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How a ‘Fairy Godfather’ Helps Make Halloween Magical

With thrift-store materials and creativity, Christophe Waggoner has provided thousands of free costumes to kids

1-minute read

As told to

Bridgette Reilly,

AARP

Published October 09, 2026

Christophe Waggoner is shown working on a Halloween costume with sewing machine and multi-colored thread spools

Using material from thrift stores, Christophe Waggoner makes Halloween costumes for the kids in his community.

Phil Kline

Christophe Waggoner, 63, is a senior customer success manager in Austin, Texas.

When I’m at my sewing machine, I’ll get an idea for a great Halloween costume and think, I bet I could do that. It doesn’t matter if I only have old table runners or place mats to work with. I buy my materials from resale stores, then wash and repair them. With some dye, decorations sewn on and a wig added, it all comes together. Then I put the costume into my inventory and wait for a child to pick it out.

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The idea of giving away costumes came to me after I moved into my first house in Austin in 2016 and started getting trick-or-treaters. I saw children in nice Star Wars and Toy Story costumes. But I also saw them with torn shirts and what seemed like a longing, a wishing. Halloween can be an equalizer. I wanted to make sure that every child had the chance to dress up and be anybody.

At the time, I was working as a mystery shopper who evaluated resale stores. I decided to buy some things, adapt them and hold a free yard sale before the following Halloween. I bought $1,500 worth of stuff for about $40 at Goodwill Central Texas. In September, I hung 50 or 60 costumes in my garage. People came and took all of them. The biggest thing I remember is the laughter of kids and their parents.

Christophe Waggoner is seated among many of his costumes. Some are on mannequins. There is a shelf of wigs above.

"I think it’s important for people to do what they can for their community. You don’t have to be rich. You just have to put your heart and soul into something," says Waggoner.

Phil Kline

The next year, I was living in a different neighborhood. I added props and more costumes, and I told more people. Since then, it’s grown every year. In 2023, I turned it into a nonprofit called October’s Child, and that September we used half a football-sized field for our donations. We’ve now given away almost 7,000 costumes, plus makeup, pumpkin-carving sets, even pet costumes. Volunteers help out, and we get donations from across the country. We don’t ask whether families are needy, though I suspect many of them are. The point is to make Halloween magical for every kid.

I think it’s important for people to do what they can for their community. You don’t have to be rich. You just have to put your heart and soul into something. If you do, a tiny ripple can grow into waves.