Pumpkin carnage filled the parking lot at Meadow View Growers in New Carlisle on Saturday, Oct. 24  as young and old alike had a smashing good time supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month at the business’s first ever “Smash Cancer Day.”

The event’s coordinator, Debbie Campbell, explained that folks taking part in Smash Cancer Day could purchase pumpkins and then destroy them with the giant “Smash-O-Matic” hammer. Pumpkins could also be purchased and decorated instead. Proceeds from the pumpkin sales benefited “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.” The local food trucks, Pa’s Pork Fusion, McNasty’s, and Ginniebug Creations were also a highlight of the event and had their specialties available for purchase throughout the day.

According to Campbell, Meadow View Growers tries hard to take an active interest in the community. The reason they support Strides Against Breast Cancer is because the disease has touched the lives of many Meadow View employees and New Carlisle’s community members.

Some participants were surprised that smashing pumpkins was harder than they thought it would be. One young participant commented, “It was weird and fun to hit a pumpkin with the big hammer, but the pumpkin was really hard to smash because it rolled a lot when I hit it.” Campbell thinks the difficulty people had smashing pumpkins is symbolic of how hard the fight has been against breast cancer; but Campbell also believes that, like the pumpkins, supporting fundraising events like the Smash Cancer Day, “will eventually help crush the disease.”

For more information about Meadow View Growers’ upcoming fundraisers and events, stop by the store or go online to http://meadowview.com/calendar/.