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A few freezies with alcohol were handed out by mistake at a weekend community event in the Resort Village of Candle Lake. (file photo/paNOW Staff)
Candle Lake booze freezies

Alcohol freezies handed out by mistake during Halloween event

Oct 31, 2022 | 12:35 PM

The Resort Village of Candle Lake had to issue a warning Saturday evening after a small number of freezies containing alcohol were handed out at a community children’s party earlier in the day.

“Please inspect your children’s treats and dispose of suspicious freezies accordingly,” stated the notice on the village’s Facebook page.

Mayor Terry Kostyna said it happened during the annual Trunk or Treat Halloween event held Saturday afternoon.

“It turned out to be just an awesome event,” Kostyna said. “Unfortunately with community volunteers, people were donating things and as I understand it, less than four or five freezies that contained alcohol were mixed in with a bunch of others inadvertently and very innocently by somebody.”

“We had a phone call and we became aware of it,” Kostyna said. “We got ahead of it and we made the notice out and as far as we know, we’re not aware of any that were consumed by any kids or adults, for that matter.”

Freezies with alcohol are sold by a variety of companies. Typically the alcohol content is somewhere between six and eight per cent.

Kostyna said the “Trunk or Treat” event started during COVID, as a way for the community to come together for Halloween. He said this year people gathered both inside and outside Candle Lake’s community hall. The “trunk” in trunk or treat comes from the fact that some people donate goodies out of the trunks of their vehicles. This year, he said, around 100 children took part, and the event included a haunted house in the community hall.

He said the freezies were bought by someone at a liquor outlet, and got handed out by mistake.

“It’s something that might even have happened at somebody’s home,” Kostyna said. “It’s just an unfortunate error, we got ahead of it very quickly, it appears nothing was consumed.”

Kostyna said Candle Lake has around 1,300 permanent residents, and the population increases during the summer months. The community is very spread out geographically, so the trunk-or-treat event is a way for kids to get Halloween treats without parents having to drive long distances.

“The community comes together in one place so all the kids have one place to go, rather than drive all over Candle Lake looking for some lights on,” Kostyna said.

Doug.Lett@pattisonmedia.com

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