Christina, who runs the division of waste and recycling for the Springfield Public Works Department, said the city held its fifth annual Pumpkin Smash at the Beach House Saturday morning, combining a family activity with waste-diversion services and community outreach.

"All the pumpkins get composted after this. Everything goes back to the earth. This way, it's not filling up the landfill," Christina said, explaining that collected pumpkins are sent to Evans Recycling for composting. The event also included an affordable on-site shredding service for residents who wanted to securely dispose of old documents.

Organizers teamed with the Central Illinois Food Bank to collect canned goods at the event. Christina encouraged attendees to drop donations while they visited other stations, and volunteers collected items from trunks or back seats brought to the Beach House. An attendee noted local concern about food assistance programs, saying, "We hate that SNAP has ended."

The event also featured a "touch a truck" exhibit with city garbage, fire and police vehicles and participation from Mayor's Youth Council volunteers. Organizers said the activities are meant to draw families to Center Park and to promote future events; an organizer said they expect to return to Center Park next year with multiple activities.

The Pumpkin Smash serves both as a community festival and as an outreach effort to promote composting and recycling services offered by the Public Works Department. No formal votes or policy actions were taken at the event.

Details: pumpkins are composted via Evans Recycling; the Central Illinois Food Bank accepted canned goods; an affordable document-shredding service was provided on site.

The city encouraged residents to watch for postings about next year's events at Center Park.