Every year the “Chicago Haunt Builders” group hosts their “Winter Shindig” event. This is a time for all of us members to get together, share stories and ideas, laugh, plot, and enjoy some time together. Thanks to the hard work of the organizers there is also a prize raffle that typically includes hundreds of items donated by Halloween vendors, and fellow group members.
2025 was no different. This was the second year the event was held at Moretti’s Resturaunt in Bartlet, IL. The banquet space is beautiful, and they even theme the lighting just for the group. They also permit the group to bring in decor and props to make the event more our own.
This year there were amazing decorative panels provided by one of the haunts that were used for photo backdrops. I of course forgot to get pictures, so I can’t show them. To be honest, I’m stealing the photos in this post from the Facebook group for the same reason.
Another memorable prop brought by a member was a remote controlled baby carriage that appeared to be being pushed by a floating ghost. If we had more nightly regular traffic at our house I would seriously consider building something like it. It was incredibly cool.
Another wonderful aspect of the shindig is the raffle. The organizers put a LOT of work into collecting and awarding raffle prizes through-out the night. This year there were literally hundreds of prizes. Prizes ranged from a few dollars, to other prizes that were thousands of dollars. All of the prizes are donated by members of the CHB community or vendors in the trade. It’s truly amazing to see what gets donated. This year John won a gift card, and David won a lighted large wire skull sculpture.
All and all, this was a wonderful night, and we are looking forward to the 2026 event!