Pennsylvania ‘pumpkin church’ to host fundraiser patch with Navajo pumpkins

Every October, Christ Church in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, hosts a pumpkin patch to raise money to support its ministries and the local food pantry and education programs. Photo: Courtesy of Nicholas “Nick” D’Amato

[Episcopal News Service] Christ Church in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania, will host its 20th annual volunteer-led pumpkin patch Oct. 6-31. Proceeds from the pumpkin sales will benefit the church and the local food pantry and education programs.

“There are other denominations – Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian – on the same street as us, but Christ Church is the only one that sells pumpkins. That’s why we’re literally known in the neighborhood as the ‘pumpkin church,’” parishioner Nicholas “Nick” D’Amato told Episcopal News Service. “Every Oct. 1, we get people calling us asking if the pumpkins are in yet. As Halloween at the end of the month approaches … it gets really crowded.”

Congregations across The Episcopal Church offer pumpkin sales to raise money each year, and the sale at Christ Church, in the Diocese of Pennsylvania, is part of a specific effort known as Pumpkin Patch Fundraisers. The Greensboro, North Carolina-based nonprofit works with almost 900 organizations, including Christ Church and other Episcopal parishes, to donate pumpkins for fundraisers. The company grows about 1,200 acres of pumpkins on the Navajo Nation in Farmington, New Mexico, where they employ more than 700 Navajo people to harvest pumpkins every fall. They also have a permanent year-round staff, also all Navajo. In 2023, the company delivered 2.5 million pumpkins for fundraisers.

Pumpkins in front of Christ Christ Church in Ridley Park, Pennsylvania. The Episcopal parish hosts a pumpkin patch every October to raise money to support its ministries and the local food pantry and education programs. Photo: Courtesy of Nicholas “Nick” D’Amato

D’Amato said he estimates that about 10,000 pumpkins of different varieties and sizes will be delivered to Christ Church on Oct. 5. When the pumpkins arrive, parishioners and volunteers from the community – including members of a local theater group and Ridley High School sports teams – will spend the afternoon arranging the pumpkins around the church’s property.

Throughout the month, pumpkin patch volunteers will work in two-hour shifts. Duties will range from measuring the selling to periodically rotating the pumpkins on different sides to prevent rot.

“It’s a team effort. Whether volunteers are running sales or carrying large pumpkins to people’s cars, it’s all hands on deck,” D’Amato said.

Christ Church will keep 70% of fundraiser proceeds to support its ministries. The remaining 30% will be donated to the Ridley Park Food Pantry and the nearby outdoor education programs at Eddystone Elementary School and Woodlyn Elementary School. The outdoor education programs teach students about agriculture and other nature-based topics.

On average, Christ Church raises $22,000-24,000 a year selling pumpkins, according to D’Amato. The pumpkins that aren’t sold by the end of October will be available for free on Nov. 1, and whatever’s left by Nov. 2 will be donated to a horse farm in New Jersey for consumption.

Pumpkin patches are a popular autumn fundraiser for Episcopal churches nationwide. Last year, more than two dozen known parishes hosted pumpkin patches to support their ministries and local nonprofits that serve different needs in their communities, including food security, affordable housing and more.

D’Amato said the benefits of hosting a pumpkin patch are beyond just financial. It also serves as a fun, family-friendly public event.

“It’s a fundraiser that turns into a community-building event. …It’s almost like a reunion for many in the neighborhood, gathering at Christ Church’s pumpkin patch,” D’Amato said. “It’s so much fun for everyone – adults, teenagers, small children. I always look forward to the camaraderie of it all.”

According to the Blue Pumpkin Seed Company, there are more than 200 varieties of pumpkins, including those specially bred for carving, cooking or as ornamental decorations. Today, 65-70% of the pumpkins grown in the United States are ornamental – such as for carving jack-o’-lanterns for Halloween – although dozens of small farmers near Morton, Illinois, grow specialized seeds for pumpkins to be processed and canned by Libby’s.

“Everything about pumpkins here at Christ Church, and the entire fall season in general – it’s just so happy and friendly and fun and exciting,” D’Amato said. “Delightful is a perfect way to describe it.” 

-Shireen Korkzan is a reporter and assistant editor for Episcopal News Service. She can be reached at skorkzan@episcopalchurch.org.