Kids got their hands dirty and painted pumpkins on Oct. 12 at the second annual Paint-a-Pumpkin with a Police Officer, held in the party room at Home Run Inn on Archer.
This year’s event ran in two sessions, a change organizers made after last year’s turnout packed the room.
Jason Huff of the 8th District Council and lead organizer said about 50 kids and their parents jammed into the party at last year’s event, which he called chaotic. He said he hadn’t expected every family to arrive at once, and nearly everyone had left by 12:15 p.m.
This year, Huff split the event into time slots, 11 a.m. to noon and noon to 1 p.m., each with 25 kids and their parents. Huff noted that the change made the event more intimate and gave families room to paint and eat without feeling crowded.
Each child received a painting kit, pumpkins, and a goodie bag. Along with a complimentary lunch: pizza, juice, cookies, and candy.
CAPS members of the 8th District Police Department interacted with families through the event and went around to see the kids’ creations. A few of the officers volunteered on their day off to show community presence and vote on the most creative, most adorable, silliest, scariest, funniest, and best pumpkin.
The voting process took a lot of deliberation between officers, who seemed to take their role seriously. Upon revealing the winners after each session, they did so by reminding the children that it was a hard decision and that everyone did a great job.
Winners included a Little Mermaid-inspired Flounder design, a Ghost Face, Disney’s Lightning McQueen, a blue cat, a polka-dot and striped creation, and a silly workout art.
