Erin Hill
Gadsden County News Service
Havana’s downtown streets were filled with families, laughter, and fall colors on Saturday as Havana Main Street celebrated the 25th anniversary of PumpkinFest, one of Gadsden County’s most anticipated annual events.
This year’s festival drew an estimated 4,800 attendees and featured 135 vendors, marking one of the largest turnouts in the event’s history. Suzanne Daniels, who chaired the festival, led a planning effort that took more than three months and involved over 100 volunteers.
Children enjoyed a full day of activities — from a petting zoo and jump houses to pumpkin painting — thanks to sponsorship from the Havana Merchants Association, which also covered admission for children. More than 600 pumpkins were painted throughout the day.
Festivalgoers also gathered to watch contests hosted by MC Cameron Paul, who kept the crowd entertained during the popular costume and pie-eating contests.
In the Costume Contest, the royal titles went to Queen Mackenzie Palmer and King Nolan Exline. Age-group winners included:
- Ages 0–5: 1st Katy Rose Exline; 2nd Michael Hill Jr.; 3rd Marina Howell
- Ages 6–10: 1st Briar Ragans; 2nd Mackenzie Palmer; 3rd Montgomery Milligan
- Ages 11–15: 1st Saraya Rowley; 2nd Jessie Quaney; 3rd McKenzie Mann
- Ages 16+: 1st Kaitlyn Palmer; 2nd Mitch Gans; 3rd Sophie Foe
In the Pie Eating Contest, winners were April Qoijano (ages 0–10), Adam Reep (ages 11–16), and Felicity Rosier (ages 17+).
The Scarecrow Contest, a PumpkinFest favorite, awarded People’s Choice honors to the 4-H Saddle Club for their individual entry “A Horse and Two Kids” and to Havana Fuel Company for their commercial creation “The Twerker.”
Organizers called this year’s milestone celebration “a tremendous success” and praised the dedication of volunteers and community partners who made it possible.
