Keeping tradition alive, Venetucci Farm brings pumpkin patch to students
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- For the past six decades, Venetucci Farm has been providing pumpkins to elementary students. But due to recent events with COVID-19, the plan for the annual pumpkin giveaway came into question.
Sam Clark with the Pikes Peak Community Foundation said, “The problem is how do you get groups of school kids to the farm during these times. So we decided that if you can’t get kids to the farm, then we are going to bring the farm to the kid.”
In 2006, The Pikes Peak Community Foundation acquired the farm from then-owner Bambi Venetucci. The goal was to help keep Bambi’s legacy alive by providing pumpkins and also teach the science behind how each pumpkin is grown with the help of the Catamount Institute.
Beth Austin with the Catamount Institute said, “We don’t just want to hand out a pumpkin. We really want to teach kids what a plant is. And it’s all part of the Kindergarten standards to understand how plants play a role in our local ecosystem.”
On Friday, at Centennial Elementary 75 pumpkins were handed out in hopes of bringing just a little bit of normalcy back to these students.
Kim Noyes, Principal at Centennial Elementary said, “Another thing that’s really important in school is these great traditions. And so we are really excited to have the tradition here of having students get a pumpkin so whether they go to Venetucci Farm and get a pumpkin or today Catamount brings them here for us we are so excited that teachers could have this experience with their students today.”
After speaking with the Pikes Peak Community Foundation, they said they are excited for next year when they can hopefully get kids back out to the farm.
