Downtown Eau Claire Halloween display aims to surprise, delight

Ryan Patterson, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.
·3 min read

Oct. 27—EAU CLAIRE — Growing up in Alaska, Deborah Becker didn't experience a typical Halloween. Snow covered the ground by October, so costumes were limited to insulated outfits.

Now living in Eau Claire, Becker can fully take part in her favorite holiday.

"I enjoy being in a climate where you can get more creative and expressive," Becker said.

She has taken advantage of the opportunities for expression by setting up an annual Halloween display for nearly the past decade. Since 2013, Becker and her husband, Casey Stephens, have decked out their State Farm office windows. This year features a dragon, fog machine and flashing lights. They both work in the building at 404 S. Barstow St. and also decorate the office interior with items including cloth Halloween wall backgrounds, coffins and skeletons.

Becker appreciates living in Eau Claire and said the Halloween display is one way to show her gratitude.

"We're trying to do something more to continue to give back to the city to make it a place people can enjoy," Becker said. "If you thought of your city as your living room, then decorate it and have it ready for people to enjoy."

The spooky items are shown throughout October and taken down shortly after Halloween. Stephens's favorite holiday is Christmas, so the office looks normal for a few weeks in November before being decorated again throughout December.

"We both tend to be passionate about our holidays," Stephens said.

In 2013, the first year of the Halloween display at State Farm, community members reacted positively, which was a pleasant surprise.

"We just did it for ourselves that first year," Becker said. "When people started saying stuff, it was encouraging to keep going."

The annual tradition is a substantial investment of time and money, as Becker said they have accumulated items worth thousands of dollars over the years. It takes a full weekend to set up decorations and another day to tweak their positions.

For the past several years, Stephens has rented a U-Haul in late September to bring all the Halloween items from a storage unit to the office. The intensive set-up process takes time, but Becker and Stephens have become more efficient in recent years.

"It used to be a lot of yelling and screaming," Stephens said. "Now we have a concerted effort on how we're going to get things done and easier ways to do it."

"There's still yelling and screaming, let's be honest," Becker said with a laugh. "You can put that in the story."

When Becker and Stephens finish setting up, their offices resemble a public exhibit. Sometimes passersby look through the windows without realizing that people are working inside, but Becker and Stephens don't mind.

"When the fog machine's going, the lights are red, sometimes we sit in here just to watch people watching," Becker said. "That is truly when we feel like we've succeeded because people are just enjoying it. It's a pure kind of joy too because I think people have found something that they didn't expect in a place that they didn't expect."

Not many people passed by the office last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so this October has been particularly enjoyable because more residents are out and about. Stephens said several people have come into the office this year to simply look at the display.

That type of communal interaction is the most rewarding aspect for Becker and Stephens.

"When we see that we've gotten that reaction out of people, that's pretty cool," Becker said. "It does feel like, 'OK, here's our little gift. Enjoy it.' "