Parktoberfest, an event promoting the celebration of fall, was arranged by the Grand Forks Park District. The event took place this past Monday, October 7. At University Park, where Parktoberfest was hosted, attendees were met with live music, food and drink vendors, autumn activities, yard games, an inflatable obstacle course and bounce houses, and horse-drawn rides. 

Lynne Roche, the Grand Forks Park District’s recreation and special events manager, began organizing events for the Grand Forks Park District in 1997. Since then, Roche has coordinated events such as Knight for a Princess, Santa Village, and Parktoberfest. 

“It’s great,” Roche said. “The little girls will say, ‘I know you, you’re the princess lady.’ Yep, that’s it.” 

Before Parktoberfest, Roche put together a different fall-themed party, the Black Cat Bash, where attendees encountered spooky stories, crafts, and games. 

“I used to do the Black Cat Bash that was, basically, come in, fill up your bag with candy, and run around. I thought, ‘That’s what everybody’s doing,” Roche said. “I decided to try it out in the park, do a pumpkin painting and s’mores, and get people out to enjoy fall a little bit.” 

Originally, Parktoberfest was supposed to take place in the last week of September, but after rescheduling due to windy-weather conditions, the second-annual Parktoberfest commenced at 5 p.m. with the help of the University of North Dakota’s Physical Therapy Department and football team. 

“I do not really have a staff in the winter. So, it was me against the world,” Roche said. “I really depend on volunteers, which I so appreciate. It is vital in making something work.” 

As participants entered University Park, they were faced with Herlof Huso’s, an 11-year-old musician, performance as he sang and strummed his guitar. 

“It’s amazing to me that he has the confidence to get up in front of people,” Roche said. 

In addition to Huso’s performance, people had the opportunity to paint pumpkins. 

“I love to see them get creative with the pumpkins,” Roche said. “It’s funny, we had some that were really good and some that just had slopped-on paint.” 

A few organizations, Women’s Way, Adults Adopting Special Kids, Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition, and Blue Zone Project, set up tables to raise awareness of their efforts. 

“I believe that’s important, and a lot of people don’t know about it. So, I love to give them a platform,” Roche said. “Whoever wants to come, I’m open with it. As long as they interact with the people, that’s perfect.” 

Between the performance, pumpkin painting, and a showing of Beetlejuice, Roche estimates about 600 people showed up to Parktoberfest. 

“I love to see families working together. It gives them something to do that is not running to the grocery store or shopping. [It’s] you’re going to paint the pumpkin together,” Roche said. “One little girl was not leaving, she was staying. So, it’s things that they maybe don’t have the opportunity to do.” 

Dylan Campbell is a Dakota Student General Reporter. He can be reached at [email protected].