BRECKSVILLE, Ohio — It’s the spookiest time of the year, and one family is taking advantage of it to help others.
The Mallis family loves Halloween.
Mark Mallis has been slowly growing his front yard Halloween extravaganza since 2018.
He explained the display started out very minuscule and then grew into one that overtook his entire lawn and even part of his neighbor's. He estimates it has cost him about $10,000 to decorate over the years.
“With the kids, I try to make it more fun. Not so scary. I add new things every year. I keep saying I'm done but every year I keep adding to it. I am running out of real estate here as well as storage,” Mark said.
From store-bought animatronics to DIY props, their lawn is bringing family-filled freights. The display is fully finished by Oct. 1 and stays up through Nov. 7.
“It’s been generating a lot more traffic,” Mark stated.
With the increasing attraction, Mark said he and his family decided to do something different this year.
“We decided to put it to a good cause this year with the charity,” Mark explained. “We decided to pick a local resident. We heard of a local family going through a tough time. When we heard about that, we knew right away, let's do the charity. We wanted to do it the right away.”
It’s called “Monster Mashing for Walter.”
Who is Walter?
He’s a 5-year-old boy who was recently diagnosed with a form of pediatric cancer, also known as High-Risk Stage 4 Neuroblastoma.
“We met Walter's family two years ago. My daughter went to preschool with one of Walter's sisters,” said Mark. “Hopefully we can all rally behind Walter and his family during this difficult time and hopefully he'll get through it.”
Walter spent his fifth birthday in the hospital where he had just begun his first round of chemotherapy at Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital.
Mark said he understands how full a parent’s plate can get and wanted to take some sort of load off Walter’s family.
“We're thankful for everybody that donated so far, and it just shows in a world where you hear so much negativity, there's so much kindness out there and people want to do the right thing,” he added.
A GoFundMe was created, and now the Mallis family is using their PG-rated scary display as a platform for visitors to help Walter’s family during this difficult time.
“There's so much support out there. We wish you all the best. Keep fighting. There's a lot of support for you. A lot of people behind you. And for anybody coming by or that would like to donate, any dollar helps. We understand times are tough. Keep Walter and his family in your thoughts and prayers. That's the least we could all do,” Mark said.
If you’re interested in donating to Walter’s GoFundMe, CLICK HERE.
100% of the proceeds will go towards medical costs, living costs, and any unforeseen expenses, according to Mark.
While the Mallis family doesn’t go all out for Christmas as they do for Halloween, they’re considering using their display than for a charitable cause as well.
“I do enough decorations. Nowhere near this. I enjoy this because I could put it up and take it down in shorts and a t-shirt. It's not fun in January when it's wet and cold, but that's definitely a possibility,” he noted.
Moving forward, Mark said his family does plan to use their yearly Halloween display as a platform for new charitable causes.
To enjoy the Mallis family's Halloween display this year, please visit 10245 Log Cabin Court in Brecksville.
