Steve Shanahan inflates a wading pool as he sets up a child’s game Oct. 17 at the Choctaw UMC PumpkinFest. The church observed Children’s Sabbath the next day.

By Holly McCray

In the Peanuts comic strip, Linus searches for an outstanding pumpkin patch each October, hoping to glimpse the Great Pumpkin.

Linus simply needs to visit Choctaw United Methodist Church. That’s where he will meet Janell Wolzen, who happily embraces the church’s nickname for her. "Great Pumpkin" Wolzen spearheads PumpkinFest each year on the church grounds.

The festival literally began in a field in October 2005.

Pastor Charla Gwartney was appointed to Choctaw UMC that year. She and Wolzen agreed the church should host an outreach event for the community. Wolzen concocted a pumpkin giveaway, staged on 7 ½ acres purchased as a future church site.

As Choctaw church members handed out free pumpkins to children during that first PumpkinFest, they imagined a house of worship on the land—someday.

Someday is here. A beautiful new building on the site beckoned visitors to tour during the festival Oct. 17.

"We had a vision for what we want to do here," Rev. Gwartney said. "It wasn’t to just build a building; it was for ministry. We put a lot of thought into how we want it to function now and where we want to add on in the future."

The building on Choctaw Road faces west, with the UM cross-and-flame logo making a strong statement against the brick front. A portico stretches out on the north side.

The power of orange--More than 700 pumpkins surround Matthew and Cady Watson, standing with Raegan Eastep, back, at Choctaw United Methodist Church on Oct. 17. Four years ago, the Contact also featured a colorful photo from the church’s first pumpkin festival—held on undeveloped land. This year, a newly complete church building rises from that pumpkin patch.

Flexibility is built into the structure. In the sanctuary, all the chancel components are moveable. The altar rail is easily disassembled. Chairs take the place of pews.

Hallways are unusually wide so those spaces accommodate fellowship activities. Seven classrooms and a substantial kitchen were built.

Two church members painted wall murals in the children’s area. Throughout the building, careful attention to decorating is evident. Even in the restrooms.

"I am most proud of those," said Gwartney, chuckling. "We were always waiting in lines in the old building." The new facilities for each gender include seven stalls and a diaper-changing station. Portable toilets were not necessary for PumpkinFest this year!

The outdoor festival has helped to brand Choctaw UMC within the community.

"They come for the free pumpkins," Gwartney said. "Yard signs are our best advertisement, then personal invitation."

The church budgets $3,000 for the annual event. The biggest expense is the pumpkin purchase.

Gwartney greeted festival-goers this year beneath the new portico, where they signed up for door prizes and all received goody bags. A postcard in each goody bag shared a recipe for pumpkin cake—and invited people back for Christmas programs.

Food stations, live music, inflatable games, and carnival classics encircled the new building.

Everything was free, including the pumpkins. The church gave away about 725 pumpkins to students (through high-school age).