For the fifth year, the annual AddamsFest is back, featuring both new and old events. AddamsFest is a town-wide celebration honoring Westfield’s own Charles Addams and his most successful television series, The Addams Family. Throughout October, Westfield is transformed into all things Addams with many events including: movie screenings, comedy nights, wicked windows and more. The spooky-filled festival has something for everyone. To see all the events and descriptions go to addamsfest.com.

The idea of AddamsFest began in 2018 when Mayor Shelley Brindle was reading a book on how to make a small town great, explained AddamsFest Chairperson and Creative Director Councilwoman Dawn Mackey. It said to take something in your town that could not be replicated and celebrate it. The best idea that came to mind was Charles Addams and thus AddamsFest was born.

The original goal of this festival was to create something special for the town and put Westfield on the map. It has done just that. This year people from other states including Tennessee, Georgia and West Virginia came to Westfield just for AddamsFest from a TikTok they saw about great Halloween things to do.

Mackey said, “My goal is to create something that outlives our terms in office. We want to ensure that parts of it are sustainable and the community continues to contribute their talents so the festival can keep going.”

While new activities are introduced each year, Westfield volunteers and council members hope to establish traditions that can be continued in the future. Each year, AddamsFest stays true to its wicked windows. Throughout the town, many stop by to look at the intricately painted windows of the Addams family symbols and characters. The art is created by local residents, artists and business owners.

Another annual tradition is the Haunt Your House contest. This contest asks residents to gather all of their spooky decorations and use their creativity to decorate their house in the scariest way possible. Fellow residents can find a map of all the decorated houses on addamsfest.com and vote on which decorated house is their favorite by Oct. 30. The three houses with the highest number of votes are awarded gift cards of $50, $100 or $200.

On Oct. 14, the Morticia & Gomez Masquerade Ball was held. For $125 a ticket, guests were welcomed to walk the purple carpet and enter the James Ward Mansion. Here, they were offered cocktails and classic Addams family dishes from the show, along with entertainment, including a DJ and an opportunity to visit a fortune teller.

On Oct.16, Westfield held its Family Fun Day downtown. The area around Quimby Street was filled with live performances, pumpkin carvings, Addams family characters and more.

Behind the scenes, a lot of work is put into AddamsFest to make it as special as it is. It is a volunteer-led tradition, and every year hundreds of people offer to help make it happen. Mackey said, “This is a festival that was created for the community and by the community and I think that that’s what makes it so special.”