What to Expect at the 2012 Lawrence Zombie Walk

What to Expect at the 2012 Lawrence Zombie Walk New to the Lawrence Zombie Walk? It has grown from a 50 person flash mob in 2006 to an event with over 850 zombies walking down Mass Street in 2011. The zombie walk is family friendly and free to participate. Curious, but not quite ready to dress up? Come downtown and enjoy the show! People line Mass Street to watch the zombie walk. And since the zombie walk is on the sidewalk, it’s like a parade that goes through the crowd. Want to participate? Your zombie outfit can be as simple as a bit of makeup to an entire themed outfit. Use that shirt with the coffee stain and the pants with the ripped knee and smear them with stage blood. Or hit the second hand store for a prom dress to go full Carrie, or a suit for the businessman zombie. The possibilities are endless. This year there is a tie-in event for kids, the Lawrence Public Library is hosting a zombie clinic from 4-6pm with makeup artists and hair stylists to help kids zombie up before the walk. http://www.lawrence.lib.ks.us/events/zombie-clinic/ We will be arriving at the South Park Gazebo to set up for the walk around 6pm. Event shirts will be available for a minimum $15 donation, all proceeds benefit the Lawrence Humane Society and Arc of Douglas County. There will also be a place for people to drop off donations from the Lawrence Humane Society wish list. http://www.lawrencehumane.org/help/wishlist.shtml Be sure to get tagged for the body count at the steps of the gazebo so that we know how many people came out for the walk. The Marinello School of Beauty will be on hand to do some face and body painting to help the walkers zombie up. You can show appreciation for their efforts by putting some money in the jars, which will go to the charities. Our MC will be keeping the crowd updated on the body count, remind people to get tagged, pointing out the event shirts and any info booths from the charities present, and keeping the crowd entertained until we are ready to walk. Everyone will be reminded of the rules, which are as follows. Zombie Walk Rules and Etiquette 1. Participants are responsible for their own safety. Stay on the sidewalk, cross quickly with the signals, don't block traffic. Don't mob the cars, block the businesses or pound on any windows. 2. Touch no one. Don't try to scare the bystanders (especially children). If someone looks scared, just move on. 3. No drugs or alcohol. Just don't. 4. Don't make any messes. Bloody handprints make the Mass Street businesses unhappy. Littering makes everyone unhappy. Destruction of property is illegal and makes the police unhappy. 5. Any weapons should clearly be fake, and never point even a fake weapon at anyone. 6. Please leave your pets at home for their safety, the Zombie Walk is crowded and confusing. Sometime after 7pm we will start the walk. From the gazebo we walk up Mass Street to 7th, cross to the other side of Mass Street, walk back to South Park and cross back to the gazebo. Downtown is packed with people and we walk through the crowds on the sidwalk. Remember that we are a parade, not a race. Don’t crowd the walkers ahead of you, give the spectators a good show, and take your time but don’t block faster zombies. Shamble all you want, but cross the streets quickly with the signal and clear the intersection when the light is red. The entire circuit will take the average walker about 30-45 minutes, depending on your shamble speed. The organizers are among the last to leave the gazebo and walk the route. Once the organizers have completed their round and make it back, the MC will announce the body count and an estimate on how much was raised for the charities. What happens after that? We send you off to patronize the downtown businesses. Get dinner, do a bit of shopping. Bond with the zombies you met at the walk. Post all those pictures you took in the park online. You just walked about a mile zombie style, have some fun.