Hawaii's community calendar is filling up with free family events this October, good news for anyone looking for cheap weekend plans.

• A free family-friendly Halloween celebration runs October 24th, with a monster-themed afternoon meant to draw crowds and support local businesses.
• Kaimuki High School's student-built haunted house returns for two weekends, with scares based on The Wizard of Oz.
• Two plant sales are on: one at a community center with free parking, and one benefiting the Pana'ewa Rainforest Zoo, where a share of every sale goes to animal care.
• Kauai's dog club holds its yearly Halloween costume contest for dogs at Kukui Grove Center.
• A free online talk covers how El Niño, warmer oceans and hurricanes damage Hawaii's reefs and how the reefs recover.

Outlook: Events run through late October, and the National Kidney Foundation of Hawaii continues taking donated cars with free towing and a tax deduction.