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Fred Rhodes takes a saw to a piece of the nearly 200-pound pumpkin he and brother Roger Rhodes delivered and carved up last week at the Winston Senior Center. Fred Rhodes grew the giant gourd in his garden and gave it away for holiday cooking material.
“If we cut it in half, the two of us can lift one side,” Roger Rhodes told his brother, Frank, as they unloaded a toolbox that would be more fitting on the set of a horror movie than inside the Winston Senior Center.
The Roseburg men worked last week to unload, cut, and carve a nearly 200-pound pumpkin in what senior center member Nancy Tisdale called a “climax of giving.” A recently retired Roseburg resident, Frank Rhodes loves to fiddle in his garden, he said, but he has become so good at it, he can't eat all that he grows. So he and his brother take turns dropping off excess produce at local food banks and at the center.
“(They) bring in food and set up crates and make it available for any senior that wants to come up and take what they needed,” Tisdale said. “The amount they have brought in is astounding.”
This donation required a little more work. Saws and knives of various shapes and sizes began to slowly take apart a pumpkin so large the two men had a difficult time maneuvering just half of it. As soon as chunks were small enough to fit into plastic grocery bags they were delivered to seniors with a smile and a handshake.
“I have never seen (a pumpkin) that big in my life. Maybe on TV but never in real life,” Marge Ryan, a member of the senior center, said. “I am telling you, I don't know how they grow it that big.”
Frank Rhodes said his secret begins with a giant pumpkin he picked up last year during his travels as a long-haul trucker. It was about 90 pounds, he said, and made for a giant jack-o-lantern for his 7-year-old grandson. He saved a few of its seeds, germinated them in a pot until they sprouted, and then moved the stocks into his garden. From there he watered the plants three times a day and doused them with Miracle Grow twice a week. Several pumpkins began to grow, but one really stood out in size.
“I thought I would just see how big it could get,” he said.
Neighborhood kids began to stop by and gawk at the giant gourd. Soon enough, the 197-pounder was ready to harvest.
The brothers said they chose to give this particular pumpkin to the senior center because many members are on fixed incomes and can't afford any extra expenses for holiday cooking. They hope the seniors will take some and use it for the upcoming Thanksgiving feast or just for a little extra treat.
Center member Emily Jansen said she was going to bake her pumpkin slice like a squash, cooking it in the oven and serving it with butter and brown sugar. Ryan was a little less sure of her plan, simply saying she was going to “eat it,” as she tossed around the idea of sharing her slice.
“That will last me awhile,” Ryan said. “I betcha I can find a microwave recipe.”
One thing both women could agree on was their thankfulness for the generosity of the Rhodes brothers. Jansen said they were “top of the line,” and especially appreciated them making their weekly bingo game smell like Thanksgiving came early as they carved the pumpkin.
But, for the Rhodes', the donation made more sense than keeping it around.
“What am I going to do with a 200-pound pumpkin?” Frank Rhodes laughed. “People who know me know I never let anything go to waste.”
He said he has been interested in gardening since he took an agriculture class at Roseburg High School in the late 1940s. His teacher, Frank said, would travel to his home and make sure he was taking proper care of his plants and animals. When he retired, his hobby grew and now features a water drip system and numerous fruits and vegetables. Roger Rhodes said his brother wakes up at the break of dawn each day to water, weed and otherwise tend to his prized garden.
Frank Rhodes said he takes what he can eat, cans a little extra, and takes the rest to where it can best be used.
“God has allowed me to be plentiful,” Frank Rhodes said. “He has given me more than I need, so I'll share it.”
• You can reach reporter Heather Morse at 957-4208 or by e-mail at hmorse@nrtoday.com.
The Roseburg men worked last week to unload, cut, and carve a nearly 200-pound pumpkin in what senior center member Nancy Tisdale called a “climax of giving.” A recently retired Roseburg resident, Frank Rhodes loves to fiddle in his garden, he said, but he has become so good at it, he can't eat all that he grows. So he and his brother take turns dropping off excess produce at local food banks and at the center.
“(They) bring in food and set up crates and make it available for any senior that wants to come up and take what they needed,” Tisdale said. “The amount they have brought in is astounding.”
This donation required a little more work. Saws and knives of various shapes and sizes began to slowly take apart a pumpkin so large the two men had a difficult time maneuvering just half of it. As soon as chunks were small enough to fit into plastic grocery bags they were delivered to seniors with a smile and a handshake.
“I have never seen (a pumpkin) that big in my life. Maybe on TV but never in real life,” Marge Ryan, a member of the senior center, said. “I am telling you, I don't know how they grow it that big.”
Frank Rhodes said his secret begins with a giant pumpkin he picked up last year during his travels as a long-haul trucker. It was about 90 pounds, he said, and made for a giant jack-o-lantern for his 7-year-old grandson. He saved a few of its seeds, germinated them in a pot until they sprouted, and then moved the stocks into his garden. From there he watered the plants three times a day and doused them with Miracle Grow twice a week. Several pumpkins began to grow, but one really stood out in size.
“I thought I would just see how big it could get,” he said.
Neighborhood kids began to stop by and gawk at the giant gourd. Soon enough, the 197-pounder was ready to harvest.
The brothers said they chose to give this particular pumpkin to the senior center because many members are on fixed incomes and can't afford any extra expenses for holiday cooking. They hope the seniors will take some and use it for the upcoming Thanksgiving feast or just for a little extra treat.
Center member Emily Jansen said she was going to bake her pumpkin slice like a squash, cooking it in the oven and serving it with butter and brown sugar. Ryan was a little less sure of her plan, simply saying she was going to “eat it,” as she tossed around the idea of sharing her slice.
“That will last me awhile,” Ryan said. “I betcha I can find a microwave recipe.”
One thing both women could agree on was their thankfulness for the generosity of the Rhodes brothers. Jansen said they were “top of the line,” and especially appreciated them making their weekly bingo game smell like Thanksgiving came early as they carved the pumpkin.
But, for the Rhodes', the donation made more sense than keeping it around.
“What am I going to do with a 200-pound pumpkin?” Frank Rhodes laughed. “People who know me know I never let anything go to waste.”
He said he has been interested in gardening since he took an agriculture class at Roseburg High School in the late 1940s. His teacher, Frank said, would travel to his home and make sure he was taking proper care of his plants and animals. When he retired, his hobby grew and now features a water drip system and numerous fruits and vegetables. Roger Rhodes said his brother wakes up at the break of dawn each day to water, weed and otherwise tend to his prized garden.
Frank Rhodes said he takes what he can eat, cans a little extra, and takes the rest to where it can best be used.
“God has allowed me to be plentiful,” Frank Rhodes said. “He has given me more than I need, so I'll share it.”
• You can reach reporter Heather Morse at 957-4208 or by e-mail at hmorse@nrtoday.com.
