WDACS Pumpkin Ball

  • WDACS has held 46 Annual Pumpkin Balls
  • The event is made possible by our caring and giving community
  • WDACS has raised over $600,000  through our auction event and last year’s donor drive
  • The Pumpkin Ball fully funded our recent construction of an accessible home
  • The event has provided opportunity to purchase several accessible vehicles over the decades
  • In 2020, Pumpkin Ball donations supported us to purchase AEDs for each of our sites and also supported necessary renovations in our homes.
  • And in 2021, your donations allowed for a retro-fit of our garage for our accessible van and for our ramp leading from the garage to the individual’s home

Due to COVID-19, we moved to an online auction in 2020 and have put our 47th Annual Pumpkin Ball on hold until the pandemic is behind us. In 2021, we focused on safety first and held a donor drive. Now in 2022, with community transmission of COVID increasing again, we will be holding another donor drive. One of our older accessible vans has recently surpassed its useful life and was salvaged. As community access is an imperative, we are asking for donations to support the purchase of another accessible van.

What is the Pumpkin Ball ?

Our signature event, the Annual Pumpkin Ball, has a history of selling out and selling big and has a 46-year history!

Gerald Zimmerman has donated his auctioneering services for more than 30 years in support of WDACS and Leighton Sorenson has partnered with Gerald at our Pumpkin Ball for close to 20 years. Between the two of them, they make the ‘show’.

Highly skilled and wildly entertaining, this event is not to be missed. In the last 10 years alone, they helped us raise close to 585K – unbelievable talent and generosity from Gerald and Leighton and from our community.

Below, are two of our most recent funding goals and successes:

We believe it is fair to say that the way a community or society treats the most vulnerable reveals the quality and heart of that society. We are grateful for the support our community has provided us for more than 57 years. It is through community service and support, that our lives are all enriched. Our 45th Pumpkin Ball held in 2019, was our most successful event in its storied history. Raising more than $73, 000, made possible the purchase of this accessible van.

If you are new to the Pumpkin Ball and wondering how we were able to raise so much money to support our community services, look at this small sampling of pumpkins we have previously sold. Some of these pumpkins were made by hand, including the amazing truck, rocking horse and Monopoly character, while others were hand painted.