SAHUARITA, Ariz. (KGUN) — Sahuarita is gearing up for its highly anticipated Spooktacular event this Saturday, October 26th, and one of the main attractions will be a massive straw maze built with the help of the community.
“In the past, we’ve done different things to entertain the community and we wanted to do something new this year,” said Lacey Simmons, Events Supervisor at Sahuarita Parks & Recreation. “With a lot of planning and a lot of help from our public partners, we were able to make this come to life.”
The local Kiwanis Club took on the ambitious project of constructing a maze the size of a football field at Man in the Maze Park. With just three days to complete it, over 2500 bales of straw were delivered last Friday to kickstart the effort.
This was the first major project led by the club, which started earlier this year in Sahuarita to help youth in the local community. A related Key Club was also started this year among the town’s high schools.
Initially, the Kiwanis Club feared they might not finish in time, but support quickly poured in from Sahuarita's Parks and Recreation Department, the Public Works team, local volunteers and even a Sahuarita police officer.
"It’s awesome because we are going to have it in the community instead of traveling to another town to enjoy a maze like this,” said Sylvia "Danny" Reynolds, President of the Sahuarita Kiwanis Club.
Together, they managed to bring the project to completion, ensuring the maze will be ready for the big event.
Though the project seemed daunting at first, especially for some volunteers overwhelmed by the sheer size of the maze, the team was determined to see it through.
Kiwanis charter member Denise Hoyos recalled her initial reaction.
"I showed up with me and my daughter, my son, and my sister, and we were like, ‘what? That’s a lot of straw!’" Hoyos said. “
Reynolds found herself with a similar sense of panic. “On Friday, when we saw what this project was about, I went without sleep since then,” she said.
The club turned to social media and community outreach for additional help.
"I started sending emails and posting on Facebook," said Reynolds. “Right now, the community is all in here and that was the purpose of this because the kids will know we are here for them.”
The town provided equipment, lights and volunteers, who worked from 8am until 8pm to complete the maze in time.
In the end, Hoyos says that the effort was worth it.
“There were a few stressful moments of trying to figure out how we’re going to do this ,” she said. “But as soon as the town said they were going to work with us, we knew it was doable.”
Surveying the nearly completed maze, Reynolds says that the effort showed what a tight-knit community looks like.
"This is what I’d like to show our kids," Reynolds added. "It doesn’t matter where you are, we can all support each other and make our community beautiful."
In addition to the straw maze, the Spooktacular features food trucks, a DJ, and a "trunk or treat" for children. Attendees are encouraged to dress in costume and enjoy the free event, which will be held at the Sahuarita Town Hall Plaza from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Prizes will also be awarded for the spookiest trunk displays and costumes.
More information about the event can be found on the Town of Sahuarita website.
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Joel Foster is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9 who previously worked as an English teacher in both Boston and the Tucson area. Joel has experience working with web, print and video in the tech, finance, nonprofit and the public sectors. In his off-time, you might catch Joel taking part in Tucson's local comedy scene. Share your story ideas with Joel at joel.foster@kgun9.com, or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
