There sat a large pumpkin with the Evangelical Covenant Church logo carved into its side. No one knew who had put it there, but the work was the subject of much animated conversation.
“It was fun” listening to the comments, says Tom Dewey, revealed now for the first time to be the artist.
“I was carving some pumpkins of the Vikings and the Twins for my grandkids, and I had a pumpkin left over,” Dewey says. “I do a little wood carving, and I’ve done the Covenant logo several times, so I thought I would do it on the pumpkin.
“It was a spur of the moment practical joke kind of thing,” says Dewey. “I did it on Saturday night and slipped it into the narthex on Sunday morning.”
Taking some liberty with scripture to add humor to the occasion, Dewey crafted this message: “And it came to pass that the word of Hezekiah came by voice mail, saying, ‘Let there be a Narthex Pumpkin placed at the Welcome Center for all to see.’ And after that day, Pumpkin Pie became a Thanksgiving Ebenezer, and was tasted throughout the land forever.”
The actual carving went quickly, he says. “I had the image of the logo on my computer. I printed out the size I wanted and taped it on the pumpkin to use as an outline.” Carving the logo on the pumpkin was “a lot easier on the hands” than on the wood, Dewey notes.
Dewey and his wife, Joan, have attended the Bloomington church since 1970. To see a photo of the Dewey family, visit Pumpkin Carver.
