Haskell Carves Out Fun at Annual Halloween Carnival

On Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025, the Haskell Student Activities Department hosted a Halloween Pumpkin Carving Contest in the course of the annual Halloween Carnival. From 6 to 8pm, members of the campus and Lawrence neighborhood gathered in Tecumseh Hall to take part in numerous spooky-themed video games and festivities. 

According to Recreation Assistant Leandra Galindo, the pumpkin carving contest was judged on creativity. Exactly 19 college students registered for this yr’s contest, which in response to Galindo, is the best variety of pupil members ever recorded. The pumpkins have been bought from Checkers, a domestically owned grocery retailer right here in Lawrence. The pumpkin carving kits have been just a little more durable to return by. According to Galindo, she needed to go to two  totally different Walmarts in a devoted hunt for instruments. 

Fun truth: The custom of pumpkin carving initially comes from Irish folklore. Long in the past, an Irish man named Stingy Jack tried to trick the spirits of the afterlife and was compelled to roam the Earth ceaselessly with a glowing carved turnip to information his method dwelling. As time went on, the Irish folks began carving scary faces into turnips and leaving them exterior their properties to push back the wandering spirit of Stingy Jack. Once Irish immigrants got here to the United States, they substituted the turnips for pumpkins and now, pumpkin carving is a Halloween custom. 

To embrace this custom, Haskell college students drew upon their creativity and carved pumpkins with themes like Lightning McQueen, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Jurassic Park, and extra. Ultimately, Trina Tsinnie took dwelling first place with the wendigo-skinwalker-owl themed pumpkin. Second place went to Jaivin Bad Bear with the reasonable painted eyeball pumpkin. And lastly, third place went to Niyan Washburn with the inexperienced painted turtle pumpkin. Congratulations to all winners!