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Nearly 1,500 residents gathered Sunday, Oct. 25, at the South Common for the town's annual Halloween Parade, with several winning awards for their impressive costumes.

Led by Interim Town Manager Nick Riccio, School Superintendent Brenda Hodges, state Sen. James Timilty, D-Walpole, and state Reps. Betty Poirier, R-North Attleboro, and Jay Barrows, R-Mansfield, the participants followed the traditional route down North Main Street to Rumford Avenue and back to the South Common.

Charged with the tough task of judging all the great costumes were judges Sandra Levine, representing the selectmen, Jean Miller, representing the school committee, and Dave Leary, representing the recreation commission. And the winners were:

Best Fictional Character

First place - The Red Dragon: Ryan Giologhy. Second place - Baby Pumpkins Patch: Haley, Brenna and Kilie Fish and Brayden Owens.

Third place - Princess on a Unicorn: Samantha Cannon

Best Halloween Theme

First place - The Sizzlin' family of 6: The McLaughlin Family.

Second place - Arnold Schwarzenegger: Jack Howarth.

Third place - The Construction Family: Kaitlyn Doherty and family

Most Original

First place - Waster Management: Stephanie and Kailyee Atanasoff.

Second place - The Busy Bees: The Noonan and McCarthy Families.

Third place - The Taco: Lily Goulding. Want to help paint windows?

The Citizens' Scholarship Foundation of Mansfield is looking for businesses to participate in the group's annual holiday window painting fundraiser. To raise money for the foundation, students paint a variety of holiday scenes in the windows of town shops, banks and other businesses. This year, decorating teams will fan out Nov. 27 and 28 to paint the town red, among other colors. Merchants looking to participate are asked to e-mail csf@mansfieldschools.com for more information.

The group, which gave out approximately $45,000 in college scholarships last year, held its first meeting of the school year earlier this month. The organization is looking for new members and ideas to raise revenues to provide scholarships for the town's growing student population.

Meetings are held the second Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the Mansfield Public Library. The next meeting is scheduled for Nov. 10.

Learn about teens

Ever wondered how to get through to your teenager? Here's your chance to get some real-life answers. Joani Geltman, an expert in the field of child development and parenting, will be the first featured speaker of the Qualters Middle School Parent Advisory Council on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at the school. The event is free.

Thanks for veterans

The Congregational Church of Mansfield will host its fifth annual Veterans Appreciation Luncheon on Sunday, Nov. 8 at noon in the church vestry at 17 West St.

If you are a Mansfield veteran and would like to join other vets for this distinctive event, please RSVP to the church office at 508-339-4793 by Friday.

Note that space for this event is limited. A prompt response will guarantee a reservation.

Twins Club plans bazaar

The Attleboro-Taunton Area Mothers of Twins Club is seeking crafters for a holiday craft bazaar for Saturday, Dec. 5 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Orthodox Congregational Church on West St. in Mansfield. The event is open to vendors that make homemade crafts/items only.

Fee for spaces range from $25 to $30. For more information, and to receive an application, please contact Tiffany Michalski at 617-359-8136 or chefsbest@verizon.net. The Attleboro-Taunton Area Mothers of Twins Club is a club for anyone expecting or already has twins or multiples. Meetings are held monthly, September thru June, with additional play dates, events, and fathers of twins gatherings throughout the year.

At the library ...

Pajama Time for ages 3 and up will take place at the library on Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 6:30 p.m. Wear pajamas and bring a stuffed pal. No pre-registration needed.

MATT KAKLEY covers Mansfield for The Sun Chronicle. He can be reached at 508-236-0333 or at mkakley@thesunchronicle.com.