What Does a Blue Halloween Candy Bucket Mean?

One of the things that I LOVE about Halloween is taking my daughter, Tara, around town for trick-or-treating. We really love going to the areas where the "really big" candy is. She's old enough to drive herself so I think it's awesome that she still wants me to be her "Uber" driver on October 31st.

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As I wait for Tara and her friends as they go door to door, I enjoy seeing all the different costumes that the kids are wearing. This year, I anticipate seeing a lot of scary-looking Squid Game cosplay jumpsuit costumes.

I don't normally pay attention too much to the buckets and bags that are used to collect the candy but last year I did see some blue buckets. I didn't think much of it at the time but I've learned differently since then.

If you see someone carrying a blue pumpkin candy bucket, it probably means that the child is autistic. This has been going on for a few years now so you may not have heard about it.

How The Blue Halloween Candy Bucket Began

In 2018, Alicia Plummer let everyone know that her autistic son would be carrying a blue pumpkin while he was out trick-or-treating. She did this because she wanted people to know that he might not make eye contact or talk but she wanted them to know that he really does appreciate it. You can read her entire story here.

The blue pumpkin candy bucket has caught on and some stores have been selling blue pumpkins for autistic kids and adults. In fact, the blue Halloween bucket has become the unofficial symbol of awareness for autism and its misconceptions.

So this Halloween, if you see someone (kid or adult) with a blue bucket (Halloween or otherwise), they may be autistic. Help keep their spirit alive this Halloween...and if it's okay, give them an extra piece of candy.