Hundreds of pumpkins and even more smiles.
Legacy Elementary School is celebrating its 29th annual "Pumpkin Walk," a tradition emphasizing character values and community spirit over the typical Halloween scares and sugar. The event involves the entire school community and takes place every October.
Each class creates a decorated pumpkin display, focused on traits like honesty, integrity, and kindness.
“It's all about the school working together to make something great,” said Jill Hanson, principal at Legacy. “When those pumpkins are delivered the students get so excited and help unload them from the trucks. Then they put their little imaginations to work to design the pumpkins in the theme their class has developed.”
For example, one first-grade class decorated their pumpkins in the theme of Oscar the Grouch, emphasizing in a fun way the importance of kindness. The project helped the class commit to doing one act of kindness a day, starting a ripple effect of kindness.
“Anyone can be a grouch, but our students do the work and make the effort to be kind,” said Hanson.
The event’s success is measured by how well it provides student-centered experiences that teach values in unique ways that last all year.
“This event is a healthy way to celebrate the fall season, focused on important values. The students have so much fun and they carry the lessons and messages back into the classroom.” said Michael Bottita, a third-grade teacher at Legacy and long-time event chair.
Students agree.
“It's really good to bring people together and to see people I know. It's fun to see family too and I feel like it has a good impact on everyone,” said Reese Peterson, a sixth-grader and member of the Legacy Student Council.
Reese sees the event as an act of service, and loves helping others, particularly younger students.
“It's really good to bring people together and to see people I know,” said Reese. “It's fun to see family too and I feel like it has a good impact on everyone.”
The effort required to put on this two-day event is immense, relying on parent and community involvement. Setting up the display involves parents and community members arriving with trucks to deliver straw, while a local nursery provides low-cost pumpkins.
Bottita hopes patrons look beyond the decorations to the service.
“When children see that all these teachers, administrators, parents, support staff, and parents– they realize how much all these people care about our students,” said Botitta.
Principal Hanson highlights that the event is great for engagement, noting that when it is Pumpkin Walk Week, kids “can't get out of the car fast enough to get in the building.”
The school’s focus ensures that it's not just a fun activity, but a tangible educational experience.