1,100-pound pumpkin wins contest in fundraising campaign for YMCA's Parkinson's program Written By

 Pamela D. Knudson | Oct 8th 2019 

Al Pearson stands in front of his winning, 1,128-pound pumpkin on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The pumpkin was grown by Kent Carrier, of Walhalla, N.D. Sydney Mook/Grand Forks Herald

The White Hat Gang landed the top prizes for the largest pumpkin and most funds raised in the fourth annual Pumpkins for Parkinson’s Grand Pumpkin Growing contest and fundraiser held Tuesday, Oct. 8, at the Altru Family YMCA. 

The massive pumpkin, weighing 1,128 pounds, dominated the field of seven pumpkins. It was grown by Kent Carrier of Walhalla, N.D.

“The biggest one last year was the largest we’d ever had,” said Patti McEnroe, director of marketing and membership at the YMCA. “It was 624 pounds.

“We get pumpkins from all over,” she said.

Other pumpkin growers included Brian Reslock, Devils Lake; Jessica Tennison, Fordville, N.D.; Doug Bolte, Regent, N.D.; Jan Heitmann, All Seasons, Grand Forks; Larry Rivard, Rivard’s seed company, Grand Forks; and Muriel Stadstad, rural Grand Forks. 

McEnroe and her husband, Tom, traveled the state late last week to collect the pumpkins and then had them weighed at the local CHS warehouse.“Only one broke,” Tom McEnroe said. 

The winning team, the White Hat Gang, includes father and daughter, Al Pearson and Joanna Pearson; Brad Berry, head coach, and Dane Jackson, associate coach, UND men’s hockey team; and Mike Hagen.

The team has raised more than $4,000 for the fund raising campaign to benefit the Y’s Parkinson’s clients, Patti McEnroe said. 

A friend helped Al Pearson connect with Carrier, a grower in Walhalla. Pearson didn’t know until Sunday, Oct. 6 just how big the pumpkin was, he said. 

“It feels good” to win, said Pearson, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2006. “And to raise the money we did.” 

He has already enlisted Carrier to grow a pumpkin for next year’s contest, too, he said. “This is actually one of (Carrier’s) smaller ones,” said Joanna Pearson. "He's grown them in the 1,600-pound range."

In the growing season, “he covers the pumpkins with blankets; he treats them like his kids,” she said. Sealing second and third places, respectively, were Rivard, for a 379-pound pumpkin, and Stadstad, for a 367-pound pumpkin.

The pumpkins grown by All Seasons weren’t entered in the competition because “there’s so much mud, they couldn’t get them out,” McEnroe said.

Tuesday’s event served as an official kickoff for the fundraising campaign, which continues through Dec. 31, said McEnroe, noting that about $7,500 has been raised so far.

The money is used for training, specialized equipment, transportation and operational costs and financial program scholarships, she said. If a team doesn’t have a grower, “we find one for them,” said McEnroe. 

Then team members rally others to give per-pound or specific donations for the campaign. Efforts such as these allow the YMCA to further support Parkinson’s Wellness Recovery program participants who may attend classes, especially for them, “almost every day of the week,” McEnroe said. 

They can take brain and physical power classes, balance and power cycling classes as well as Rock Steady Boxing, all designed to address symptoms. They also benefit from yoga and Silver Sneaker classes, she said. 

Research shows that the intense physical exercise in Rock Steady Boxing may have a protective effect on the brain, thus delaying the progression of Parkinson’s disease symptoms, McEnroe said. 

Rick Mercil, financial adviser with the Morgan Stanley brokerage firm, Grand Forks, and the grillmaster who provided the brats for the lunch at the event, said he wasn’t sure what’s going to happen to the pumpkins. 

“I don’t know,” Mercil said, “but I’ll bet they could make a lot of pies out of them.”

For more information on the Pumpkins for Parkinson’s fundraiser or programming for people with Parkinson’s, call McEnroe at (701) 775-2586 or go online to www.gfymca.org. 

Pledges are being accepted by the teams, at the YMCA, or by phone, mail or online. Donations are tax deductible. 

Tours of the facility and short-term passes are available for those who want to learn more about the Y’s programs for Parkinson’s clients or try a class, she said. 

https://www.grandforksherald.com/community/events/4711877-1100-pound-pumpkin-wins-contest-in-fund-raising-campaign-for-YMCAs-Parkinsons-program