CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — What’s your favorite thing to do in the fall right before Halloween? For many people, it’s going to the pumpkin patch.
Cornerstone Baptist Church in Alice has had one every single year since 2012 with the exception of last year because of the pandemic. This year is no exception, but there’s been a few rough “patches” along the way. And yes, that pun was intended.
The church was told, due to a trucker shortage, their pumpkins coming all the way from North Carolina would be late. They were supposed to get them on Friday, but they were told last minute that they would have to wait until Monday, which means they won’t start selling them until Wednesday. That means no setting up for the patch this past weekend.
“It happened very last minute. We found out on Friday that the pumpkins were going to be delayed,” Gabrielle Garcia, the church’s music minister said.
She is also the principal of Alice Christian School and said the school was planning to have a field trip to the pumpkin patch. Unfortunately, that field trip may have to be delayed.
Ruben Robinson Jr. is also one of the church’s members and said the pumpkin patch fundraiser brings together the community. He said the community pitches in to donate items like hayrides and antique cars.
“Everybody comes year after year after year, we get hundreds of thousands of people that come in so it’s a great community thing that everybody uses to help minister,” Robinson said.
The church donates proceeds of the pumpkin patch to raise funds for giving away backpacks and adopting a family for Christmas. They also donate some of the money to churches in other states and countries.
But putting on the pumpkin patch takes a lot of hard work. Unloading over 300 pumpkins, putting them in a nice picturesque arrangement, and of course, selling them.
“People help us load the pumpkins, pick out the pumpkins, and set them up. Kids help, teenagers help, grown-ups help, almost everybody helps,” Ruben Jr.’s son, Liam Robinson, said.
At the end of the day though, church members said, all the effort is worth it.
“It’s a lot of fun, you get to meet new people, talk to them, and it’s just a lot of fun,” Benjamin Garcia, a church member, said.
Originally the pumpkin patch was going to end October 30, but the church said they will be extending the pumpkin patch until November 5 so people have more time to pick that picture-perfect pumpkin.
