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🎃 The Great Pumpkin Heist

Last week, it was apples. This week, it’s pumpkins. At this rate, central Ohio might not make it to Thanksgiving with any produce left.

In Pickerington, farmer Terry Dunlap of Sam’s Pumpkin Patch showed up to his field to find roughly 300 pumpkins, worth over $6,000, gone. Every single one. All that was left was one lonely pumpkin and a whole lot of heartbreak. “I was sick,” Dunlap said. “Physically. I mean, just overwhelming.”

These weren’t your run-of-the-mill porch pumpkins, either. They were the size of bushel baskets, with stems “as long as your arm.” In other words, the Cadillacs of the pumpkin world, and someone made off with all of them.

Dunlap’s theory? The thieves had a getaway route right onto Route 33. After months of work keeping the crop healthy, he’s now installed a fence and some cameras, because apparently, pumpkin season now requires the security of Fort Knox.

He’s not the only victim, either. Puffy’s Pumpkins, east of Circleville, had its entire front display cleaned out overnight last week. The thieves didn’t even bother with subtlety. They just took everything. “It’s easy prey, easy money,” Dunlap said, as if describing a convenience store robbery instead of a pumpkin patch.

And yet, in true Midwestern fashion, Dunlap decided to turn the mess into something good. Instead of asking for donations, he told people to double their generosity and give the money to a local food bank or charity instead. “That makes me happy,” he said.

It’s a classic Ohio story: a little crime, a little heartbreak, and a lot of community spirit. Still, it does raise the question, who exactly is buying discount pumpkins in bulk out of the back of a truck?

So, as you sip your pumpkin spice latte this fall, take a moment to appreciate it. Somewhere in Fairfield County, Terry Dunlap is rebuilding his patch, one stolen stem at a time.

Scarlet Letter Trivia

Question: How many pounds of pumpkins did Ohio Produce in 2023?
A. 300 million
B. 800 million
C. 650 million
D. 9 million

⚖️ The Great Buckeye Deflection Plan

Last week, the OnlyInCbus team met with Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein to talk about something you don’t often hear in criminal justice circles: a plan that might actually reduce crime. It’s called the Buckeye Deflection Plan, a pilot program aimed at cutting down on petty theft by addressing the root causes behind it, poverty, addiction, and mental health.

Here’s how it works: when someone is caught stealing low-value items out of desperation, instead of being tossed straight into the court system, they’re deflected into help, things like housing assistance, addiction treatment, and job programs. It’s a trade-off that lets prosecutors spend more time chasing violent offenders instead of someone who swiped toothpaste and peanut butter.

Columbus is one of only five cities in the country testing this national pilot, developed by the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and Justice System Partners. The initiative builds on Klein’s earlier Buckeye Diversion Program, launched in 2019, which has already helped 248 people rebuild their lives. Nearly 80% of graduates haven’t reoffended, which makes it one of the most quietly successful programs in city government.

And in 2025, it’s growing. The city’s budget now includes new funding for case management through Health Impact Ohio, integrating the program deeper into how prosecutors handle minor offenses. It’s not flashy, but it’s pragmatic, a shift from punishment to prevention.

Assistant City Prosecutor Jennifer Grant, who leads the effort, puts it simply: “This gives us the tools to connect people with critical resources rather than throwing them into a cycle of incarceration and reoffending.” Or, in less legal terms: sometimes fixing a problem works better than arresting it.

The numbers back it up. In 2023, 63 participants graduated from Buckeye Diversion, and dozens more were connected with support services. Businesses are on board, too, because fewer people shoplifting means fewer losses, fewer police calls, and more stability.

At a time when crime headlines are mostly written in caps lock, the Buckeye Deflection Plan stands out for its restraint. No slogans, no scare tactics, just a Columbus-grown experiment in common sense.

🍹 Service with a Purpose

Columbus knows how to throw a gala, but this one comes with more than tiki cocktails and shiny awards. Service! Relief for Hospitality Workers is back with its second annual fundraiser on October 17, raising money to support the people who keep the city’s bars, restaurants, and hotels running.

What started in 2020 as a boxed meal program for unemployed workers has grown into Café Overlook, grant programs, and now the under-construction Service Innovation Kitchen, a training hub downtown designed to give hospitality workers the skills and stability to turn jobs into careers.

This year’s gala promises legacy awards, hard-hat tours of the new kitchen, and enough feel-good speeches to balance out the mai tais. Behind the fun, though, the mission is clear: an industry built on living wages, equity, and respect. Columbus hospitality workers don’t just serve the city, they keep it alive.

Tickets HERE:

💛 The Great Pay It Forward Returns to Lower.com Field

The Pay It Forward Party is back on Friday, October 17, taking over the Huntington Field Club at Lower.com Field, home of the Columbus Crew. Hosted by the Development Board of Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the annual event raises funds for the Center for Family Safety and Healing, which works year-round to end family violence and support survivors with counseling, medical care, and advocacy.

Expect hors d’oeuvres, drinks, a silent auction, and a crowd that actually makes “doing good” look good. Every ticket and bid helps build safer, stronger communities across Central Ohio.

TIckets: Here

🍂 The Great (Delayed) Fall of Ohio

It’s October in Ohio, technically, but you wouldn’t know it by the temperature. Columbus spent the first week of the month pretending it was July, with highs in the mid-80s and a collective confusion over whether to buy pumpkins or popsicles. Still, the shift is coming. A cold front is finally moving in, and with it, the promise of actual sweater weather, and the slow reveal of Ohio’s best seasonal performance: fall foliage.

Normally, the northern third of the state hits peak color in early October, central Ohio around mid-month, and the southern stretch closer to Halloween. This year, though, the schedule’s running behind. A long, dry spell left many trees stubbornly green, and a few already crisping at the edges like over-toasted bread. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ fall-color tracker shows most of the state in “changing” status, with near-peak hues showing up first in the northeast corner, think Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ashtabula County, and those twisty backroads that make you question both your GPS and your sense of time.

The good news? The late color might be worth the wait. Cooler mornings and crisp, sunny afternoons this week should kick the process into gear, the exact recipe for those fiery reds and deep golds that make Ohio look like a Bob Ross painting for about ten glorious days. And because the wind has been mercifully calm, the leaves should hang around longer than usual, meaning your annual fall photo dump can stretch well into November.

By the weekend of October 11-12, expect parks around Columbus, like Highbanks, Blendon Woods, and even the trails at Alum Creek, to burst into peak color. So yes, summer overstayed its welcome, but it’s finally packing up. Grab your flannel, hit the road, and take the long way through a state that’s about to remember what season it is.

Trivia Answer

B) 800 Million