|
Learn Local. Play Local.
As daylight fades earlier each evening, a different kind of curiosity emerges across Western Massachusetts. Longer nights highlight what comes alive after dark, while Halloween traditions bring folklore, local history, and community celebrations into sharper focus. That seasonal fascination with creatures that creep, crawl, and move through the night can also deepen an understanding of local ecology. Night Animals and The Extraordinary Caterpillar in Turners Falls, along with a program on timber rattlesnakes in Sheffield, explore how native species adapt to their surroundings and depend on interconnected habitats. In Springfield, The Zoo in Forest Park’s Spooky Safari brings animal science into a Halloween setting, connecting seasonal fun with conservation and wildlife care.
This season also brings new meaning to historic places and old stories. Haunted Hancock in Pittsfield and Skeletal Secrets at Wistariahurst in Holyoke share tales about spirits and death, showing how people in the past thought about life and the unknown. In Deerfield, Old Burying Ground tours use gravestones to help visitors think about whose stories were remembered and whose were forgotten. Whispering Bones in Ashfield and Edgar Allan Poe Live! in Westfield keep folklore and Gothic literature alive through storytelling and performances. A Día de Muertos workshop in Becket focuses on remembering loved ones through art and tradition, while Haunted Strathmore in Russell gathers people to share local stories in a unique seasonal setting.
Halloween also changes how we experience familiar places in our towns. Throughout the region, trick-or-treating and rag shag parades turn streets and town centers into places where people come together for seasonal fun. At Naumkeag in Stockbridge, glowing jack-o’-lanterns can spark curiosity about the history of pumpkin carving and how late-October traditions differ around the world. Red Gate Farm in Ashfield offers cider pressing, farm activities, and a campfire, while Halloween at the Springfield Museums invites families to explore art, history, and science in a festive way. In Florence, Haunted Harvest fills Look Park with pumpkin art after dark. These events show how autumn’s longer nights help us notice nature, learn about history, hear stories, and find new meaning in familiar places through seasonal traditions.
Discover more events in our list of
Weekly Suggested Events:
Thurs, October 22 | Fri, October 23 | Sat, October 24 | Sun, October 25 | Mon, October 26 | Tues, October 27 | Wed, October 28 | Thurs, October 29 | Fri, October 30
| | HILLTOWN FAMILIES FEATURED SPONSORS | | FEATURED EVENTS, RESOURCES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND MORE IN WESTERN MA! | |
The Academy of Music Theatre in Northampton will present Pinocchio: My Puppet Pal on Friday, Oct 23, inviting families to enjoy a new adventure that reimagines classic characters. Audiences will learn about friendship as Katie and her puppet pal Pinocchio journey to the Harvest Festival and discover what it means to be a real friend. | | | The Montessori School of Northampton will host its annual Children's Fall Fair on Saturday, Oct 24, from 11am-2pm, celebrating the school's 50th anniversary and featuring live entertainment, games, and activities for children. Admission is $5 per child, and food will be available for purchase. | | | FEATURED EVENT
Beetlejuice JR.
Northampton, MA | The Academy of Music Theatre in Northampton will present Beetlejuice JR. on Oct 29 & 30, offering families the chance to enjoy a musical about Lydia Deetz, a teenager who learns to face new adventures in a haunted house. | | | Teens in rural Western Massachusetts are invited to apply for the Our Voices Project, a new regional task force on relationship health and violence prevention. Up to 35 high-school-aged teens will receive expert training, connect with peers, and help develop school prevention programs. Participants build leadership skills and bring youth perspectives to healthy relationships and community safety. Stipends are available for participating teens and sponsoring adults. Apply by October 31. | | | Enjoy a Classic Halloween episode of Hilltown Family Variety Show featuring spooky songs, vintage commercials, and playful storytelling. Hear music from Ella Fitzgerald, The Who, and Recess Monkey, plus "This Is Halloween" and more for a nostalgic holiday soundtrack. | | | |
FEATURED PRESCHOOL
The Hartsbrook School
Hadley, MA
| The Hartsbrook School in Hadley, MA offers a nurturing early childhood program where children ages 2-6 learn through play, nature, and meaningful activities on a 54-acre campus. Families can explore nursery, preschool, and kindergarten options with both half- and full-day programs available. | | | |
FEATURED CLUBS & CAMPS
The Common School
Amherst, MA
| The Common School in Amherst, MA, offers after-school clubs and vacation camps for ages 3-14, with registration now open for all programs. Art, Magic: The Gathering, and Dungeons & Dragons clubs are available, along with Winterfun and Springfun camps during February and April vacations. Open to all! | | | | HILLTOWN FAMILIES YEARLY SPONSORS | | FEATURED EVENTS, CLASSES, SCHOOLS, & MORE IN WESTERN MA! | |
Discover the stories of Black craftspeople who helped shape American homes and history at an illustrated presentation based on the DAR Museum exhibition Fighting for Freedom. The event, on Oct 24 at 11am at the Clapp House in Northampton, explores the achievements and challenges of Black artisans across generations. | | | |  |
Join the River Valley Co-op Fall Festival & Artisan Fair outdoors at the Easthampton store on Saturday, Oct 24. Shop handmade art, enjoy cider donuts and apples from Park Hill Orchard, and celebrate with live music and kids' activities like pumpkin decorating and face painting. | | | |
FEATURED SCHOOL
The Bement School
Deerfield, MA | The Bement School in Deerfield, founded in 1925, is a day and boarding school for kindergarten through grade 9 with 225 students. Known for its rigorous academics and caring, multinational community, Bement integrates arts and athletics daily and values kindness, curiosity, and compassion. Financial aid is available, and applications for fall 2027 are open. | | | | |
|
FEATURED SCHOOL
The Academy at Charlemont
Charlemont, MA
| The Academy at Charlemont is an all-gender day school for grades 6-12, offering small classes, rigorous academics, inclusive arts and athletics, and a welcoming community. Located in Charlemont, MA with bus transportation and financial aid, the Academy hosts an Open House on Sun., Oct. 25 from 1-3pm. | | | | HILLTOWN FAMILIES ANNUAL DIRECTORIES | | HILLTOWN FAMILIES ANNUAL SPONSORS | |
Ever spot a bat at twilight and wonder what it's up to? Massachusetts bats like the Little Brown and Big Brown aren't just flying-they're farming allies and ecosystem indicators. From pest control to seasonal hibernation, these nighttime creatures reveal the deeper story of our region's wild rhythms. | | | | |
Explore how costumes act as catalysts for learning. From fashion design to history and storytelling, discover ways they support creativity, culture, and self-directed education. | | | |
Candy collected on Halloween traces a path from ancient festivals to present-day kitchens. Sugar and corn syrup shift under heat, forming familiar shapes like candy corn, chocolate, and licorice. Noticing how these sweets are made brings history, chemistry, and tradition into view, inviting questions about how cultural practices and scientific methods intersect. | | | | |
Turn Halloween candy into mad science fun! Families learn STEM at home with Skittles density tests, M&M chromatography, and sparking Lifesavers while exploring states of matter. | | | |
This Halloween, families can learn compassion by adopting a black cat. Despite myths, these playful pets bring love and joy while finding the forever homes they deserve. | | | | |
In Celtic tradition, certain landscapes are known as thin places, where the line between the spiritual and the everyday seems to soften. Walking through these sites, people notice shifts in atmosphere and meaning, shaped by story and presence. Exploring thin places draws attention to how environment and belief intertwine, offering glimpses into how different regions hold memory and possibility. | | | | |
🎶📻 HFVS Vintage Halloween Episode
Revisit Halloween 2009 with this oldie-but-goodie episode of the Hilltown Family Variety Show! Producer Sienna Wildfield, who launched the show in 2006 with her then-four-year-old daughter on Valley Free Radio in Northampton, spins a playful mix of spooky songs, vintage commercials, and Halloween storytelling. Featuring music from Ella Fitzgerald, The Who, Recess Monkey, and other favorites, this classic episode celebrates Halloween across generations. Families can follow their curiosity beyond the music by exploring the folklore behind familiar Halloween creatures and discovering how spooky stories and traditions have changed over time. Listen to the extended episode!
Every Saturday, listen to the Hilltown Family Variety Show either on your FM dial at 103.3FM WXOJ (Northampton, MA) or on our website for a full hour of commercial-free, quality family programming! Encores air Sunday mornings from 7-8am.
Hilltown Families eNewsletter subscribers are invited to an exclusive preview each week!
➡️ Click here for a speak preview of this weekend's episode. ⬅️
| |
Amelia Park Children's Museum's Spooky STEM Halloween Party in Westfield turns bubbling cauldrons and pumpkins into science experiments for young children. Hands-on activities and festive fun encourage curiosity as kids explore chemistry and physics with Halloween materials. | | | |
Berkshire South's Monster Mash in Great Barrington is an all-ages Halloween dance party that brings generations together with music and costumes. Children experience rhythm and tempo while discovering classic songs and sharing festive fun with people of all ages. | | | |
Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a joyful Mexican holiday that welcomes back the souls of deceased loved ones, celebrated at the Meekins Library in Williamsburg with history, traditions, and pan de muerto. A community ofrenda invites visitors to honor loved ones and see how remembrance takes visible form. | | | | What is Hilltown Families? | | | Hilltown Families’ mission is to support the common good of our community through the development of a sense of place by a shared understanding in the value of self-directed learning through community engagement. These learning values are referred to as “community-based education” and are accessible and inclusive to an intergenerational audience. This process of learning unites community members through shared interests, establishes a shared history, and deepens a connection to place. | | Your finacial support keeps Hilltown Families freely shared and community-driven after 20 years of service. We’re grateful for your help in continuing this work. | | |
Hilltown Families’ list of Suggested Events is supported in part by grants from the Agawam, Ashfield, Bernardston, Chester, Deerfield, Goshen, Hadley, Heath, Lee, Leyden, Mount Washington, Orange, Plainfield, Richmond, South Hadley, Washington, Westhampton, and West Springfield Cultural Councils, local agencies which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.
| | | | |
