BILLINGS — The annual Zombie Walk in Billings took place on Sunday at 4 p.m. outside of the Yellowstone County Courthouse.
The last time the Zombie Walk occurred was in 2019—but it had to take a break due to the pandemic.
But the walk is back on this year—and event organizers are hopeful for a large turnout.
Dozens of zombies could be seen groaning and limping on the courthouse lawn before the walk began.
MTN News spoke with the event organizers for the 2022 Zombie Walk outside of the courthouse on Sunday.
Laurie Welch and Shannon Jaeger have participated in many past Zombie Walks. This year, they're leading it.
“I just hope the people who come have fun. That’s all that matters. Even if there’s 10 of us, we’re going to have a good time,” Welch says.
This event is held annually and features a costume contest after the walk ends to showcase the zombies' creative costumes.
The costume contest has four categories: Child, couple, scariest, and most original.
The prizes for the contest are donated by local businesses. The prizes for the 2022 contest were donated by businesses like Cajun Phatties, Pizza Ranch, and Wise Wonders Science and Discovery Museum.
The event is free for participants and is organized by local residents each year.
A set of rules is put into place to insure participants stick to their roles and route, allowing the event to continue year after year.
Some of the rules included only scaring willing participants and staying on public sidewalks away from private property.
The event is intended for Halloween lovers to come together and celebrate the spooky season. All ages are welcome to participate.
“My kids have been watching horror movies their whole lives. So they know makeup, and I feel like that’s a really cool thing for kids to learn too, to see that it’s fake,” Welch explains. "It helps them understand that it isn't real, it's not actually scary," Jaeger adds.
As long as eventgoers follow the rules of the walk, organizers believe this event will continue annually around Halloween.
And these zombies are more than happy to follow the rules and keep the event going. The first walk in Billings was in 2007.
“Get messy and have fun,” Welch says. “Get in the spirit of Halloween, that’s what it’s all about,” Jaeger adds.
