Let’s face it. There are no pumpkin patches located in North Bergen for children to partake in the festive activity of picking the orange orbs to decorate and enjoy for Halloween.
There isn’t the free open space for the nurturing and care of pumpkins, not like you find in the country or on suburban farms.
However, don’t dare try to sell that idea to the happy youngsters who attend North Bergen’s Early Childhood (pre-kindergarten) program. Last Tuesday, North Hudson Braddock Park, where the children attend classes, was transformed into a makeshift pumpkin patch, complete with 260 mini-pumpkins that the children could “pick” and take home with them.
And the smiles abounded. These four-year-olds were having the time of their lives, collecting pumpkins, drinking apple juice and eating little donuts. They had pumpkins and Munchkins.
The kids were posing for pictures with their parents and fellow classmates and Mayor Nicholas Sacco was on hand for the festivities. It was just a fun event for all.
Just ask Vanessa Leon, who was there to watch her happy four-year-old Nazareth collect his pumpkin. She can’t believe the change in her son in just the seven weeks since he began attending the pre-kindergarten classes.
“It’s so wonderful,” Leon said. “It’s been such a great experience for him. The difference in him is unbelievable. He’s learned so much and become more sociable. He’s more independent now. I was really worried, because he was very clingy to me, but it’s been very effective. It’s the best thing that ever happened to him.”
This is the third year of the state-mandated Early Childhood program for four-year-olds in North Bergen, so it was the third year that the pumpkin picking celebration was held.
Incredibly, every year, the weather has been beyond spectacular. Tuesday, the temperature was in the 70s and the sun was shining brightly, after there was an early morning threat of rain.
“It’s definitely well worth it,” said Al Tommasino, the Early Childhood supervisor. “If you see the kids’ faces, then you know why we do it every year. This is their first social function and they definitely have a real good time. It gets them ready for Halloween, which is also a big day for them. But it’s a lot of fun for everyone.”
There are two sessions of classes at the temporary Braddock Park-Bruins Stadium location, morning and afternoon, so Tommasino had to organize two sessions of pumpkin picking. The mini-pumpkins were placed all around the field so that the children could run and take the pumpkin of their choice.
Once they had their pumpkin secured, they returned to have their picture taken with the mayor or with other classmates. Many parents were on hand to also enjoy their children’s first school activity.
“It’s really a nice program for the children,” Sacco said. “It’s a beautiful location and it’s nice to give them a pumpkin patch, because many of these children will not get a chance to go pumpkin picking elsewhere.”
While the Early Childhood classes are held in temporary trailer classrooms so that the renovations to the Lincoln School extension can be completed, Tommasino said that the tradition of pumpkin picking will continue next year, even if the students are finally put in a permanent home at Lincoln.
The three-story extension to Lincoln School, which will be the permanent location for the Early Childhood pre-kindergarten program, is way behind schedule and the status of the completion of the project remains in question. “We’ll definitely find another location or we’ll come back up here to do it,” Tommasino said. “We won’t stop this no matter where we are.”
Judging by their faces, the children of the Early Childhood program would be very disappointed if this fun event went by the wayside.