St. Andrew's Church to kick off fall with annual Pumpkins & Pets event

Oct. 7, 2021 | Sarah Heinonen
sheinonen@thereminder.com

LONGMEADOW - Calling all pets - St. Andrew's Church of Longmeadow is once again hosting its annual fall festival, "Pumpkin and Pets on the Hill" on Oct. 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

"We just want to make it a fun community event, said Rev. Charlotte LaForest, rector of St. Andrew's.

The festival will include craft vendors, themed basket raffles and glitter tattoos. The signature activity, the "Blessing of the Pets," is in honor of St. Francis of Assissi, the patron saint of pets, whose feast day is Oct. 4, LaForest told Reminder Publishing.

"This year is particularly special for us, as we are also kicking off our centennial celebrations, which will continue throughout the year as we commemorate the founding of St. Andrew's right here on this very hill 100 years ago," LaForest shared.

Pumpkin and Pets on the Hill is free and open to the public. Pumpkins, baked goods and a hot lunch will be available for purchase.

Participants at the events are expected to observe safe social distancing practices and wear masks when indoors.

Another benefit of the event, LaForest said, is the opportunity to help the church's community partners share their services with Longmeadow. St. Andrews partners with Acts Tutoring, a faith-based tutoring program that works with Springfield students; Rachel's Table, for whom St. Andrews grew a garden this year; Church Without Walls, which runs an outdoor worship service in Springfield for people experiencing homelessness and Foster MA. The church is in the process of building a "foster closet" to help foster youth and their caregivers with anything they may need for the transition.

St. Andrews Episcopal Church is located at 335 Longmeadow St. and can be reached at 567-5901 for more information. Event updates are also available at https://www.facebook.com/standrewslongmeadow.

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