Interviews · Community · Brownsboro
Fall Comes Alive at Union Hill’s Pumpkin Park
Hay rides, corn pits and plenty of pumpkins draw families to Brownsboro
On an East Texas early morning in Brownsboro, the Pumpkin Park at Union Hill Baptist Church is alive with the sights and sounds of fall. Kindergarten students, their teachers and parents from Brownsboro ISD hurry from one station to the next, making the most of the season even when the East Texas weather doesn’t quite want to cooperate.
There is a lot to love. Children laugh and holler as they tumble through the hay maze, zip down the slides and dig into the corn pits. The hum of a tractor carries families around the grounds on a hay ride, wonderful Christian music plays in the background, and the smell of good food drifts across the field.
Leading it all is Jennifer Harville, who has served as the park’s director for three years. This is the park’s fifth season. It began as the Union Hill Pumpkin Patch and became Pumpkin Park in its second year “because we’re more than a pumpkin patch now,” Jennifer said. “We have transformed our field into an entire park for the month of October.”
The idea came from the church’s associate pastor at the time, Brett Gilpatrick, and then-children’s ministry director Hanna Dingler. “They had this idea, put it together and it just took off,” Jennifer said.
For Jennifer, the park is personal. She has been part of the Union Hill church family since seventh grade. “This is truly a mission for me,” she said. “Every single person here that I know gives back as much as they can, and so this is kind of my way of giving back, but also welcoming our community in.” She starts working on the park in the summer, and the vision is simple: “Let’s reach our community. Let’s give families a memorable place to visit where we can welcome them and spread the word of God as well.”
Pumpkin Park is only one of the ways Jennifer serves. She is also secretary of the Murchison ISD school board and works as a personal trainer at the Cain Center YMCA in Athens.
This year’s newest attraction sits under the pavilion. Pumpkin Place Village is a pint-sized town with a bakery, tire shop, gas station, bank, firehouse, market and city hall. The playhouses were donated by Revive Church in Longview. “It’s been so amazing that families will go down there and spend the majority of their time there,” Jennifer said. Children pedal tractors around the village and stop at the little gas station to fill up.
A favorite returns, too. The Pumpkin Peak Slide, built by the crew from Highway 19 Sales and Service, has two side-by-side lanes so kids can race down in potato sacks, with hay bales lining the way. “This year it is steeper and faster, and the kids love it,” Jennifer said. Nearby, a potato cannon lets kids take aim at fun targets, and the barrel train ride is a weekend favorite.
“You can’t come to Pumpkin Park and not go through the hay maze,” Jennifer said. Pastor Preston Burton designs and builds the maze each year, with round bales donated by Kyle’s Excavation.
That includes the Pumpkin Park Truck. Jennifer’s husband, Gray, built and painted the 1964 Chevy specifically for Pumpkin Park. It sits right in front of the hay maze, decorated so families, classes and visitors can sit on the back or stand beside it for pictures.
Building the park
Transforming a church field into a park takes a community. Setup takes about 20 days, with dozens of volunteers from across the community pitching in, and Jennifer begins planning in the summer.
The park also could not happen without its generous sponsors and partners, and Jennifer and the church are grateful for every one of them. The crew from Highway 19 Sales and Service returns each year to revamp the Pumpkin Peak Slide. Kyle’s Excavation provides the round bales, and Hat Creek Farms provides all of the square bales. Turner Electric set up Pumpkin Park’s own power source. Palady Air and Kirby Water Resources support and sponsor the park every year and help spread the word.
The park is run by church volunteers, with at least eight people on hand every day. At the front, volunteers greet every guest with a smile. Reba faithfully serves at the park every day she is needed, welcoming visitors as they arrive. Jodi Hamilton, a longtime volunteer, is now a full-time helper at the park.
Jennifer is quick to give the credit to others. There are so many volunteers, she said, that it would take a whole volume to name them all, and the park simply could not run without them. Her own family pitches in, too.
Fellow volunteer Megan, who was helping at the coloring and decorating area, had warm words for Jennifer. “She’s the most amazing woman,” Megan said. “She gives to everyone and then some. She’s always going above and beyond, she always has the best attitude, and she gives and gives.” Megan said she volunteers wherever Jennifer needs her.
The park has grown into a destination. Last year, Jennifer estimates, somewhere between 3,000 and 4,000 people came through, with some families driving all the way from the Dallas–Fort Worth area. Fifteen schools from across East Texas visit for field trips. “We want this to be a tradition for families in our community,” she said.
Hungry visitors can grab cheeseburgers, hot dogs and nachos, plus a crowd favorite. “Some people just come to Pumpkin Park for our sausage on a stick,” Jennifer said. The roasted corn in a cup is another favorite, and on a warm day, Kona Ice is on hand with snow cones for $3. Burger and hot dog baskets come with chips and a drink.
The park is open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays in October, and schools can book field trips on weekdays through Oct. 30. The last day of the season is Oct. 31. Admission is $10 per person age 3 and up, and children 2 and under get in free. That same evening, Oct. 31, from 5 to 7:30 p.m., the church will host Candy Fest, a free community event.
Asked what she most wanted folks to know, Jennifer kept it simple: “It’s a really great, fun family event.”
