UMs reach out, raise funds with pumpkins

By Rachel L. Toalson
Staff Writer
The fields of plump pumpkins and tiny ears of corn serve a much greater purpose than a mere decorative introduction to the fall season.
They are all about community outreach.
And to many Southwest Texas congregations, pumpkin patches provide the largest fundraising opportunity of the year.
“It started out as a fundraiser, and it continues to be a big one,” said Terry Web, pumpkin patch coordinator for First UMC, Seguin. “Sales from this patch will fund the mission budget for the youth and other areas of ministry.
“But the real purpose of (the patch) is community outreach. This is a place to come as a family or as an individual and just enjoy the pumpkins and harvest time. It’s really a delightful situation.”
The Seguin patch, which opened at 9 a.m. Oct. 1, sees families and children from La Vernia, Prairie Lea and other surrounding communities, Web said. This year is the first time in 12 years that the patch will be operating all through October.
Schools and daycare centers around Seguin have begun scheduling story times in the patch, Web said. In the past the church has averaged about 1,000 child visitors each year.
During business hours, Web said the patch would be run by two, sometimes three, volunteers who not only handle business transactions but also pass out church information to visitors.
Pumpkins that remain unsold by Nov. 1 are offered to the community free, though volunteers accept donations for the leftovers. The rest are given to hog farmers, who also will take rotten pumpkins off the church’s hands throughout the month.
First UMC, Boerne, gives leftover pumpkins from its patch to local hog farmers as well—after saving some for the youth group’s fall retreat, said Tim Day, the church’s youth minister.
During the retreat—the weekend after the patch closes—students use pumpkins for “Pumpkin Olympics,” Day said. They compete in throwing, smashing and rolling pumpkins.
Run by his youth group and their parents, the patch in Boerne’s Veteran’s Memorial Park opened in early October. Volunteers are on hand from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day except Sundays, when the patch opens at noon. All sales benefit the youths.
Last year, Day said, the group raised nearly $8,000. The money was allocated to youths who worked—or whose parents worked—shifts in the patch. Students could use the money, which was set aside in accounts for them, to pay for events or mission trips.
“This is a way for the students to raise money to go on youth trips,” Day said. “They work their way to afford those trips. It’s a way for them to give back and serve.
“But it’s also for the entire community. Everybody loves a pumpkin patch. It has turned into a community place.”
The Boerne patch also sees children from daycare centers and surrounding schools, Day said.
First UMC, Victoria, scheduled a story time in its pumpkin patch from 9 a.m. until noon every Monday through Friday, said Cindy Sutton, pumpkin patch coordinator. Elementary schools and daycare centers have already begun registering for story slots. Church leaders estimate about 1,500 children will visit.
“If we bring all these children on the church grounds, who knows how many of them go to church,” Sutton said. “Outreach to the community is definitely our main goal.”
The church’s patch is to be open through October. Sales benefit the church’s different outreach ministries, including the Victoria Christian Assistance ministry, the Methodist Day School, United Methodist Youth Fellowship, Wesley nurse program and the Prescription Assistance program.
University UMC, San Antonio, uses sales from its pumpkin patch to lower costs of special events for the youth group, said Rhonda Dippo, patch coordinator.
“If parents have more than one child, many of those events get expensive,” she said. “This helps lower the cost of the events so we don’t have to charge the youth as much.”
Parents and students work at the patch, which opened Oct. 2, to credit a student’s account for future events. Patch hours are Monday through Sunday from 9 a.m. until 8:30 p.m., Dippo added.
The University patch welcomes busloads of children coming from daycare centers and surrounding schools as well, she said.
St. John’s UMC, Austin, opened its pumpkin patch Oct. 3, said John Cravens, youth director. St. John’s has had a patch for 15 straight years. That has earned it the title “Pumpkin Church.”
Most years, Cravens said, the youth group will make around $8,000 at the fundraiser. The money is used for youth and adult mission projects throughout the year.