Paws & Pumpkins Festival: A New Tradition Rooted in Compassion

At The Woods Park & Pavilion, the changing leaves don’t just signal the end of summer — they mark a beginning.

This October, we’re writing a brand-new chapter in our story: our first-ever Paws & Pumpkins Festival, a fall celebration that’s about more than games, costumes, or candy. It’s about community. It’s about hope. And it’s about the lives that depend on both.

For many years now, others have rented The Woods to host seasonal events — but this year, it’s our turn to bring that magic home. The Woods and Homeless to Home Animal Rescue & Cat Sanctuary are creating something truly our own — a festival that blends autumn fun with the heart of rescue work, turning every laugh, raffle ticket, and pumpkin into a chance for change.

Why We Celebrate

At its core, Paws & Pumpkins isn’t just a festival — it’s a reminder of why we do what we do. Every day, Homeless to Home cares for cats who have been abandoned, forgotten, or left behind. Some come to us sick, some afraid, and some simply out of chances. The funds raised at the Paws & Pumpkins Festival will help us give them what every animal deserves — food, safety, and a second chance to be loved.

When we imagined hosting our own fall event for the first time, we knew it had to reflect that same spirit of kindness and connection that drives our work all year long. We wanted to create a space where families could gather, laugh, and give back — where doing good feels as natural as autumn air.

What You’ll Experience

On Saturday, October 18, from 3–8 PM, The Woods will come alive with the sights, sounds, and scents of the season.

There will be craft vendors, food trucks, festival games, a raffle basket giveaway, and our first-ever Trunk-or-Treat, where local businesses and families will decorate their car trunks for little ghosts and goblins to explore.

Children can test their aim at the game booths or take a turn inside the event’s most talked-about attraction — a bounce house shaped like the Harding Memorial, a playful nod to Marion’s own history and its presidential roots. With its Roman-style columns and gothic charm, it fits perfectly into the season’s mix of spooky and whimsical.

Every corner of the park will hum with life: the scent of caramel and cinnamon in the air, the laughter of families, and the quiet joy of volunteers who helped make it all possible.

And as the day begins to fade, that’s when the spooky season magic truly awakens.

When the sun dips low and shadows stretch across the trees, The Woods transforms. Warm lights flicker through the craft booths, strings of amber bulbs wind along the paths, and the soft glow of lanterns shimmers on the leaves. Games sparkle beneath the lights, conversations drift through the evening air, and a color-changing fire pit at the center of it all pulses from orange to violet to blue — painting the night in shifting hues of autumn warmth and wonder.

It’s the kind of magic that doesn’t come from special effects or stage lights — it comes from people. From a community choosing to gather, to care, and to make a difference together.

🐾 So, mark your calendars for Saturday, October 18, from 3–8 PM and come see what happens when compassion takes center stage.