquarium will be hosting their most popular event of the year, Trick or Treat Under the Sea on Wednesday, October 27 and Thursday, October 28 from 5:30pm - 8pm.

Trick or Treat Under the Sea offers fun for the whole family! Dress up in costume (no masks for adults, please), rake in the candy and play games with prizes. Enjoy face painting, story-telling, two magic shows per night entitled “Pirates Have Problems” by No Sleeves Magic Camp and haunted gardens. Spooky divers will be haunting the big tank throughout the night!

This year the classrooms will be submarine/deep ocean themed. Visitors can join the Fresh Water Wonders “crew” to play games and win prizes before they dive deep into the ocean. Glow-in-the-dark jellies and other deep sea creatures will be there to hand out treats. This family-friendly room offers a few special tricks and a chance to visit the deep blue sea!

At the end of your experience you will be offered the chance to take the path of ‘scaredom’ through the Haunted Gardens where creatures of the night are waiting to frighten you one last time. An alternative route is also available for families who choose not to take the haunted path.

Tickets are $6 each and 2 and under are free. Tickets can be purchased in advance by calling 910-458-8257 ext. 238 or at the door the night of the event. Umbrella strollers only. Children 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Be green and bring your own trick-or-treat bag!

Go Green for Halloween

Black and orange may be the designated colors for Halloween, but adding a little green to the mix can go a long way. Make this Halloween a treat to Mother Nature by following these easy tips to have a green Halloween.

1. Trick-or-treat with a reusable bag- Cloth or canvas bags are a much better alternative to plastic bags. Pillowcases are also a great way to tote your candy the environmental way. Americans use more than 380 million plastic bags every year, which hurts the environment as well as animals that may digest them.

2. Make do-it-yourself costumes- Making costumes from old clothes or other items you have around will help cut costs on Halloween expenses, as well as make use of old items lying around. After Halloween, you can trade your costume with other people or donate the clothing to a thrift store.

3. Give environmental friendly treats- In an effort to reduce waste, buy candy that uses less or no packaging. Buying candy locally is another excellent option to handing out eco-friendly treats. Buying locally helps support the local economy, as well as reduces the amount of fossil fuels used to transport the candy.

4. Walk instead of drive- This tip is a simple way to reduce your ecological footprint. Instead of driving to diverse neighborhoods, stick close to home and walk.

5. Compost your pumpkins- After carving and decorating your Halloween pumpkin, instead of throwing it away, try creating a compost and putting it in there. Composting is a wonderful way to create soil for your garden.

6. Finally, keep it going after Halloween! Becoming environmental friendly is a lifestyle change that requires work all year long. Taking these techniques and applying them to daily life is an excellent way to make every day a green day!

Trick or Treat...At the Aquarium

Celebrate Halloween early with the NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher’s Trick or Treat Under the Sea. The aquarium welcomes trick-or-treaters of all ages on two frightful nights this year: Wednesday, October 28 or Thursday, October 29 from 5:00 to 8:30 pm.

Dress up in costume (no masks for adults, please), rake in the candy and play games with prizes. Enjoy face painting, story-telling, and haunted gardens. Look for our spooky divers in the big tank! At 6:40 pm on both nights, a magic show entitled “Pirates Have Problems” by No Sleeves Magic Camp will be held in the Auditorium.

Admission is $6 per person. Children 2 and under are free. Children 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Only umbrella strollers will be allowed in the building for this event. Be green and bring your favorite trick or treat bag!

Pre-sale tickets are available now and are selling fast! Tickets will be sold on the day of the event from 5 to 8 p.m. Please call 910-458-8257 for tickets and more information.

NOTE: The Aquarium will close at 2:30 pm on October 38 and 29 to decorate and will reopen for Trick or Treat Under the Sea at 5:00 pm.

NC Aquarium Offers Facebook Contest for Tickets

CONTEST TIME! To win two tickets to NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher's Trick or Treat Under the Sea event on October 28 or 29 from 5-8:30 pm, post your BEST and MOST CREATIVE Halloween costume (past or present) on the fan photos section of our Facebook page. Log into http://www.facebook.com/ and type in ‘NC Aquarium’. Or use this link: http://tinyurl.com/ncaff1986. Become and fan and post away! Rules: Costumes must be appropriate in nature. Inappropriate photos will be deleted and not considered. Contest closes Oct. 21. Tickets are for use at the Fort Fisher Aquarium only.

Trick or Treat Aquarium Style

Celebrate Halloween early with the NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher’s Trick or Treat Under the Sea. The aquarium welcomes trick-or-treaters of all ages on two frightful nights this year: Wednesday, October 28 or Thursday, October 29 from 5:00 to 8:30 pm.

Dress up in costume (no masks for adults, please), rake in the candy and play games with prizes. Enjoy face painting, story-telling, and haunted gardens. Look for our spooky divers in the big tank! At 6:40 pm on both nights, a magic show entitled “Pirates Have Problems” by No Sleeves Magic Camp will be held in the Auditorium.

Admission is $6 per person. Children 2 and under are free. Children 16 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Only umbrella strollers will be allowed in the building for this event. Be green and bring your favorite trick or treat bag!

Pre-sale tickets are available now and are selling fast! Tickets will be sold on the day of the event from 5 to 8 p.m. Please call 910-458-8257 for tickets and more information.

NC Aquarium Accepting Booth Sponsors for Halloween Event

The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher invites businesses and organizations to sponsor booths at the seventh annual “Trick or Treat Under the Sea.” The event has been expanded to two nights for 2009 – Wednesday, Oct. 28 and Thursday, Oct. 29.

The event, also known as TOTUS, features indoor trick-or-treating for children from 5:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Sponsoring a booth is a wonderful way to promote your business by interacting with families in the community at this fun and popular event.

Booth space is available for $75 per day. Vendors may attend one or both nights. Sponsors decorate booths and provide enough treats for the several hundred children expected each night. Sponsors bring their own tables, decorations and power cords.

Booth sponsorships are available first-come, first-served. For more information or to register, call Special Events Coordinator Terry Bryant at 910-458-8257 ext. 218.

Trick or Treat Under the Sea A Success!

The N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher’s seventh annual Trick or Treat Under the Sea was a huge success thanks to the community, vendors and donors. Over 2,300 visitors enjoyed indoor trick-or-treating from local businesses and organizations that decorated booths set up among the exhibits and galleries.

Kids of all ages also enjoyed Scotty the Pirate Magician, playing games, seeing alligators bobbing for apples, fishes munching on jack-o-lanterns and scary divers in the Aquarium’s 235,000 gallon Cape Fear Shoals tank.

The NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher would like to thank the following booth vendors:

• Atlantic Chiropractic
• Bluewater Carpet Solutions
• Dr. Henry D. Browning IV, DDS
• Carolina Hurricane Shutters
  
• Chips Computers
• Costco
• Coastal Tumble Gym
• Fan Boy Comics
  
• Golden Corral
• Federal Point Family Practice
• Mad Science / Sandpiper Subs
• Mary Kay Cosmetics
  
• Med Care of North Caorlina
• Microtel Inn and Suites
• Preferred Alternatives
• RE/MAX Coastal Properties
• Sea-Comm Media
• Shoreview Medical Associates
• Simply Play
• Snip It Inc. / Great Clips
• Sylvan Learning Center
• Taylor's Heating and Air
• Dr. Skip Tyson, DDS
• Sound Decisions
• Urgent Care of Wilmington
• Well Care
• Wilmington Ice House
  

Judges Rhonda Bellamy with WAAV 980 AM, Meghan Packer with WWAY TV3 and Kim Ratcliff with WECT had the difficult task of choosing winners in the booth decorating contest. Congratulations to first place winners Urgent Care of Wilmington, second place winners Mad Science / Sandpiper Subs and third place winners Dr. Skip Tyson, DDS for their amazingly creative booths.

“This event isn’t possible without our booth vendors and donors who contribute to the evening’s festivities,” Terry Bryant, events coordinator said.

Special thanks to the following donors and volunteers:

• McAnderson’s (McDonald’s)
• BB&T
• Best Buy
• Bon Appetit
• Chick-fil-A / Chick-fil-A Cow Character
• Coastal K-9 Bakery
• Costco
• Got-em-on Live Bait Club
• Island Florals by Roxanne
• Island Gazette
• N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher Volunteers
• Ocean Grill
• On Time Marketing
• Snip It Inc. / Great Clips
• Tarheel Challenge Parking Volunteers
• Town of Kure Beach
• Two Guys Grill
• UNC Wilmington Seahawk Character
• Wilmington Ice House
• Wilmington Media

*Photo: First place booth winners: The Graveyard Band