For many Del Ray residents, it wouldn’t be Halloween without Autumn Rose’s yard haunts at the corner of E. Custis and Dewitt. It’s her favorite holiday; she loves the community fun. “So many expectations come with other holidays. With Halloween, there are none. It’s whatever you want to make of it.”

                                                                                                           

Autumn has made a yard haunt every Halloween since the pandemic year, her family’s first year in the house. Covid’s isolation made Autumn want more social connection with neighbors, so she worked on props for her Halloween scene on her front porch. Neighbors walking by would stop to talk, intrigued by what she was making. It was the beginning of the community she would eventually build around Halloween and beyond.

 

The next year, she and her wife, Dan, chose a theme from their favorite movies growing up, a practice they’ve continued. Dan creates the back story; Autumn engineers and creates the visuals. Their Back to the Future exhibit included the iconic DMC DeLorean car that Autumn and Dan’s two sons, Peter and Ben, enjoyed sitting in, experiencing all the cool gizmos of the dashboard.

 

Autumn uses recycled material for all the props. Upcycle Creative Reuse Center, Buy Nothing, and unused materials from home are all sources. Slimer for the Ghostbusters theme was made from a neighbor’s tomato cage. Ewok for the Star Wars theme was constructed from a patio cushion.

 

Sons Peter and Ben have always helped with painting, but Autumn now gets the neighborhood involved. She organizes events where neighbors work on project parts that she keeps a mystery, getting them to guess the theme. Last year, neighbors celebrated Halloween in the Star Wars Mos Eisley Cantina – in her driveway and the adjoining one – everyone having a jizz of a time with music, drink, and contributed food. Autumn says, “It takes more than just the Force to make Halloween happen!”           

 

Autumn is the force behind it all – and so much more in Del Ray. She was awarded the 2025 Joan White Grassroots Service Award from Volunteer Alexandria for her hard work and ingenuity revitalizing both Pam’s Pie Contest at Art on the Avenue and the enormously popular MVFlea.

 

She gave out free pie dishes at the Del Ray Farmer’s Market to boost entries and increase funds raised for the Alexandria Women’s Domestic Abuse Shelter. For MVFlea, she created the Phil the Flea logo and Fill the Flea campaign, marketing beyond Del Ray, raising $60,000 this year, expenditures only $3,000. All profits went to Mount Vernon Elementary.

 

This year, Autumn’s theme is Del-rassic Park. Check it out at 222 E. Custis in Del Ray. Get involved! Autumn will draw you in – helping you enjoy autumn and Del Ray.