CHCO-TV NewsBreak26 with Vicki Hogarth and Nathalie Sturgeon: October 15, 2024

The Charlotte County Pumpkin Festival at Kingsbrae Garden kicked off Thanksgiving weekend in style on Sunday, marking its 9th edition of the beloved autumn event with a record turnout. Over 900 locals and visitors gathered to celebrate fall with festive activities including a scavenger hunt, pumpkin decorating, face painting, and a giant pumpkin weight guessing contest.

Vicki Hogarth and Nathalie Sturgeon – Local Journalism Initiative

The highly anticipated pumpkin pie eating contest, featuring pies made by Chef Alex Haughn and his team, saw participants of all ages compete to finish as much pie as possible. This year’s champion was 14-year-old Sir James Dunn Academy student Alex Velazquez who told CHCO-TV that the secret to winning is to focus on consuming as much of the dense pie filling as possible.

"When I looked at the pie, I realized it was just a normal pie and if I ate the filling first, that would be the easy part," said Velazquez.

For all those curious as to whether Alex ate a turkey dinner after winning the pie eating contest, you might be relieved to know he celebrated Thanksgiving on Monday, allowing himself a day's buffer between binges. 

Hundreds of festival goers also attempted to correctly guess the weight of this year's giant pumpkin, which came from Charles and Gail Ebbett's famous pumpkin patch in Stickney, Nova Scotia. Alison Sanchez came closest to winning the pumpkin weight guessing contest, coming within 2 pounds of the 883-pound giant.

As this beloved annual tradition of celebrating the fall season at Kingsbrae Garden continues to grow in popularity, next year’s 10th Annual Charlotte County Pumpkin Festival promises to be even more special.

Plans for Temporary Homeless Shelter in St. Stephen in the Works for Winter 2024-25

The Province of New Brunswick has informed St. Stephen’s council that it’s working on establishing a temporary winter shelter for those in need. Responding to a resident’s question at a recent council meeting, Chief Administrative Officer Jeff Renaud shared that no formal announcements will be made until after the election. He read from a Department of Social Development email stating that plans are underway for an “out-of-the-cold” shelter by December 1, with post-election communications to follow.

St. Stephen currently has approximately 100 homeless individuals. Mayor Allan MacEachern emphasized the urgency of action, noting that delays in decisions from officials make addressing the issue difficult. In December 2023, the town had declared a state of emergency over homelessness, though it was later rescinded by Public Safety.

PC candidate Kathy Bokus confirmed that the shelter is planned for this winter, but MacEachern criticized the timing, expressing frustration over delays that leave people vulnerable.