by Kenya Smith / Intern
kenya.smith@tidewaternews.com

BOYKINS
For the state of Virginia, October is declared as Pumpkin Month, and the Town of Boykins is hosting its sixth Pumpkinfest this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The event, which celebrates the fall season and the pumpkin, has been a project of the Boykins Main Street Initiative, which is a non-profit organization that aims to preserve history, and to promote business growth and beautification for all of Boykins.

“The Pumpkinfest started out very small, and we didn’t even have a pumpkin at the first one,” said Linda Beatty who is the organization’s treasurer, “The purpose was to bring more people to town to see what we had to offer. The event was successful and got bigger each year.”

During Saturday’s festivities, attendees young and old can explore different vendors, savor some food, and enjoy a large range of family-fun activities such as a petting zoo, pony rides, cake and cookie walks, board games, bounce houses, a 50/50 drawing, guessing games and kids games. For music, a DJ will be present throughout the event, and the event will end with volunteers doing some karaoke.

There will be two new activities at this year’s Pumpkinfest. First, is the corn hole tournament for the adults with the top prize of $100. The entry fee is $10 per team. Then, there is a pumpkin pie-eating contest for kids ages 7 to 14. A cash prize will be given to the fastest pie eater.

“Lots of planning has gone into this event, and we are hoping for the best,” Beatty said.

According to a survey that was conducted last year by the US. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistic Service, Virginia is home to more than 200 commercial pumpkin growers and has approximately 2,400 acres of wholesale pumpkins.