ANOKA, Minn. — A Twin Cities woman is making the most of her last Halloween.
After Denise Godwin received a terminal diagnosis of breast cancer last November, she decided to go big in her final months with a spooky home show like no other in the Halloween capital of the world.
Godwin has spent her time putting together her zombie apocalypse themed haunted house. In 2021, her display won Anoka’s Halloween decorating contest.
But now Godwin, her husband and her two children must focus on making the most of their time together. In June, her breast cancer rapidly worsened and spread to her spinal fluid.
“I decide whether I’m going to sit there and cry and pout, or whether I’m going to get up and do my absolute best and make the most of every day,” Godwin said. ‘This will be the year of ‘one more of everything.’ If I can get one more of everything right, one more Halloween, one more Christmas.”
“We’re all scared, we don’t want to lose her,” said Jennifer Dahlgren, Godwin’s sister. “She finds the strength to overcome things that are unthinkable.”
Godwin hopes another haunted house experience will create fond memories for others.
“I do this because there’s nothing more fun than hearing people giggle, scream and laugh,” she said.
She hopes at least 2,500 people will see her haunted house. You can visit her house and others during Anoka’s Halloween House Decorating Contest on Friday and Saturday from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
An online fundraiser has been set up to help Godwin and her family.
