Volkmer's Annual Pumpkin Painting

Over 100 parents, grandparents and kids filled the shed at Volkmer's Pumpkin Painting in Exeter on Saturday morning.

 

Olivia Poppert wasn't quite awake on Saturday morning to paint her pumpkin.

First graders Alec Schlueter (far left), Kole Svec (middle) and Braden Capek (far right) are comparing notes on how to paint their pumpkins at the Volkmer's Pumpkin Painting.

For the seventh year in a row they came, they saw, and they painted lots and lots of pumpkins.

 

In fact, over 100 kids plus their accompanying adults came to Bill and Terri Volkmer's Saturday morning for their annual event.  The Volkmer's recruit their friends and family to help run the event from collecting the entry fee at the door, passing out the plates of chosen paint colors, spraying clear coat on the finished pumpkins and gluing on decorations.

 

The Volkmer's host the event in their shed where they set up low tables for the kids and provide them lots of paint colors, stencils to trace and paintbrushes.  Terri Volkmer has custom decorated pumpkins all over her yard for the kids and parents to gain inspiration from. She started the event back in 2003 for the daughter's of some friends and it has grown from there.

 

"I am so happy that I have so many people who love to paint pumpkins. My volunteers are what make it happen. The kids, I love their faces, they are so into painting the pumpkins. But I do it because I love the kids and because I have the space to do it in," said Volkmer

 

The beautiful day didn't hurt the large turnout and made the paint and clear coat drying move a little easier.

The themes the kids chose ranged from realistic looking jack o' lantern's to the two and three year old special with paint swirled everywhere, to the ever popular Big Red 'N'. With parent's packed in and cameras abounding, many little ones attempted their first painting, some on pumpkins and in some cases, a lot more on themselves.

While they waited for the pumpkins to dry and get clear coated, the kids enjoyed popcorn courtesy of the Volkmers and played games of tag in the yard. Porches all over the state are now decorated with pumpkins specially painted at the Volkmer's annual pumpkin painting.