Great Pumpkin Carnival coming soon

Stephanie Yost
Idyllwild Community Center President

Fall is a busy time in the mountain communities, and most especially for the Idyllwild Community Center (ICC). Among the many events and programs ICC offers throughout the year, two of its most popular occur every fall.

The first is Idyllwild’s annual Great Pumpkin Carnival. Door-to-door trick-or-treating isn’t much done on the Hill because it lacks sidewalks, it has few streetlights, homes are far apart, and many homes are occupied only part-time. Instead, for as far back as most of us can recall, community volunteers have put on a carnival for “children” of all ages, and this year is no exception.

The Great Pumpkin Carnival and parade festivities begin at 4:15 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 31, at Fern Valley Corners located at the top of North Circle Drive. Children (and pets and adults) in Halloween costumes parade down North Circle toward the center of town to the boisterous cheers (and candy donations) of family, friends, residents and visitors.

Also, Park Lane and a short section of Village Center Drive in the center of town around Idypark will be closed to traffic, as the area will be filled with costumed children (as well as many costumed adults) who collect trick-or-treat candy from local businesses and enjoy the special food and fun. A $5 fee allows carnival goers to enjoy themed activities and play numerous carnival games for prizes.

The Great Pumpkin Carnival, which lasts until about 7 p.m., has community organizations sponsoring carnival booths, including Rotary, Soroptimists, Mountain Disaster Preparedness, the Idyllwild Association of Realtors, the Art Alliance of Idyllwild, Friends of the San Jacinto Mountains County Parks, and ICC, with Mountain Community Patrol providing traffic help. And Mayor Max and his staff will be there, too.

Call ICC at 951-659-2638 to sponsor a booth or otherwise volunteer to support the event.

The second major ICC fall event on the Hill is the annual Tree Lighting Ceremony on Saturday, Nov. 27 (the Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend). Stay tuned to the Town Crier for more information on this much-anticipated holiday extravaganza.