By james art 
(Winston-Salem, NC – October 21, 2024) – As Wake Forest students return from fall break this week, they are gearing up for one of the largest student-led events on campus. Project Pumpkin will be held on Tuesday, October 29, from 3 to 6 p.m on Hearn Plaza.
Hundreds of costumed Wake Forest student volunteers will welcome children for an afternoon of carnival rides, games, music and other entertainment.
Media are invited to attend. Please contact [email protected] to confirm your plans to visit. Check-in will be at the registration desk in front of Wait Chapel.
“Close to 400 kids will visit us for Project Pumpkin,” said senior Annie Russell, a student director from Belmont, N.C., who has been involved with the program since her freshman year. “This event is exciting for our student body. We have volunteers from 60 different student clubs and organizations working together to make this day special for kids in the Winston-Salem community. My favorite part is just seeing the kids on campus having so much fun and the smiles on their faces.”
Since its inception more than 30 years ago, Project Pumpkin has partnered with numerous local schools and after-school organizations to bring children to the Reynolda campus for the Halloween Festival. Community members who wish to attend are encouraged to check in at the Office of Civic and Community Engagement tent next to Wait Chapel and drop off a pre-filled permission slip.
This year’s theme is Wild Adventures.
“The concept of this is habitat exploration, and the kids will be given a passport to take with them to each cabin they visit,” said senior Grace Novak, New Jersey communications major and chief student officer. “The quad will be divided into 4 different climate zones: rainforest, ocean, desert and arctic. As children tour the activity booths, they will also learn about different animals and plants, so the event has an educational component. It’s also like being in the Arctic – you learn how to make ice cream, there’s polar bear and penguin decorations and a snowflake making activity.”
It’s an interactive experience and they also learn more about science.
Grace Novak, Senior Lecturer at Wake Forest University
In addition to the campus event, student volunteers will help create activities and assist organizers with the City of Winston-Salem Parks and Recreation Department’s fall festivals. The fun-filled events will be held at three community recreation centers on October 24 from 6 to 8 p.m.: Minnie Lee Davis Harris, William C. Sims, and Hannes Hosiery.
“It’s just another way to bring the joy and excitement of Project Pumpkin to people who might not be able to go the day of the event,” Russell added.
Both Russell and Novak said they’ve learned a lot in the past four years since participating in Project Pumpkin. From event planning and budgeting to creating fundraising plans and team building, this experience helped them not only gain new skills, but also connect with the Winston-Salem community.
Cassandra Rebollar, assistant director of civic engagement, was a student leader for Project Pumpkin when she was a student at Wake Forest. She said the event creates lasting memories for both the children and Wake Forest students.
“Our student directors provide an important model of what it means to be a student leader and be deeply involved for our newer students who watch them lead and organize this event, as well as work with our community partners.”
To further the university’s mission beyond these efforts, Wake Forest students are also working to raise $8,000 to support the Freedom School, a program for elementary and middle school students aimed at strengthening children’s reading skills and closing achievement gaps . Students designed and sold Project Pumpkin T-shirts, organized fundraisers in partnership with local restaurants and created a donation website at crowdfund.wfu.edu.
The Pumpkin Project began in 1989 when a Wake Forest freshman named Libby Bell started a Halloween festival on campus for local kids. Since then, thousands of children in Forsyth County have participated in the event at Reynalda’s campus.