Halloween is a fun time for kids to get creative with costumes and go door to door collecting candy from friends and neighbors. But it becomes more "trick" than treat when the kids have food allergies. One wrong piece of candy with the wrong ingredients can have dire consequences.
Red Sneakers for Oakley's Peoria group is an advocacy, education, and practical group started by families whose children face some of these issues every day.
Lindsey Spangler, whose daughter battles food allergy issues, saw the need to spread the word, educate the community and help raise funds for the efforts to share EpiPens with first responders, schools and the community.
With Halloween, one of those efforts is the Teal Pumpkin project. This project was started by a Tennessee family who was dealing with food allergy issues and wanted a safe Halloween experience for their children. Those who want to participate can put a teal pumpkin or sign by their front door to tell trick-or-treaters they have non-food treats.
Even though Halloween is here, Spangler said it's not too late to show support.
"You can still go out and get a teal pumpkin, or paint one, so trick or treaters with allergies know your home is safe. We encourage non-candy items as well, such as stickers or pens and pencils," said Spangler.
Halloween or not, food allergies are a real issue. According to RedSneakers.org, one in six children will have an allergic reaction at school, and every three minutes, someone has an allergic reaction that requires an emergency room visit.
Locally, the Red Sneakers for Oakley Peoria Chapter held a fundraising run earlier this month and continues to work with area schools, police, restaurants and organizations to increase awareness and install on-site epi stations.
"We have a Facebook support page with over 150 members, but we continue to grow our efforts, because we found education alone wasn't enough," said Spangler.
"We are hoping to continue to grow our impact as we move into 2027," said Spangler. "Having the equipment on hand is key, as we saw this past Mother's Day, when a young child was saved at the Louisville Slugger Complex."
The complex is one of several area establishments that now have med-lockers with epinephrine on hand, and staff trained in proper administration.
Spangler said it is a big part of their Epi Everywhere campaign to get proper epinephrine supplies in all public places nationwide.
Spangler, who co-founded Peoria's Red Sneakers for Oakley chapter, is now also the executive director of the national nonprofit, a position she has held for the last year.
