To the accompaniment of deafening trumpets, the town crier today announced that the puny pumpkin grown by agronomist Robert Wesley-Smith actually won the giant melon section at the Royal Darwin Show and he has been awarded the $500 first prize !!!!!!!!
 |
| Champion pumpkin, named Mari. |
Admittedly it was the only pumpkin entered in the contest and officially weighed in at a mere 53.85 kilos , well short of his rough estimate of "about 80" . A woman in Katherine recently grew a pumpkin which weighed 240 kilos.
Wes says he feels somewhat embarrassed by his win , but that is the way the pumpkin scone crumbles . However , he is going to donate $100 of the prize money to the Horticultural Hall .
Another 100 bucks will go to a friend , Lurdes Pereira , a member of Darwin's Timorese comunity, who went to the showground in her car to take delivery of the winning melon .
A well- built helper , from the Philippines, is said to have picked up the melon , held it above his head , like Atlas holding up the world , and then placed it in her car. It is hoped that a photo of the weight lifting will be provided .
The champion melon is destined to be included in a special exhibition in Darwin next month highlighting the East Timor struggle for freedom in which Wesley-Smith and his twin brothers, Peter and Martin, played a big part, all three awarded the Order of Timor Leste , in Dili .
Furthermore , it is intended that many of Wes's large collection of East Timor campaign T-shirts , about 30, will be displayed along with the victorious pumpkin.
Wes has had a long involvement with the American political system . He took Jimmy Carter, Henry Kissinger and others to task over East Timor . In recent times he donated small amounts to the Democratic Party. It is possible that some of the remainder of the pumpkin prize money could be sent to Kamala's election kitty.
(Pumpkin, Timor, Kamala )