Eudora youngsters won’t have to wait until Monday and Halloween to break out their vampire, zombie, witch, goblin or latest Star Wars’ costumes and to feast on sweets. Eudora Parks and Recreation and the Eudora Chamber of Commerce will offer Trunk of Treat from 3:30 to 5 p.m. Saturday on Main Street in downtown Eudora. Individuals and businesses will be offering treats from trunks of car parked from Seventh to Ninth streets downtown.

Eudora Parks and Recreation will also host at 7 p.m. Saturday the Great Pumpkin Hunt in ball fields in Lucy Kaegi Park. Children will be encouraged to use flashlights to find candy scattered on the ball fields.

The Baldwin City Recreation Commission once again is sponsoring the community’s annual Ghosts and Goblins on Parade from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday in downtown Baldwin City. Downtown businesses displaying the orange Ghosts and Goblins notice on their windows will have treats for trick-or-treaters young and old.

In addition, the Lumberyard Arts Center, 718 High St. will be transformed into Haunted Hogwarts, a Harry Potter-themed haunted house. The arts center also plans to have a DJ at Eighth and High streets, weather permitting. In addition, Baker Serves, a Baker University service organization, will have a trunk or treat with decorated cars trunks along High Street.

Lori Gardner will be offering Baldwin City residents a different treat starting Nov. 17 with the opening of her Homestead Kitchen and Bakery. The storefront at 819 Eighth St., which has been empty for about two years, is now undergoing remodeling.

The new business will make its presence known with enticing aromas with the items Gardner will bake on site. Among her fresh-baked offerings will be whole-grain bread from flour she mills, banana bread, cinnamon buns, scones, muffins, cookies, small bundt cakes and cupcakes.
The cafe menu will be sandwiches, wraps, soups, salads and calzones to start, but Gardner said she would look to expand the menu in time.
Gardner characterized the Nov. 17 opening, which will correspond with a Baldwin City Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting, as “soft” with the grand opening coming a few days to a week later. She has already hired six part-time employees to help with the business.

The walls have been painted and the floor is now being refinished, Gardner said. Once the floor is done, she can start installing more equipment and the furnishings as she completes the decorating.

Her business is less than a block from the Baker campus, and Gardner said she hopes to attract students with specials, Wi-Fi and an environment conducive to studying.

The cafe and bakery’s hours will be 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

The Baldwin City Chamber of Commerce will sponsor a candidate forum for Douglas County Commission Districts 2 and 3 at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Lumberyard Arts Center.