The charming Great Pumpkin Patch has returned to Lord of Life Lutheran Church, covering nearly an acre of the front lawn with pumpkins for the month.
Boy Scouts and other volunteers helped unload the pumpkins and boxes of gourds on Friday, Oct. 7, and were ready to start selling immediately. The patch will run every day until Oct. 31. Hours of operation will be weekdays from 1 p.m. to dusk; Saturdays from 9 a.m. to dusk and Sundays from 11 a.m. to dusk.
New this year will be hayrides, face painting and a craft for kids on every weekend. Inside the church will be gourds, mini pumpkins, a backdrop for selfies and baked goods.
Another star of the patch is the church’s famous fresh pumpkin pies made on site using pumpkins from the patch. The demand has grown annually, and the church estimates it will bake about 200 pies this year which come in two sizes.
“This is our largest fundraising event of the year and we’ve chosen to support two charities this year with 20% of the proceeds from pumpkin sales,” said Deb Nye, the Lord of Life Lutheran Church coordinator of this signature fundraising event. “Due to Hurricane Ian, we will be supporting the Florida Disaster Fund that our First Lady, Casey DeSantis, has encouraged the public to give to, and we also want to support a local charity, Hugs Across the County, which helps St. John’s County students in crisis, whether homelessness, food insecurity or clothing.”
Several handheld wagons will be available to cart pumpkins to cars. Pumpkins are priced by their height using a measuring tape that goes from the stem down around the bottom of the pumpkin and back to the top of the stem.
Lord of Life is located at 276 N. Roscoe Blvd., in Ponte Vedra Beach. It is part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with more than 10,000 congregations across 50 states. Lord of Life’s website is LordOfLifePVB.org; on Facebook @lordoflifepontevedra or Instagram @lordoflifepvb.
