“The efforts to mitigate the spread of COVID really disrupted children’s lives, and they’re paying the price,” Dr. Lynn Bufka said. Dark green pumpkins have probably been made to present that way genetically. In color psychology, black can symbolize a lot of different things including mystery, power, sophistication, and of course, death. In the context of Halloween, black is most often meant to signify darkness, death and generally spooky vibes. “Pumpkins are ripe for the picking in one single month of the year and October coincided with Samhain,” energy healers Emily and Jessica Leung ofLove Twintuitivesexplain of the Gaelic holiday.
Pumpkins have become the heart of many grassroots awareness campaigns and fundraising efforts. Ultimately, they’re a simple way for you and your family to get involved with causes that touch seemingly everyone in your community. Read through some of the most popular campaigns launched over the last decade, and meet the families that are inspiring thousands to create pumpkin-filled displays with purpose. A blue candy bucket may inform others that the child is on the autism spectrum.
So, different colored pumpkins offer alerts to both parents and neighbors to help ensure all the district’s kiddos have a great — and safe — night out. In 2020, purple pumpkins appeared on many porches across the U.S. as a way to help raise safety awareness during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the fall season arrives, orange pumpkins tend to be on store shelves and growing in patches everywhere. Although orange is the most popular, there are several other pumpkin colors to discover.
White pumpkins are called Casper pumpkins—aptly named for your favorite friendly ghost! Like porcelain doll pumpkins and Australian Blues, Casper’s aren’t exactly ideal for carving jack-o-lanterns, but they sure do look pretty. One of encantada meaning the oldest pumpkin varieties grown in the U.S., Long Island Cheese pumpkins also contain edible seeds and can be used in pumpkin pie recipes, too. “Blue pumpkins are tied to the throat chakra and communication center,” Leung says.
Teal pumpkins to indicate that their house is food-allergen friendly, and that non-food treats such as glow stick or stickers will be given out to trick-or-treaters instead of food – which some kids might not be able to eat. If you see a child carrying a blue pumpkin bucket to collect candy, it may signify the child is on the autism spectrum. According to Newsweek, this unofficial initiative started last year with Alicia Plumer’s viral post. She’s the mother of a child with autism and was inspired by the Teal Pumpkin Project.
To her, this “pure and sweet pumpkin” symbolized her daughter, Madelyn Grace, who she lost at 38 weeks pregnant. The next evening, she spelled out her feelings in a poem, “The White Pumpkin,” and shared it on her personal Facebook page. It didn’t take long for her words to extend beyond her circle — her poem racked up nearly 900 comments and 11,000 shares.
Laura says she’d started out by highlighting limitations due to speech apraxia, but quickly realized that her goal was to ensure that any child could participate in neighborhood activities without being slighted. “There is a wide range of disabilities, and I wanted it to help anyone that might need just a little help.” It’s not sponsored by a large nonprofit, nor is it as well-known as all the other campaigns on this list, but yellow pumpkin displays may be the most effective at inspiring immediate change. Thinking twice about how you open your home to trick-or-treaters is exactly what Laura Slatter wants you to do after witnessing a traumatic exchange involving her three-year-old son Levi on his first Halloween in 2016. This year, Halloween falls on Sunday a.k.a. the third most dangerous night for the holiday. Like many others, Zacky showed signs of an overzealous immune system as an infant, developing anaphylactic reactions as a first grader — peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, shellfish and legumes proved potentially deadly without the use of an EpiPen.
Pleasant Valley Greenhouse & Nursery, Inc. donates pumpkins, whereas volunteers donate their time and decorating skills. The Pink Pumpkin Project has sold 8,000 pumpkins in the last 10 years, donating 100% of the proceeds to women and families in their surrounding area. Purple Pumpkins were originally started by thePurple Pumpkin Projectwhich began as a way to raise awareness for epilepsy. If you see a home that has a purple pumpkin displayed, it could mean either that someone who lives there has the condition or they know how to respond to an epileptic seizure. Though the quintessential symbol for Halloween and fall has historically been an orange pumpkin, this harvest-time squash has come in all colors, shapes and sizes since before the Sanderson sisters were born (hatched?).
A teal pumpkin on a doorstep signals that the homeowner offers non-food trinkets and treats that are safe for all trick-or-treaters. Children with food allergies may carry around a teal pumpkin pail to let grown-ups know of their condition. While trick or treating seems like a holiday tailor-made for all kids, Click on Detroit reminds us not all children have a positive reaction to candy and costumes.
“It’s kind of staggering that more people live with epilepsy than multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, Parkinson’s and ALS, combined,” says Erin, who hopes that children will one day have access to a cure. FARE asks families to provide non-edible treats on Halloween night, alongside displaying a teal pumpkin — but for Priscilla, the real reward is educating her neighbors throughout the fall season. “Almost all of my neighbors have learned about the realities of food allergies as a result of us simply putting up our display, which is really neat,” she says. After organizing her first display in 2012, she can’t help but notice how many teal pumpkins have cropped up on her street, neighborhood and into the greater Los Angeles area.