Pumpkin Days returned to Pahrump last weekend for its 16th year — PHOTOS
Fair food, fall fun, frightening festivities and friendly families were all present at this year’s Pumpkin Days, a quintessential annual Pahrump event.
“It’s so great to have something for the kids to do and it’s a great cause for the [Pahrump] Disability Outreach Program,” raved Pumpkin Days attendee Shannen Burke. “It’s great fun and we get to support a great program.”
This was the Burke family’s fourth year attending Pumpkin Days. Alongside many locals who were familiar with the event, some like Ryan Kapaku and his family, who moved to Pahrump from California about two months ago, experienced Pumpkin Days for the first time this year.
“We never had this back home. It’s awesome to see the community come out and get together like this,” Kapaku told the Pahrump Valley Times.
Pumpkin Days returned to the Pahrump Valley last weekend for its sixteenth year of autumn amusement. The four-day event, held at Ian Deutch Memorial Park, ran from Thursday, Oct. 23 to Sunday, Oct. 26. Pumpkin Days is organized by the Pahrump Disability Outreach Program (PDOP) and all proceeds raised at the event benefit the organization.
“The Pahrump Disability Outreach Program is a multi-face support group for disabled children, adults, and their families,” said PDOP President David Boruchowitz leading up to the event. “We provide resources, advocacy for educational meetings, monthly social events, and then we do trainings periodically as parents need them.”
About 90 percent of Pumpkin Days’ volunteers are young adults and teenagers with disabilities and families who are part of PDOP.
“We love seeing the community have fun, but for me, the purpose of the organization is for them to feel like they’re part of society,” Boruchowitz explained to the Pahrump Valley Times on Pumpkin Days opening night. “And this weekend, all of these kiddos feel like they’re part of society.”
Thursday at this year’s Pumpkin Days served as family night. The event opened at 3 p.m. so families could enjoy Pumpkin Days on a slower weekday before the busier weekend rush. At approximately 5 p.m. on Thursday, the event had already seen about 100 guests.
“We’re pretty busy for a Thursday. We don’t normally open on Thursday, but with no school on Friday, we thought we’d give it a shot,” Boruchowitz said during family night. “It seems to be pretty well-received for a Thursday. We’re pretty happy with the crowd so far.”
This year’s Pumpkin Days saw approximately 3,800 people throughout its four-day run, raising almost $45,000. Nearly 1,000 pumpkins were sold at the event’s pumpkin patch.
“It’s great because it is so kid-friendly, it is so community-friendly, it is so family-friendly. It’s just amazing,” volunteer Anya Lindsey said. “And the whole organization in itself, everything that they do is amazing. It is so much fun for these kids to have something like this and to be a part of it.”
Lindsey and her two boys joined PDOP when they moved to Pahrump two and a half years ago. This was the family’s second time volunteering at Pumpkin Days.
“Being a mom of two special needs kids, it is one of the most positive and most exciting times of the year for the kids,” Lindsey explained. “In a small town, it really gives them something to look forward to.”
This year’s Pumpkin Days featured a wide variety of activities, including axe throwing, a car smash, mechanical bull riding, a hay maze, a hay-bale pyramid play area, miniature train rides, fall-themed photo opportunities, and the event’s scariest haunted house yet.
“We upgraded it and there’s a lot of new stuff inside the haunted house,” volunteer Gareth Forbes said.
Another longstanding tradition during Pumpkin Days is the Monster Dash 5K Run and 1-Mile Family Fun Walk. A total of 90 participants ran in this year’s race. Approximately $2,000 was raised from runner entry fees.
For more information about the Pahrump Disability Outreach Program, visit pahrumpdisabilityoutreachprogram.com.
Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com
