Saturday, October 17, 2015
Staff report
YOUNGSTOWN
About 600 pumpkins were carved Friday in preparation for this year’s Pumpkin Walk at Twilight on Sunday.
After the pumpkins are transformed into jack-o’-lanterns, they will be lit with candles and placed along the pathways of Fellows Riverside Gardens, 123 McKinley Ave.
Friday’s event was one of three carving days scheduled at the gardens. The third and final carving day before the walk will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today.
The event, part of a series of walks and hikes organized by Mill Creek MetroParks, had more than 7,000 attendants last year, garden supervisor Dennis Penner said. Penner has been working at the gardens for almost nine years.
The gardens will have additional “grass-covered” parking available if needed, he said.
The days leading up to the walk have been just as popular as the event itself, Penner added. “We’ve
run out of pumpkins in the past, but not [Friday],” he said. The park’s website estimates 15,000 pounds of pumpkins were being used this year.
A lot of children were having fun carving faces and characters. Penner said adults enjoy the event as well.
“We have a few adults that come every year,” he said.
Tricia Maxwell was carving out a pumpkin using a stencil chosen by her 4-year-old son, Joshua. Maxwell, who has been coming to the event for several years, said she enjoys the event because it’s an opportunity for her family to have fun together. Maxwell’s mother had come in from New York for the event.
“I think, just the uniqueness in the pumpkins and how they display it, and the fact that you had a piece of the handiwork, contributing something to the event, makes it very special,” Maxwell said.
Brianna Hall, 11, was on her second pumpkin of the day about 2 p.m. The first was a ghost, she said, and she was vigorously finishing up an owl jack-o’-lantern for the second.
Hall’s grandmother, Carol Cox, has been taking her to the walk for three years.
“It’s just fun to carve the pumpkins and go to the pumpkin walks,” Brianna said. She added that twilight is her favorite time to walk the paths because it’s easier to see what the other participants have carved.
The walk will start at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, but Penner said people may look around anytime after setup is finished this afternoon.
More information about the Pumpkin Walk at Twilight can be found at www.millcreekmetroparks.org.