Churches spread spirit
Joseph and Vicki Grogan said when they left home Saturday to buy Halloween decorations that yhey had to make one extra stop.
Back
Angela Agcaoili, of Martinez, looks at pumpkins at the Corner Pumpkin Patch at Marvin United Methodist Church. Many churches throughout the county were selling pumpkins Saturday to raise money for church activities or mission trips.
Photo by Quandra Collins
"Our daughters wanted to stop here," said Grogan, of Evans, while at the Corner Pumpkin Patch at Marvin United Methodist Church on Wheeler Road. "They saw the pumpkin patch and wanted to stop."
Her daughter Kali, 5, said she likes to get pumpkins for one reason.
"I like to spray-paint faces on them for Halloween," she said.
The event, sponsored by Marvin United Methodist, opened Friday offering 800 pumpkins in different shapes and sizes. Pumpkins will continue to be on sale from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays until Oct. 30 and 1-6 p.m. on Halloween.
Church member Ed Boothe said the fund-raiser, which is a first for the church, raises money for community projects and mission trips.
Lou Brown said she traveled all the way from Lincolnton just to get her pumpkin.
"I know a lot of people here," she said. "We do missions together. I'm buying a pumpkin for my Halloween decoration. After that I plan to make some pumpkin pies. I love pumpkin pies."
Amanda Szoka, 9, volunteered her time Saturday to help buyers such as Brown load their pumpkins into their vehicles.
Sandra Lott took her grandson, Dalton, 3, to Wesley United Methodist Church's pumpkin patch. The Honduran mission coordinator said the church's pumpkins came from gardens managed by New Mexico's Navajo tribe.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
"I like working at the pumpkin patch because you get to make people happy," she said. "If we didn't have this pumpkin patch, then people probably wouldn't be able to buy any pumpkins to decorate with."
At Wesley United Methodist Church, a pumpkin patch called Pumpkins with a Purpose also started Friday. The second annual event, which will continue through Oct. 31 from 9 a.m. to dark, offers pumpkins and gourds of all kinds.
Proceeds from the sale go to the church's Honduras Outreach Team.
"The money that we raise helps get the missionaries to Honduras, and it helps out the villages. We buy supplies such as medicine and vitamins, and we do construction like building floors in their homes," said John Robinson, the mission coordinator, who said the mission group built latrines for the Honduran villagers in 2003.
Adam Roberts, an associate pastor at Wesley, said bringing the community together for a good cause is what the sale is all about.
"These pumpkins come from New Mexico where Navajo Indians grow them," Roberts said. "This is their main income. So, by selling these pumpkins we are helping them as well as those in Honduras."
Amy Tisdale and her friend Ale Kennedy, both of Augusta, said they visited the patch to take pictures of their babies dressed up in Halloween costumes.
Amy Tisdale hugs her son, Whitt, 5 months, while sitting among the pumpkins at the Wesley United Methodist Church pumpkin patch in Evans. Proceeds from the pumpkin sales will go to Honduras Outreach Ministry Inc. The event, offering pumpkins and gourds will continue from 9 a.m. until through Oct. 31.
Photo by Jim Blaylock
"This is their first Halloween," Tisdale said. "So far we've had fun (out here)."
Harlem United Methodist Church also is offering its own pumpkin patch. Valarie Wingate, a church member, said on Monday her patch still had plenty of pumpkins.
"We just got some more, so we have about 600 pumpkins,'' she said.