Tuesday, October 20 in Nazareth and Easton: a two-town football Friday, the Witches’ Walk weekend, and the 2027 budget round opens

Tonight: the school board meets and Bath parades

The Easton Area School Board holds its regular meeting at 7:00 p.m. in the Easton Area Education Center at 1801 Bushkill Drive, with the full agenda published in the district's BoardDocs portal, and the Northampton County Election Commission sits the same evening. Straight up Route 512, the Borough of Bath holds its annual Halloween Parade at 7:00 p.m., the same night it ran last season for anyone who wants a small-borough parade before the big one on Sunday.

Wednesday: Unity Day, Upper Nazareth, and the Palmer Stormwater Authority

Wednesday, October 21 is Unity Day in the Nazareth Area School District, the annual anti-bullying observance when students and staff wear orange, an all-day event at Nazareth Area High School. On the municipal side, Upper Nazareth Township Supervisors meet at 7:00 p.m. at 100 Newport Avenue on the first-and-third-Wednesday round, and the Palmer Stormwater Authority sits at 5:00 p.m. The Thursday municipal calendar is quieter: Forks Township's Planning Commission workshop scheduled for the 22nd was canceled, and the next full Forks board meeting rolls around November 5.

Friday the 23rd: Senior Night at Leh and the Witches' Walk opens

The football Friday that has been circled for a month is here. The Nazareth Blue Eagles host Northampton at Leh Stadium at 7:00 p.m., the regular season's final home game and Senior Night, a paid-ticket event, while the Easton Red Rovers travel to Bethlehem Freedom for their second straight road game. In downtown Easton the same evening, the 2nd Annual Witches' Walk opens at Centre Square from 4:00 to 9:00 p.m., a free, family-friendly Halloween festival with artisan and food vendors, trick-or-treating, live music, fire spinning with the Twin Flame Experience from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m., and a costume contest at 6:30 p.m. The State Theatre adds Cinderella, performed by the United European Ballet Company, at 7:00 p.m. on Northampton Street.

Saturday the 24th: both markets, a night market, and the Witches' Walk at Scott Park

Saturday, October 24 stacks a full day around the season. The Easton Farmers Market runs 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Scott Park on Larry Holmes Drive with 50-plus vendors, and the Nazareth Farmers Market fills the circle at Main and Center Streets on the same schedule, one of the final Saturdays of its season with the 2026 Martin Guitar Raffle tickets for a Martin 000-X2E acoustic-electric at $5 each or five for $20, proceeds benefiting the market. The Witches' Walk moves to Scott Park from 3:00 to 8:00 p.m., with the Sanderson Sisters character performance at 4:00 p.m., the costume contest at 5:30, and fire spinning again at 6:00.

After dark downtown, Market After Hours returns as one of several Halloween night markets across the Lehigh Valley that Saturday, and the Easton Public Market keeps its Acoustic Kitchen music going. The State Theatre closes its weekend with "Hello, I Must Be Going: A Tribute to Phil Collins" at 7:30 p.m., and the 4th Annual Knauss Homestead Harvest Festival runs noon to 4:00 p.m. in Emmaus with craft booths, food, kids' activities, and tours of the 1777 farmhouse.

Sunday the 25th: the 44th Phillipsburg-Easton Halloween Parade

The 44th annual Phillipsburg-Easton Halloween Parade steps off at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, October 25 on McKeen Street in Phillipsburg, crosses the Free Bridge over the Delaware into downtown Easton, and ends at Centre Square, organized by the Easton Area Chamber of Commerce with its Warren County partners and drawing hundreds of marchers from both states. The Chick-fil-A Lower Nazareth Trunk or Treat runs at noon the same day for the younger set, and the Crayola Experience keeps its Screamin' Green Hauntoween on with weekend trick-or-treating stations, Sunday hours 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The 2027 budget round: Easton and Forks tee up their numbers

The municipal budget season is officially open. Easton has scheduled a public series of 2027 Budget Review meetings at City Hall, and Mayor Sal Panto's proposed 2027 budget calls for a tax increase as the city addresses staffing and economic pressures, with the first reading given early this month. In Forks Township, the board held its 2027 budget workshop Monday, October 19, the second of the month, with supervisors weighing a possible real-estate or fire tax increase, a part-time HR hire, and sponsorships to close a budget gap; Finance Director Kacee Stout has flagged capital, personnel, and line-item decisions for the coming year. Palmer Township supervisors (first-and-third Mondays) met on the 19th as well, and their fall budget work follows at the November round.

School notes: Red Ribbon Week, picture retakes, and a facilities forum

In the Nazareth Area School District, the regular school board meeting is Tuesday, October 27 at 7:00 p.m. in the Walter Fry Room at the board room at One Education Plaza, with agendas on the Keystone platform, underclassmen picture retakes run 8:00 a.m. to noon the same day, SADD Red Ribbon Week runs October 26-29, and the superintendent hosts a Community Forum on long-range facilities planning Thursday, October 29 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. In the Easton Area School District, tonight's board meeting tops the week, and the Red Rovers' road stretch continues at Freedom on the 23rd before the rivalry finale hosts Nazareth at Cottingham Stadium on Friday, October 30; the season closes with the traditional Thanksgiving morning game at Phillipsburg on November 26.

Things to do: Crayola, Martin Guitar, and the harvest stops

The Crayola Experience runs Screamin' Green Hauntoween through November 1 at 30 Centre Square, an included-with-admission fall takeover (tickets about $30.99, Color Card $35.99) with a themed scavenger hunt, Halloween crafts, fang-tastic photo ops, costumed crayon character meet-and-greets, and weekend trick-or-treat stations; kids are encouraged to come in costume, and fall hours are 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. weekdays, 10:00 to 6:00 Saturday, and 10:00 to 5:00 Sunday.

At C.F. Martin & Co. on Sycamore Street in Nazareth, the free museum, the 1833 Shop, and the Pickin' Parlor stay open weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the guided one-hour factory tour runs Monday through Friday with departures between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. at $10 per person, $7.50 for kids, seniors, active military, veterans, and students, booked in advance online with proceeds benefiting the Martin Guitar Charitable Foundation, which marked its 30th year in 2026 by granting $565,000 to 98 nonprofits. The museum can close temporarily for filming, so call ahead before you plan a visit.

The harvest calendar keeps its rhythm: Seiple Farms in Bath runs its autumn season through November 1 with hayrides to a 35-acre pumpkin patch and a 20-acre corn maze, Olde Stone Farm's Harvest Nights at 1350 Raubsville Road in Williams Township continues Fridays and Saturdays 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. through October 31, and the Eerie Easton Walking Tours keep their weekend evening runs from the Sigal Museum at 342 Northampton Street. Nazareth Borough's trick-or-treat night is set for Saturday, October 31 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., the same day the Easton Farmers Market closes October with Pumpkins & Pooches, its Howl-O-Ween dog costume contest with prizes for most original, funniest, cutest, best duo, and best group costumes.

Local news and where to eat

On the roads, the Route 33 southbound bridge replacement over Bushkill Creek between the Tatamy and Stockertown exits continues with the southbound side reduced to one lane through a median crossover; the northbound bridge reopened August 30, but WFMZ has reported crawling traffic and backups near Stockertown, so budget extra time on the corridor. In Lower Nazareth, the Giant at Nazareth Plaza on Nazareth Pike held its grand re-opening on October 9 after a major renovation that upgraded produce, bakery, and meat-and-seafood, relocated beer and wine, and overhauled prepared foods. Construction continues on the three-story apartment building at 373 East Lawn Road in Upper Nazareth on the former Ranch House Bar and Grill site, and in Easton, legendary Joey Embo's Old Fashioned Family Pizzeria is getting new ownership, with a seasoned chef and his family taking over the longstanding Easton spot.

For meals this week, the dependable anchors hold. In Nazareth, the Nazareth Diner on South Broad Street covers breakfast any hour, Birthright Brewing Company at 57 South Main pours its own beer with a full menu, Pizza Joe's at 550 South Main is the dependable Italian stop, Sicily Pizza and Los Compadres round out the quick-dinner end, and the farm & table at 119 South Main pairs food and bowling. Downtown Easton keeps its own rotation: Billy's Downtown Diner on South 3rd Street for a classic breakfast, Pearly Baker's Alehouse on Centre Square circle, Josie's New York Deli at 14 Centre Square, ThreeBirds Coffee House on Bushkill Street, and the Easton Public Market two blocks in off the square when you need variety under one roof.

On the horizon

Circle these dates: the Easton school board and the Bath Halloween Parade tonight; Unity Day and Upper Nazareth Supervisors Wednesday; Senior Night at Leh and Easton at Freedom with the Witches' Walk opening Friday the 23rd; both farmers markets, the Witches' Walk at Scott Park, Market After Hours, and the Phil Collins tribute Saturday; and the 44th Phillipsburg-Easton Halloween Parade Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Then the rivalry finale is Nazareth at Easton Friday, October 30 at Cottingham, SADD Red Ribbon Week runs the 26th through the 29th, the Nazareth school board and picture retakes land Tuesday the 27th, the superintendent's facilities forum is Thursday the 29th, Halloween Saturday the 31st brings Nazareth Borough trick-or-treat from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., the Nazareth Farmers Market's final Saturday of the season, and Pumpkins & Pooches at Scott Park, and PA Bacon Fest celebrates its 15th anniversary November 7 and 8. For anything dated, the Easton city events page, Downtown Nazareth's listings, and the Easton Main Street Initiative stay more current than any single post can, so give them a glance before you head out the door.