VAUGHN — Although the weather was overcast and windy, hundreds of people with smiles on their faces gathered together for the ninth annual Jordan’s Pumpkins for a Cause event near Vaughn.
Jordan Schroeder was born with a disability, and he and his family have worked to give back to the community that continues to support their family.
“It's amazing, the generosity of the people in the surrounding area, whether they come to volunteer or they come to donate,” Phil Schroeder, Jordan’s father, said. “It is truly amazing, and we appreciate that.”
Jordan’s Pumpkins for a Cause invites anyone and everyone to come to the Schroeder farm, where you can pick pumpkins, enjoy some popcorn, and take a hayride, all for free.
“We thoroughly enjoy doing this. It's a labor of love,” Phil Schroeder said, “We get a huge support from the community with volunteers that help us out. We get a huge support from the community with donations, and we appreciate all of that.”
Among the long list of volunteers were the Bison Cheerleaders, the University of Providence Lady Wrestlers, and dozens of family and friends of the Schroeder family. There were QR codes throughout the area where you could donate money, however none of the profits go back to the Schroeder family. Instead, they donate everything to a different charity each year. This year, the profits went to Family Promise of Great Falls.
“Family Promise of Great Falls is a nonprofit organization that works with homeless children and their families or near homeless children and their families,” Greg Grosenick, Executive Director for Family Promise of Great Falls said, “So, we provide kind of wraparound services and basic services for families that are homeless, and we work with families to try and find them permanent housing.”
This year marks the ninth Pumpkins for a Cause event, and it is not the first time they have dealt with bad weather. However, this has not taken away from the celebration in the past, and the Schroeder family is confident this year is no different.
"Last year it was raining, and it wasn't a very nice day, but over 600 people still showed up,” Phil Schroeder said.
The event came to fruition after Jordan was born, when his parents noticed his affinity towards pumpkins at home.
“We as a family like to have a garden, and we'd grow a few pumpkins,” Phil Schroeder said, “And Jordan at the time was served by Quality Life Concepts in Great Falls. And we would take a few pumpkins in, and he would pedal them around the office... It gave him some pumpkins and they'd give him some change or a few dollars and some of that he would donate back to Quality of Life Concepts, and [we] did that for a couple of years. And then we had more pumpkins than would fit in the van.”
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