Nick “the Pumpkin Man” and Bambi Venetucci made Venetucci Farm a community icon with their annual pumpkin giveaway. The Venetucci pumpkin tradition began in the 1950s. As the story goes, Nick Venetucci was driving an old pick up truck full of pumpkins up Tejon Street and could not resist the wide-eyed fascination his pumpkins brought to the children he passed by. He ended up giving all of his pumpkins away along the route, and before long, school groups were coming to the farm so kids could pick a pumpkin. For decades, Venetucci Farm has gifted pumpkins to area school children and hosted a fall festival that welcomed the community onto the farm.

Since the legacy began, Nick and Bambi Venetucci became community icons. Their generosity and community spirit have been chronicled by the likes of Reader’s Digest and the CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite. More importantly, they wove a tradition through the Colorado Springs community that runs through generations. For years, children would choose their pumpkin on the farm, joining a tradition shared by their parents and grandparents.

Since 2004, Pikes Peak Real Estate Foundation (PPREF) with Pikes Peak Community Foundation (PPCF) have owned and managed the farm as Bambi asked of them: The land is preserved from development by a conservation easement with Colorado Open Lands, and every year thousands of families are able to enjoy the farm and its signature pumpkin patch.

In January of 2021, three sisters came together to grow a flower farm and become stewards of the Venetucci Wedding Venue and Pumpkin Festivals. Creating a space for gathering once again, Gather Mountain Blooms has joined Venetucci Farm in growing a vibrant sustainable flower farm with community workshops that focus on the beauty of growing and arranging flowers and also integrates aspects of healing, art and well-being. Venetucci Farm continues to be a sanctuary of connection, and partnered with Gather Mountain Blooms, we are about spreading beauty and kindness as people gather together to share in special moments that create lifelong memories.

In 2019, the Quad Innovation Partnership published a report titled “Venetucci Farm: Re-imagining a Community Asset“. The report conducted community interviews and analyzed case studies on how to best utilize Venetucci Farm into the next decade, and recommended a wedding venue, pumpkin festival, and a distillery.

The distillery was replaced by a flower farm but the rest is being fully implemented through a lease with Gather Mountain Blooms.

The Farm is still owned by Pikes Peak Real Estate Foundation and Pikes Peak Community Foundation, but is leased and operated by Nikki McComsey of Gather Mountain Blooms, who is able to manage the property in the spirit of Community, and maintain sustainable practices.

Join us as the legacy of the Venetucci family continues in the spirit of community. We invite you to the farm to experience all it has to offer.