Above, crowds delight in a selection of the elaborately decorated pumpkins at Tuesday night’s Pumpkin Glow in Heritage Walkway. With Halloween tunes filling the air, more than 500 Artesians filed past several tables of carved and decorated pumpkins and bid on their favorites through a silent auction at the annual event, hosted by Boy Scout Troop 219, Habitat for Humanity and Cub Scout Pack 270. Admission was $1 or one can of food, and due to the generous support of the auction, each hosting entity received more than $500. Businesses sponsored 20 pumpkins and submitted additional pumpkins, as well, and more than 30 Cub Scouts contributed their masterpieces to the Glow. All carvers received a commemorative Pumpkin Glow patch, and Golden Pumpkin award-winners were also named after much deliberation by judges Valerie Vaughn, art teacher, Carrie Herring, Cubmaster, and Mark Ashley of Habitat for Humanity. Scout winners included Payton Deans, Scott Bourgois, Jon Helms, Cameron Thorp, Johnny Lara, Keenan Flynn, Mauricio Marufo and Chance Boans. Adult winners were Roselawn Elementary, Crishma Bustamente, Margaret Bustamente, Chris Simons, Vicente Bustamente, Jazzie Bustamente, Artesia General Hospital, Sammy Brown, Robert Flynn and the Artesia Daily Press. Below, AGH’s skeleton snowman Golden Pumpkin award winner grins at passersby. “All three groups were overwhelmed by the generosity of the community and enthusiasm for the Glow!” said Betsy Flynn, organizer.
Brienne Green – Daily Press
