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Witches and zombies haunt Historic 25th Street

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Downtown Ogden housed masked, face painted and bloodied guests for the Witchstock zombie crawl on Oct. 22. (Abby Van Ess / The Signpost)

October is traditionally the month when ghosts, goblins and ghouls roam the streets. On Oct. 22, Ogden streets were filled with witches, zombies and monsters.

Downtown Ogden hosted the annual Witchstock celebration at the Ogden Amphitheater. This year marked the fifth annual Witchstock festival, which included a witches’ tea party, zombie crawl and monster bash.

While the tea party required pre-purchased tickets to attend, the zombie crawl and monster bash were free for the public.

Piper Deamer, the daughter of the founder of the zombie crawl in Ogden, spoke about her involvement with the event over the six years it has been running.

Over the years, it has become increasingly popular with the Ogden community. “At this point, there’re tons of people that end up showing up to it,” she said.

Initially, the zombie crawl started as a way to raise funds for a leukemia and lymphoma society. It later changed to a drive called “Race for Grace” and is now focusing on a more local cause: the Lantern House homeless shelter. The event collects canned food and coats.

William Jessop, who was doing zombie face paint at the event and directs the makeup at Haunted Hollow, was a newcomer at the event.

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The entrance gate at Witchstock 2016 warned those who dared to enter. (Abby Van Ess / The Signpost)

“This is my first year involved with zombie crawl,” he said, “A lot of people … seem to really enjoy getting involved with cool events like this and Witchstock.”

Tanya Durham, who in the past has participated in the zombie crawl as part of the horde, was attending as a vendor this year. She is a local artist, and her stall featured Halloween-themed artwork.

“I’ve done the zombie crawl for the past five years,” Durham said. “This is the first year that I’ve actually been a vendor.”

Brittany Molder, a face paint vendor, said of her experience, “I think it’s great, it’s good seeing the community get together…I love Halloween, it’s my favorite holiday.”

There were also dancers celebrating both Halloween and Dia de los Muertos, Mexico’s Day of the Dead.

“This is a great opportunity to be a part of the community and do something with Witchstock,” said Autumn Roberts, artistic director of Dance Impressions Utah, whose company performed three dance numbers at the event.

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A family dressed as zombies attend Witchstock zombie crawl in downtown Ogden on Oct. 22. (Abby Van Ess / The Signpost)

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