Day 292

One of the highlights of our Halloween barn party was the pumpkin painting. The kids got very creative and we had a wonderful variety of unique and spooky pumpkins. Acquiring enough pumpkins so that each interested guest could have one sounds like it might be an arduous and expensive task. But in fact, it was one of the easiest steps in our party planning. 

We are very fortunate to have a great neighbor who helps us get all the pumpkins we need. Carlson’s Family Farm is just a few properties down so we are very fortunate to enjoy their family-friendly pumpkin farm each year. We connected them and learned about their generosity a number of years ago.

For about a decade now, my classroom has had a year-long collaboration with Children’s Wisconsin, a fantastic hospital just outside Milwaukee. I’ve looked for ways that we can have the kids be as independent as possible in creating and leading fun and interactive ways to raise funds for the hospital. One of the multiple events this brainstorming has created has been Pumpkins for a  Purpose. Long story short, my class decorates the trail, leads fall-themed activities, and acquires treats and pumpkins for a family-friendly fundraiser at our school's trail. All the money donated is sent to Children’s Wisconsin. The kids also promote the event with posters, school announcements, and even an occasional music video. In our decade-long relationship, my sometimes incorrect math shows we have been able to raise nearly $11,000 to the hospital. 

For the first few years, I hustled to try and get pumpkins donated for the event. Luckily, my hustling came to a halt when I visited Carlson’s Family Farm. The generosity of this family was exceedingly high as they have donated plenty of pumpkins for every Pumpkins for a Purpose. This year, we were able to get enough pumpkins to enjoy this event as well as have enough leftovers to support the pumpkin painting project at our 4H party.

We even have a number of remaining pumpkins lining our retaining wall. It looks like we will have plenty of pumpkins available for pumpkin painting, pumpkin carving, and extra special treats for the chickens.