GRAFTON – A curious contraption stood on the field at the Community Harvest Project on Wheeler Road.
It was a trebuchet.
During the Middle Ages, it was used to knock holes into castle walls. On Sunday, Nov. 3, during the annual CHP Harvest Home Fair, it was being used to hurl pumpkins onto newly cleared fields.
According to Michael Fogwill, the trebuchet was built about a dozen years ago by Jim McPherson, whose wife, Linda, is a volunteer with the CHP.
On this perfect fall day, they were joined by other volunteers who adjusted the frame, placed basketball-size pumpkins to the basket, tugged a rope to set the mechanisms into place, then watched as the basket was set loose and the pumpkin sent skyward.
“It’s a great vehicle for team building, and it’s all for a great cause,” said Fogwill.
In addition to the trebuchet, the fair featured a pair of apple cannons, the 5K and fun run, children’s activities, live music and more.
Community Harvest Project, with locations in Grafton and Harvard, helps provide healthy food for those who are unable to afford it.
For information, visit https://community-harvest.org/
