Boo at the Akron Zoo takes the scary out of Halloween for little ones. It’s intended as a non-scary substitute for kids under the age of 7. But on the final night for the popular Akron Zoo attraction, it was difficult to tell if the youngsters were having more fun than their parents. Adults and children alike came dressed in costume for the event as they explored the 50-acre park, visiting zoo animals on their trek to find treasure.Grandmas dressed as witches, grandfathers as clowns and an aunt dressed as a phantom were just some of the people who roamed the zoo enjoying the party as much as their young charges. “I remember this from when I was a little girl. We used to come here for church picnics,” said Yvonne Brooks of Akron, who accompanied her nephews. Nine-year-old Tommy Higgins said he was “a fire dragon ninja,” and his 7-year-old brother, James Higgins, came as the movie villain from Scream.“We do encourage adults to dress up, but because it is a non-scary event they are not allowed to wear masks,” said Machelle Montgomery, special events manager for the Akron Zoo. All zoo volunteers are encouraged to dress up, too.Children were handed candy passports that allowed them to visit 12 candy stations throughout the park and a treasure map to find them. It is the first year the event was planned as a treasure hunt where folks could travel to the stations as they wished rather than following a path that took all the guests in the same direction.“It’s much more structured and organized this year,” Montgomery said.It takes about 45 volunteers plus zoo staff to usher guests through the zoo each of the six weekend nights that begin in mid-October each year. It takes many more to decorate, Montgomery said. Planning begins in June.“It takes a ton of volunteers and 12 outside organizations donating their time,” she said. Many groups, from businesses to sororities and fraternities from several area colleges, plus an army of Edzoocators, the zoo’s volunteer group, are necessary to pull it off each year.“Volunteers are always welcome and appreciated. It means just that much more money we can dedicate to the care and food of our animals,” Montgomery said.More than 300,000 people have participated since Boo at the Zoo began 22 years ago. The second weekend of the event generally draws the largest crowd, and this year was no exception.“Last Saturday we had 5,900 guests. That was record-breaking in Boo history,” Montgomery said. Sunday saw the second-largest crowd with 5,500 guests in attendance.For the Komitau family of Olmsted Township, keeping the extended family together through the afternoon was a challenge. Jamie Komitau, who dressed as a circus performer, and her husband, Jason, who wore the red coat and top hat of a ringmaster, pulled 3-year-old triplets Jacob, Benjamin and Zachary in a line of wagons decorated as circus cars. The boys were dressed as circus animals.Their grandparents, Jack and Barb Kontra of Brunswick, dressed as clowns and walked alongside trying to keep the wagons on track throughout the park. Two-year-old Taylor Agar, the boys’ cousin, pulled up the rear dressed as a very stylish ladybug.“We’d be happy if we could just get them all to sit still for pictures,” said Jason Komitau with a laugh.Kathy Antoniotti can be reached at 330-996-3565 or kantoniotti@thebeaconjournal.com.