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COMMUNITY PROFILES

Windsor West Hants Pumpkin Regatta

An interview wih Maureen Dill, April, 2005

"When you are willing to help other community groups, they in turn will help you."

The Pumpkin Regatta began in 1999 when two local ladies were looking for a unique way to enhance Windsor's fall profile by using pumpkins. With Windsor already on the map for tourists as one of the official pumpkin weigh-off sites in North America, they sought the advice of Danny Dill, son of the internationally known pumpkin grower, Howard Dill. Together, Helen Romans, Judi Thompson and Danny Dill gave birth to the idea of carving out giant pumpkins and rowing them across Lake Pezaquid. With five brave citizens and some hollowed-out pumpkins, Windsor hosted their very first Pumpkin Regatta, which attracted 2,000 spectators in its inaugural year.

With the success of the first Regatta, and the media's involvement, the event really began to take off. In 2000, The Pumpkin Regatta partnered with the Windsor Pumpkin Festival organizers to create promotional material. With the help of the Atlantic Pumpkin Growers Association they purchased giant pumpkins for Regatta participants.

Maureen Dill attended her first Regatta in 2000 and was fascinated with the participants, the whole event and the media exposure it was getting. She became a volunteer with The Pumpkin Regatta because she wanted to help out and be a part of this new international craze.

Shortly after Maureen joined forces, a small committee was formed, a website was developed and the event continued to prosper, gaining international recognition and plenty of local support. The Weigh-off organizers and the Regatta organizers began to work collectively with the realization that the Weigh-off and the Regatta events were complimentary. When both the Town of Windsor and the Municipality of West Hants became major sponsors, the committees combined under one name giving birth to the name Windsor-West Hants Pumpkin Festival Society.

Maureen has been President of the Society for the past three years. Some of the accomplishments Maureen has been a part of have included the Niagara Falls Giant Pumpkin Growers Seminar, which invited her to do a presentation on the Regatta in 2004 to over 200 growers. The Windsor-West Hants Pumpkin Regatta won the 2002 Attractions Canada Sporting Event in Edmonton, Alberta. Maureen has also assisted organizations in New Hampshire, the Appalachian Mountains, TN; Oregon; Cooperstown, NY and California with their Pumpkin Weigh-offs and Regattas.

So what is it that drives Maureen to undertake such responsibility? Not only is she energized by the international media coverage, she gets to help other organizations carry on a tradition that was created in "The Little Town of Big Firsts".

Maureen feels that having successful committee meetings, listening to your volunteers, and having international media coverage attributes to the success of the Pumpkin Regatta. Maureen's advice to other non-profit organizations is to “know your volunteers’ capabilities – don't get them to do things that they're not comfortable with or capable of. Know their skills and interests and what it is they want to do. ALWAYS take into consideration what your volunteers have to say – the keyword is LISTEN!”