Mystics Parade returns on Halloween

Mystics of Mountain Brook Halloween Parade

Friday, Oct. 31

Crestline Village 

Expect traffic delays Friday from 3:15 p.m. when temporary fencing is installed on Church Street until 5 p.m. The parade will begin at 4 p.m.

The Mystics of Mountain Brook Parade has descended upon the streets of Crestline Village for more than a decade now. In anticipation of the event, we talked with Casey Horn, who started the event with her brother, Trent Wright.

How did the parade get started?

My mom’s birthday is on Halloween, so we’ve always been big Halloween people. Being from Mobile, we are also big Mardi Gras people. We wanted to bring a little Mardi Gras to Mountain Brook, so we started on Dexter 11 years ago with a few cars and children and bought beads and moon pies at Toomey’s Mardi Gras supply in Mobile.

How has the event evolved over the years?

It’s gotten a little bigger every year. Over the years it has gotten so big that the Mountain Brook Police Department treats it as a true parade that goes through the center of town, which we love. New businesses find out about the parade, and we love having the community get so involved with it. 

How is it similar to and different from a Mardi Gras parade?

Down in Mobile, they also throw moon pies, and we wanted to bring that here with the beads. The floats are much larger in the Mardi Gras parades, but every year we have a contest and every year everyone is getting more competitive with their floats here. It is scaled down from what happens in Mobile.

What can people expect to see in the parade this year?

The cheerleaders and Dorians walk in the parade, and we usually have the roller derby team. The library gets involved and last year had fairy tale characters walking in the parade. We ask the high school band every year, but they haven’t done it yet. There are just so many to remember because we have close to 23 floats. It lasts around 40 minutes. 

What have been some of your favorite groups or floats in the past?

One year a man made a dragon that shot smoke out of its mouth. Another man rigged up a coffin and dressed up as a vampire inside of it. Sugar wins something almost every year because they do something different just about every year related to their store. One year there was a Duck Dynasty float. Whatever is big that year is what people tend to go toward.

Where will the money you raise from entry fees go this year? 

Any money left over after we pay for the T-shirts and police goes to beautification projects for the city.

What does your family do during the parade?

My brother and I always have a float for family. We throw out as many T-shirts as we can. We have them made every year with sponsors on them. We are always the last float before the fire truck with the mayor and have a different theme every year. 

You advertise that the parade goes on rain or shine. Why is that?

In Mobile if it rains, the float still rolls. You can’t have a Halloween parade the next weekend and it still be a Halloween parade. We have had some close calls in the past, but nothing has stopped it.