Aggie Halloween Memories
Oct 31, 2008 | Women's Basketball
Oct. 31, 2008
As the young and young at heart celebrate Halloween throughout the U.S. tonight, the Texas A&M women's basketball team takes time out from practice to reminisce about their fondest memories of the ghoulish occasion.
Head Coach Gary Blair
"My fondest memories of Halloween came during my time as head coach at Stephen F. Austin when my children were growing up. Each year, we had a pumpkin carving contest for all of the children in our neighborhood and we gathered at Ed Cole's driveway. It was always tough for me, because I had to judge. It would come down to deciding between my own kid or a neighborhood kid, which put a lot of pressure on me. Especially, when my daughter, Paige, had the best pumpkin in the whole neighborhood. Halloween is a chance for everyone to get out of their normal routine and dress up like Batman or a princess. It's a tremendous holiday for kids and for parents."
"Another special Halloween memory was when we dressed up our son, Matt, in a pumpkin outfit as a three year old. He was so darn cute! Taking the kids trick-or-treating on Halloween is the best holiday of the year, next to Christmas. Now, my wife, Nan and I, have the opportunity to do it with our own five-year-old grandson, Logan, which is very special to us."
Associate Head Coach Vic Schaefer
"Each year, we have a hay ride that the adults go on to supervise all of the little ones in our neighborhood. It's always a fun time to see everyone dressed up in their costumes."
Assistant Coach Johnnie Harris
"My fondest memory was when I took my son, Marcus, and my daughter, Kiera, to a church Halloween party back home in Arkansas. Marcus dressed up as a doctor and Kiera was a slice of cake and they both won first prize for their costumes."
Athletic Trainer Mike "Radar" Ricke
"My best Halloween was when I dressed up as Batman back in 1970 when I was 10 years old. I had the mask and the cape and I looked really cool. I always enjoyed Halloween with my children though, especially when my daughter, Allison was five and my younger daughter, Amanda was two. Seeing the kids in their costume and collecting candy from door-to-door was always fun. That's the best thing about being a dad - you get to eat a little bit of the candy, too."
Senior Kiley Finstad
"My roommates and I are dressing up as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles tonight. We made our own costumes with spandex and plastic turtle shells. I'm going trick-or-treating as Donatello, the purple one, which is going to be a lot of fun."
Senior Takia Starks
"I last went trick-or-treating during my senior year of high school. I always enjoyed the candy. My favorites were Twix bars, Starburst and little mini Twizzlers."
Junior Damitria Buchanan
"When I was in kindergarten or first grade, we had a Halloween party at school and my mom, Beverly, made my costume. I was a cute little angel holding a devil's pitch fork, because sometimes I could be good and sometimes I could be bad (LOL)."
Freshman Kelsey Assarian
"Halloween was always a fun time of year for our family. My mother would make costumes for my sister, Allyson and I. One year, she dressed me up as a spider using a black shower cap with black socks hanging from my arms as the legs. Another year, my sister was a grape and we used a bunch of purple balloons, so it was always creative."
Freshman Skylar Collins
"The last time I went trick-or-treating, I dressed up as a witch in second grade. Nowadays, I go trick-or-treating as myself and I enjoy seeing everyone else dress up."
