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A Golden Hubbard squash sits on top a pile.
Turban Gourds lay in a pile.
Pumpkins are stacked in a cart.
Pumpkin Patch offers more than haunts By Tim Deters Features Editor
Amid the cornfields and along the crosshatches of county roads in Arthur sits a patch of agricultural diversity and local history. Driving down the long, straight stretches of highway, passing jet-black buggies drawn by horses and carrying Amish residents, drivers might easily miss The Great Pumpkin Patch, one of the largest and most productive pumpkin patches in the state. However, The Great Pumpkin Patch, located at 11749A CR 1900 N. in Arthur, is not what many visitors might expect when thinking of a pumpkin patch, general manager Mac Condill said. Operating between Sept. 15 and Oct. 31 each year, the pumpkin patch encompasses the spirit and fruits of the season rather than the frights of the holiday, Condill said. “We celebrate everything autumn; it’s all about the harvest. We’re not ghoulish,” he said. Condill, a fifth-generation farmer, operates the 63-acre farm that grows nearly 400 varieties of cucurbits, which is the plant family that includes pumpkins, squash, gourds and melons. “If you had to use one word to describe our place, we’d like it to be diversity,” Condill said, speaking over the loud clang of green toy wagons as children hauled their loads of cucurbits along.
Walking along a beaten dirt path lined with hand-painted wooden signs, visitors are met with a myriad of displays illustrating the diversity of cucurbits Condill grows. One of the first structures to welcome visitors is the Wall ‘O Squash, a nearly 25-foot tower constructed of wooden crates that holds a large variety or cucurbits. A long line of cucurbits winds two-by-two up a wooden bridge to a red wooden boat representing Noah’s Ark. Each cucurbit has a unique look and vividly illustrates the diversity of Condill’s crop. Some are covered in warts and deep ridges; some are elongated and others stumpy. “They’re funky and they’re fun and they’re tasty and they’re crazy and they’re bumpy, and they all have a history behind them,” Condill said. Condill has such a large variety of cucurbits that he has been on “The Martha Stewart Show” three times and decorated for National Trick or Treat at the White House in October 2010. In addition to the many displays of cucurbits are a number of activities for visitors both young and old to enjoy. Klaus Koehne and Amy Birdwell, husband and wife of Mt. Zion, came to The Great Pumpkin Patch on a date, the fourth year they have done so. PATCH, page 5
PHOTOS BY Z ACHARY WHITE | THE DAILY EASTERN NE WS
Grace Crothers, 2, of Sullivan, holds a gourd in the pumpkin patch of The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur. The Great Pumpkin Patch was named the Illinois Agritourism Business of the Year in 2009.
ENROLLMENT
Dean assesses recruiting with maps By Robyn Dexter In-depth Editor
The dean of the Honors College is helping Eastern figure out enrollment and recruiting methods by mapping the region with geographic information systems, better known as GIS. John Stimac, the dean of the Honors College, is part of the Enrollment Worx group and is the chairman for the GIS Map Worx subcommittee. He has been working in accordance with the group to plot out where Eastern applicants and students are from. “GIS is a tool and we’re taking data that we already have and
looking at it in a different light,” he said. “We’re able to look at the data more quickly than if we had to wade through all the numbers.” Through the mapping system, Stimac is able to tell how many people apply to Eastern as opposed to how many actually enroll and where they come from. “We can start to identify hotspots,” he said. “This includes schools, towns, counties and zip code regions that we have the most success in.” The map analysis can also be used for advertising purposes. Stimac said when districts have a decrease in students they send to Eastern, the maps can help plot
“The maps are a good tool to help us look at the data in much finer detail,” he said. John Stimac, dean of the Honors College
what the next course of action is. “The maps are a good tool to help us look at the data in much finer detail,” he said. Stimac can assess what other schools in the area are the greatest competitors with his GIS maps and figure out what regions Eastern needs to target the most. He said right now he is work-
ing to figure out where applicants to Eastern are from in the country. His results have yielded numbers from across the country including the east coast. Stimac works with a program called ArcMap, which he calls “the Microsoft Office of GIS” because it is the main program GIS users use.
ENROLLMENT, page 5
By Joanna Leighton Staff Reporter
Zumba, a popular exercise, will be pairing up with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation this weekend to raise funds for breast cancer research. The Zumbathon Party in Pink will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday in the Student Recreation Center in Lantz Arena. This event costs $2 for people purchasing in advance and $4 at the door. Seventy-five percent of the ticket proceeds will go to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. A hundred percent of the donations will go toward the foundation, as well. This event is open to the public so all people and donations are welcome. The slogan for this year’s Zumbathon is “Moving for a Cure.” Emily Dupuis said the pairing up of Zumba and fundraising for the Susan G. Komen Foundation is great for those who support the foundation to get a great workout, and for those frequent Zumba participants to support a really important organization. Dupuis, a senior family and consumer sciences major, has been teaching Zumba for about two years and said she is excited about this event. She said last year the Zumbathon for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, had more than 150 people in attendance with 300 purchased tickets. This is the second annual Zumbathon, and Dupuis said she hopes more people will attend this year because they have heard of it and may be more willing to attend. “The biggest thing I think I want people to know is that this is a super fun event, where you can come with your friends, dance around, get some exercise and at the same time do something really good and give back to the community,” Dupuis said. Dupuis said they made the tickets inexpensive this year and benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation for things like research, education, screening and treatment programs. She said there is no penalty for not showing up if you buy a ticket in advance; it is still a donation. Not only will participants support the cause, but they will also benefit from the Zumba itself. “I love everything about Zumba,” she said. “Not only does it give me an excuse to shake and shimmy at work, but I get a great workout from it and feel great when I’m done. The most rewarding part is watching all the people in class dancing, laughing, sweating and singing along to the songs right along with me,” she said. Dupuis said her goal in teaching Zumba is not just to give people a workout, but to let them know they can be silly, let loose and feel good about themselves. She said this is a chance for those who’ve had a bad day to forget about it for the 45-minute classes and have an awesome time. “Zumba offers people a sense of empowerment and confidence,” she said. “When they look in the mirror, I want them to think, ‘Hey, I look good.’” Dupuis said she encourages people to come and bring their friends to get a great workout and be entered to win T-shirts. People may come and go as they please throughout the 3 hours of the Zumbathon, she said. “If you take out 30 minutes out of your day, you can come to this charity event and contribute to something that is much bigger than yourself,” Dupuis said. Joanna Leighton can be reached at 581-2812 or jlleighton@eiu.edu.