Tom and Shelly Sykes had just settled into the window table with their sandwiches and beers at Mr. Zub’s Deli on Saturday when they witnessed the world outside change.
First they noticed photographers jogging backward, snapping pictures as they ran. Then they saw a few people splattered in what appeared to be blood carrying giant mallets and orange-tipped guns.
And finally, zombies — scores of walking dead, limping and hissing their way west along the sidewalk through Akron’s Highland Square.
One zombie, who appeared to be a white-faced clown in a former life, paused in front of the Sykes’ table, smashing his face against the window and flipping his middle finger to the Barberton couple before backing away, smiling and offering an exuberant, friendly wave as he ran to catch up with his zombie brethren.
“We were just looking for some place new to eat and this turned out to be really great,” Shelly Sykes said.
“We go to Universal Studios [in Florida] all of the time and these guys were really good,” said her husband, Tom, showing off some of the videos he took with his phone as the parade of zombies passed by outside.
Saturday’s Akron Zombie Walk, which was based at Annabell’s Bar & Lounge, raised money for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.
Annabell’s has hosted other zombie walks — a national trend that sometimes draws thousands in large cities — but this was the first organized by Ryan Cunningham of North Ridgeville.
More than 100 people showed up on an unusually cold and rainy May day that felt more like autumn than spring.
Cunningham runs the Zombie Eradication & Rescue Operations Squad, a group he registered with the state of Ohio last month.
In reality, they provide security for the walks.
But in the world of zombies, they bill themselves as human survivors and enforcers, the people carrying fake weapons who keep the zombies from wandering into local businesses or across streets, causing trouble.
Cunningham came up with the idea after attending a zombie walk in Lakewood a couple of years ago where a few zombies surrounded a city bus and began rocking it with a driver inside.
“I love doing this and if there was ever a real problem, the zombie walks would end and I don’t want that to happen,” Cunningham said.
Before the walk Saturday, both floors of Annabell’s were crowded with zombies and enforcers.
Upstairs, 17-month-old Skyler Sopko sucked on his pacifier, making the fake blood and makeup on his zombie face look less scary.
Why do people like to dress up as zombies?
“Because it’s fun to scare people,” Skyler’s mom, Cherylinn Sopko, said.
“Show your evil baby face,” Cherylinn coaxed her daughter, Mackinzi, 3.
Mackinzi, shy for a moment, buried her face in her dad John’s shoulder.
“I know you can do it,” Cherylinn cooed.
“Show us your evil baby face,” John Sopko encouraged.
Mackinzi, dressed in a blood-spattered pink, sparkly princess gown her grandpa made for her the night before, tilted her tiny chin down, scowled and glared at a stranger.
Mission accomplished. Evil baby face is scary.
Amanda Garrett can be reached at 330-996-3725 or agarrett@thebeaconjournal.com.