HIGHWOOD – Kick off Fall season with The City of Highwood as they host The 8th Annual Great Highwood Pumpkin Festival, October 6-8, in Downtown Highwood, benefitting Make-A-Wish Illinois. Last year’s Fest raised $60,000, with all proceeds donated to grant wishes for kids with life-threatening conditions in Illinois. Back bigger and better, Pumpkin Fest 2017 plans to double that figure and once again attempt to break the Guinness World Record of 30, 851 carved and lit jack-o’-lanterns on display. With a focus on the good will of the greater community, three local Make-A-Wish families will light the grand pumpkin wall ceremoniously each night tying it all together for 70,000+ attendees! It’s an event not to be missed!
Because EVERY SINGLE PUMPKIN COUNTS toward the grand total to break a world record, festival organizers are inviting the community to not only come to carve October 2-5 at City Hall (17 Highwood Ave.) from 9 am – 9 pm, they are also offering free weekend admission to anyone that brings their own pumpkin onsite. All lit jack-o-lanterns will be placed on pumpkin walls throughout the Festival grounds, with ceremonial wall lightings Friday and Saturday nights, and the grand lighting on Sunday evening. A $3/day per person admission and $5 for the weekend includes all-you-can-carve pumpkins.
The official activity packed weekend event will kick off Thursday evening, October 5, with an unlimited carnival ride special. Following the carnival extravaganza, a full schedule of fun commences Friday through Sunday with: costume contests, hay rides, pony rides, a petting zoo, kids crafts, two stages for music, food and beverage galore, the 5th annual Superhero 5k Run/Walk honoring “Superman Sam” Sommer, a Highwood resident and Make-A-Wish child that lost his battle with cancer in 2013, and more.
“Every year The Great Highwood Pumpkin Festival event organizers come together to create a weekend for families that they will talk about for years to come,” says Eric Falberg, Highwood Alderman and Founder of The Great Highwood Pumpkin Fest. “It is always rewarding to see attendees of all ages excited to attempt to break the world record of most pumpkins carved and lit at once, all while benefitting a great cause like Make-A-Wish Illinois.”
The weekend activities and events schedule will be constantly updated as activities are confirmed. So far, they include:
Thursday, October 5
- 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. — Unlimited Carnival Ride Special- ONLY $25 per person
Friday, October 6
- 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. Festival Opens – Rides, Vendors Activities, All-You-Can Carve Pumpkins
- 4:00 – 6: 00 p.m. — Trick or Treating
- 5:00 – 9:00 p.m. — Unlimited Carnival Ride Special- ONLY $25 per person
- 7:45 p.m. — Wall Lighting
- 10:00 p.m. — Close
Saturday, October 7
- 9:00 a.m. — Superhero 5k Run/Walk
- 11:00 a.m. — Festival Opens: Rides, Vendors Activities, All-You-Can Carve Pumpkins
- 1:00 – 9:00 p.m. — Unlimited Carnival Ride Special – ONLY $25 per person
- 4:00 p.m. — Pie Eating Contest
- 8:00 p.m. — Wall Lighting
- 10:00 p.m. — Close
Sunday, October 8
- 11:00 a.m. — Festival Opens – Rides, Vendors Activities, All-You-Can Carve Pumpkins
- 12:00 – 4:00 p.m. — Unlimited Carnival Ride Special – ONLY $25 per person
- 1:00 p.m. — Pet Costume- Sponsored by Coopers Way
- 2:00 p.m. — Kids Costume Contest
- 5:30 p.m. — World record attempt
- 7:00 p.m. — Wall Lighting
- 9:00 p.m. — Festival Closes
All the proceeds from The Great Highwood Pumpkin Festival will go to Make-A-Wish Illinois. Additionally, generous sponsors such as Tito’s Handmade Vodka make Pumpkin Fest possible and there are many opportunities for additional businesses to sponsor as well!
For a complete list of musical performances visit http://highwoodpumpkinfest.com/schedule/.
For more information on this fall weekend extravaganza, be sure to visit http://highwoodpumpkinfest.com and follow The Great Highwood Pumpkin Festival on Facebook. Don’t wait until October to give back, donate now at Make-A-Wish Illinois.
ABOUT MAKE-A-WISH
Make-A-Wish Illinois will grant more than 700 wishes to children across the state this year. Wishes are granted to children with life-threatening medical conditions such as cancer, organ transplants, genetic diseases and many more. Wishes can be an important part of the treatment process, empowering children to make decisions and providing strength to comply with medical treatments. Since being founded locally in 1985, Make-A-Wish Illinois has granted more than 13,000 wishes and continues its mission to share the power of a wish with children across the state. For more information or to find out how you can help, call 312.602.WISH or visit www.illinois.wish.org.
