The renewed Tampa team is currently small but mighty. My wife and I participated in a trunk-or-treat event which we not-so-sneakily turned into an evangelization opportunity. We informed the organizers that our trunk would be \"Memento Mori/Spiritual Warfare\" themed. We collected our Catholic shrine candles, an icon, a miniature skull, two Baritus Catholic prints, flowers, a hand-drawn skeleton, rosaries, and got to work.

We really dig passing out rosaries during Halloween or events like this. Kids love rosaries because Jesus loves rosaries (cf. Matt 19:14), and most kids took one in addition to taking candy. We probably passed out 50... it was a blur. We prayed the children would bring God into their home and at least drive some discussion or thoughts among their parents.

A FEW ENCOUNTERS IN THE NIGHT

We had three interesting interactions with parents. One couple stood really far back from the car while their kid grabbed the candy/rosary combo. They were both wearing crosses, but they seemed (and vocalized) they were genuinely afraid! Curiously, one of the parents returned later, perhaps to inspect the trunk again. Similarly, one \"pastor\'s wife\" said she always felt uneasy when religion and Halloween were combined (an ironic statement about the 8th century Catholic All Hallows Eve). Finally, one man who set up trunk-or-treat next to us was deeply pondering our set-up. He said he recently finished OCIA and had a Catholic wife and children, but did not seem fully invested in the faith. We explained \"Memento Mori\" to him and it seemed to impact him profoundly. Please pray for them!

By the end of the night, we won \"Spookiest Trunk,\" which I\'m unsure is a compliment or a cultural failure on our part, haha. Death is spooky, and remembering it is arguably spooky, so I lean towards the former. A note on best practices: We had Gregorian chant playing the whole time. It completely changed the vibe of the trunk, such that you truly felt transported into a new realm. May God transport us to His realm when our time comes.