Mother, Anna Lee Brevard, had lived in Circleville, Ohio since about 1950 and had seen the Pumpkin Show parades every year. She had helped many times with preparations like when the Girl Scouts and Brownie troops walked in the parades and she helped her children get ready. When I was Miss Circleville in 1966 she was instrumental in finding me a car from the Moats car dealership to ride on the front of during the parade.  She also helped any student who asked and many times put in hours when her church had a float in the parade. So it only seemed fitting when she was 80 and had never been in the parade herself to let her have this thrill. Mom was so willing to carry our dog, Chief Jack, in the pet parade. She said she couldn’t walk that far so we used a wheel chair from Hands For The Disabled, bless their hearts! And since some of Mom’s heritage is Indian it all seemed appropriate. We all dressed up as an Indian tribe and took turns pushing her. She waved to every student as she saw them and was extremely proud to be a part of the Circleville Pumpkin Show. She came in second place as I remember, to boot!

Here are a couple of her favorite Pumpkin Show recipes.

   This pumpkin soup is like a bisque. It’s so smooth and creamy and the delicate taste of pumpkin is perfect. Top with sour cream and add a touch of sherry if you dare. This recipe came from the page 51 from the Pumpkin Show cook book printed in 1975.