By ReAnn Cappel and Diana Perkins

Pumpkin Roll sales are coming to a close, with the official bake dates as November 9-10, 2012.

The Pumpkin Roll fundraiser began 12 years ago, and to-date, is the agency’s most popular fundraiser.  When the fundraiser started in 2000, the group decided to take orders for the delicious dessert and initially made about 133 rolls.

What began with a handful of volunteers baking and packing a few rolls, for a few hours at the Methodist Church, has grown significantly.  In Atlantic, “Friends of the Family” members limit their orders to 400 rolls; however, according to Wendy Richter, Director of Victim Services – Family Crisis Support Network, “Every year there’s a waiting list, and almost every year we make each and every roll ordered, which one year exceeded 450 rolls.”

Making over 400 pumpkin rolls in 17 hours takes a lot of work.  Isla Stuetelberg, Volunteer Coordinator for the event said, “My duty is to line up all the workers and assign them a job. I usually have 90 volunteers for both days, splitting them up between six shifts.”

Not only is lining up volunteers for the pumpkin rolls a chore, so is making sure that all the supplies are there. Aaron Siggins, Board Member and Bakery Manager at Hy-Vee has been in charge of ordering supplies for several years. Siggins said, “We usually have to order a week in advance to make sure that we get the correct amount we need. We will be ordering from 3 different Hy-Vee and Hy-Vee subsidiary warehouses this year.

The Pumpkin Roll fundraiser was initiated to raise funds for a good cause but also to give people something to do.  “Well, many individuals want to help out our cause, but not necessarily do direct service work,” said Richter. “Direct service is working at the shelter, answering the crisis lines, or even attending court.  But due to the regulations and training that’s required for direct service work, a lot of people just can’t commit that much time.”  Instead, “Friends” organizers came up with a way for people to volunteer without having to go through the training.

Other activities that “Friends” members can participate in might be mowing, cleaning gutters or snow removal at one of the agency’s facilities, making calls to legislators during the legislative session regarding bills that might apply to the mission of the agency.

Why all the work?  According to Connie Griffin, Shelter Coordinator, “The funds assist Family Crisis in many ways.  One example is if a family needs to relocate, we can help with the purchase of a bus ticket and care packages to take with them.  The funds have also been used to purchase items for the shelter such as the appliances. The pumpkin roll funds are used to cover the expenses that are not covered by any other funding source, but allow us to continue to offer services to our clients.”

For those of you that haven’t yet tried one, Jacque Wickey, a long time purchaser and seller of the rolls says, “They are delicious! They last for a long time in the freezer and make for a quick dessert.” A Pumpkin Roll is a dessert roll made of a pumpkin cake that is rolled around a cream cheese/frosting filling and contain nuts.  The Rolls are a great treat that can be used for the holidays in the winter, or may even be kept frozen for up to 4 months for use at springtime gatherings.   Rolls cost $12 each and can be cut to serve 8 – 12 people.

Orders placed at this time will be put on a waiting list but cannot be guaranteed. To place an order, call (712) 243-6615.