
STIRLING – If you happen to be one of the many Pro One Stop customers or if you have recently driven by this popular convenience store in the village of Stirling, you have undoubtedly caught a glimpse of the oversized pumpkin sitting out front. It’s hard to miss, as it sits alongside all the regular-sized pumpkins offered for sale at the Pro. But what can you possibly do with such an enormous pumpkin that has grown to such a size that it has dwarfed all others in the pumpkin patch? Well I suppose if you had nothing better to do for a week or so, you could bake a few dozen pies.
But Mike Kerby, the man who owns the pumpkin patch (Hollowview Farms in Ivanhoe) where such giant pumpkins grow, had a much better idea. “We have one or two of these bizarre giants every year,” Kirby explained, “and it was five or six years ago that we first approached Min and Julie, here at the Pro One Stop, with the idea of holding a guess-the-weight-of-the-pumpkin contest as a way to raise money for the Stirling Food Bank.”
And so it is that each October, for the past half-dozen years, Kerby has donated the largest of his crop to Min and Julie to be the centerpiece of this fun-filled guessing game. “This year’s pumpkin is not the largest we’ve ever had,” explained Julie, “but it’s a still fairly good size and should provide more than a decent challenge plus a whole lot of fun for anyone who thinks they can guess the weight.”
The giant pumpkin will sit outside the Pro One Stop for the next two weeks, so that all customers, with a keen eye and a bit of luck, can choose to participate in this fun-filled, Halloween challenge.
“The winning guess,” explained Julie, “will be the one that comes closest to the actual weight without going over. Each guess costs a Toonie and you can get three guesses for five dollars. It’s a fifty-fifty contest, with half the proceeds going to our local Food Bank and half to the lucky person with the winning guess.”
Mike Kerby of Hollowview Farms is the only person who knows the exact weight of the extra-large pumpkin and he has been sworn to secrecy and apparently, will not accept a bribe. Kerby will be on site at the Pro One Stop, on Sunday October 27 at 3 p.m. to disclose the actual weight and to declare the winner.
“It’s always a whole lot of fun for everybody who takes part,” added Julie, “but the real winner will be our Food Bank. We’re happy to be able to help and we’re so fortunate to be living in such a caring community.”