Greeks ward off ghouls on Halloween

It was about 9 p.m. last Halloween when the group leader heard the words via his walkie-talkie that described a young 4-year-old was lost. She had become separated from her parents while Trick-or-Treating on Park Avenue, an area in the Fan District.

Suddenly, the Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity brothers began looking for this child.

While hordes of people walked up and down Park Avenue looking at Halloween decorations, the child became lost in the crowd.

With the help of the police and all volunteers, the AKL members found the small child and returned her safely to her parents.

This year, Halloween Watch will take place Monday.

“We have been doing this for about 15 years, and our main goal is to make the streets from Harrison Street to Shields Street and Franklin Street to Main Street safe,” said Patrick Lloyd, social chairman of the fraternity.

VCU’s Greek organizations plan to help keep the streets safe again this year on Halloween night.

Participants wear bright T-shirts so parents and children can easily see them. Each group contains about 30 students, while the group leader carries a flashlight and communicates with the other leaders via walkie-talkies.

“Rather than calling 911, there is a hotline for parents to call to report any emergencies such as a missing child,” said Kevin Uffelman, director of the watch.

A few brothers will station themselves in the University Student Commons to answer phones.

“Once a call is received, that brother then calls me. I relay the information to the group leaders so the Greek volunteers can start looking as soon as possible,” Uffelman said. “It’s great because we are already on the scene.”

Not only does the watch ensure safety in the Fan, but it also raises money for the fraternity’s philanthropy, Safe Harbor, a battered women’s shelter.

Before the watch, the brothers seek local volunteer sponsors for a fee. In return, the sponsors advertise their company’s name and logo on the back of the patrol member’s T-shirts. Brothers hand out fliers and coupons from those companies to people in the Fan.

For example, Uffelman might seek company sponsorship from the Richmond Times-Dispatch. By doing this, he helps the company by distributing its literature or other items at no cost while earning money to help the battered women’s shelter.

“We really help out the VCU police,” Uffelman said. “I contact them and let them know when and where we plan to patrol the streets.”

Richmond City and VCU Police monitor the event so they can be reached in case they are needed.

“Parents like seeing them there, and if there is a problem, such as if someone gets hurt or a child goes missing, the reaction time is a lot faster,” Uffelman said. “Since they are already at the scene, we can start solving the problem immediately.

“In 2003 we had 174 volunteers and in 2004 we had 316. We really hope the number of participants increases this year as much as it did last year. But even if we have around 300 we will still be very satisfied-and we will still make a difference.”