Children lined up more than a block outside of the entrance to the Pumpkinfest, waiting for the event to begin. Many people got to the event more than two hours early. Photo by Noel Mabile.
KINGMAN — Mohave Community College (MCC) held its annual Pumpkinfest on October 25. The MCC Neal campus, located in Kingman, has held the event for at least three decades, or as long as any staff member can remember.
The Pumpkinfest is quite notable to the Kingman community as thousands come to the free event every year. In 2023, about 2,700 families attended the Pumpkinfest, and around 3,500 attended in 2022. It is known around the campus that many families will begin to line up for the event up to two hours before the school opens the event to the public.
Once the Pumpkinfest opens up, families will travel through the outside of the Halloween-decorated school, stopping along the way at various tables to pick up candy. Many of the college’s clubs and programs host tables. Science Club, Art Club E-Sports, and Welding as well as other programs attended the event. There are many stops with games for children to play, as well as a couple of relatively new additions to the Pumpkinfest.
As of last year, MCC has been hosting a hay ride, where people are able to ride through the back trails of the college.
The Mohave County Library comes to the school to aid in the Pumpkinfest. Children and families are given the opportunity to sign up for free online tutoring as well as free online books when they sign up for the library for free. The library also hosts a corner at the college where they will read Halloween books to families during the Pumpkinfest.
Noel Mabile
