Annual Pumpkin Tour
Held on Saturday, October 14, 2006, the 4th Annual Ballard Park
Pumpkin Tour was by far the most successful tour to date with
over 1,300 jack-o-lanterns lining the trails of Ballard Park
and nearly 3,100 tour goers.
Once again sponsorships purchased by local business owners
allowed the Friends of Ballard Park to purchase pumpkins
which were delivered to schools and social service agencies the first
two weeks of October. This year pumpkins were delivered to every
Newport public school as well as the Boy’s & Girl’s Club of Newport
County, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center and Child &
Family Services.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Carol C. Ballard, President
Misi Narcizo, Vice President
Jill Spear, Treasurer
Colleen McGrath, Secretary
Frank Amaral
Linda Lee Butler
Meg Edenbach
Mary Ellen Grosvenor
Brian Kuchar
2006 Sponsors
JUBILEE $3,000:
Ballard Exploration Company
GREAT PUMPKIN $1,000:
R&R Construction
SPARKS & SAFETY $500:
Gustave White Sotheby's International Realty
Kirby Perkins Construction
PUMPKIN PATCH $200:
AOH in Memory of Peter J. O'Neill
Bardorf & Bardorf
Bartlett Tree Experts
BR Arnold Construction
Cathers + Coyne
DePaul Diesel
Hugh E. O'Donnell, DDS
McGrath Clambakes, Inc.
Roger King Fine Arts
TJ Brown Landscape
PUMPKIN $100:
A&O Fish
Asterisk
Bellevue Realtors
Brick Alley Pub
Deborah Winthrop Fine Lingerie
Gustave JS White Auctioneers
KJ Alves Commercial Properties
Koziara O’Reilly and Skuncik
NewportFed
Newport FOP
Newport Gulls
Newport Harbor Corporation
Newport Tent Company
People’s Credit Union
O'Brien's Pub
Smith Barney
VOLUNTEERS:
Tim Brown
Bill Buckley
Meg & Kurt Edenbach
Kiki Finn
Rosalind & David Maclean
Kathy & Tom McGrath
Colleen Murray
Rick Niejadlik
Paddy Oakley
Doug & Jill Spear
Chuck, Jennifer, Charles & Liza Taylor
The Friends of Ballard Park received terrific feedback from representatives in the schools, many of whom cited the after school pumpkin carving parties are the best attended parent- student events of the school year. For the first time, art students at Rogers High School carved pumpkins. Students observed classmates who rarely participate in activities excited to carve a design into their pumpkin. Students enrolled in the gifted art class as well as the NACTC graphics class carved logos onto sponsors’ pumpkins.
Terrific weather encouraged an impromptu carving party which many neighborhood children enjoyed while volunteers set up the 32 displays along Ballard Park’s loop trail.
The Newport Fire Department was on site promoting fire safety. Captain Patrick Carney said more people toured the fire safety trailer than they’ve seen at any past event they’ve attended and parents got into the act rolling to the ground with children to find the ‘good air’, touching hot doors and climbing out of windows.
Children arrived excited to find their
pumpkin among the 1,300+ on display,
some donning their Halloween costumes.
Old or young, tour goers delighted in
the creative and cute displays. Many
thanks to the sponsors, carvers
and volunteers who made this
event a great success!
