By Pam Hersh Special Writer
One might say I was not cut out for the job. It had nothing to do with the fact that I had to be at my post at 5:45 a.m. or that I had to go without my coffee. The real challenge was that I was forbidden to be chatty. I had to assume the demeanor of a Buckingham Palace guard — even though nearly everyone who crossed my path was a friend or acquaintance from my neighborhood.
The job was to serve as an “Official Challenger” at the Harrison Street Firehouse District 9 polling place for Election Day. Any conversation that I might have had with a voter could be perceived as harassment, intimidation or electioneering.
Generally, I am a real pro at being challenged, rather than doing the challenging. All of my jobs during the past 30 years have involved conversations with residents who begin their sentences with: “I need to talk to you about …” the newspaper coverage, the university’s contribution to the town, the hospital’s relocation to Plainsboro.
I am proud to report that on Election Day morning, I was fairly successful in thwarting all challenging conversation directed at me. I even deflected a complaint about Princeton’s most ubiquitous issue, parking. Apparently, a few spaces in the Harrison Street Firehouse lot were cordoned off for municipal vehicles, a fact that fired up several voters trying to find a place to park at 7 a.m., when the line at the polling place was out the door.
However, the one comment that sounded as though it could be ominous — “You really need to do something about the hospital” — almost caused me to abandon my vow of silence. I insisted upon going outside to the parking lot (being very careful not to occupy a parking spot) in order to respond. Much to my surprise, her comment concerned Halloween at the hospital and turned out to be a real treat, rather than a trick.
“We need to do something about bringing school kids to see those pumpkins at your front door before the pumpkins rot. Also, arrange for the senior citizens to get to the pumpkin exhibit. You need a sign, an explanation of who does these incredible carved pumpkins. Everyone wants to know. I have been taking my kids to see the pumpkins for the past few years. It is like going to see the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center,” said the carved pumpkin groupie.
The pumpkins that have been gracing the front of University Medical Center at Princeton during the past several Halloweens represent the pumpkin sculptures of UMCP physician Dr. John Seybert. The skills — intense focus, precision, steadiness, problem-solving and dexterity — that make him successful as an anesthesiologist also make him successful as a pumpkin sculptor.
Dr. Seybert embarked upon his pumpkin-carving avocation 18 years ago when his son was 4 years old. Self-taught but inheriting his grandmother’s talents as an artist, the Skillman resident came up with the technique of drawing pictures (not tracing) on the pumpkin and etching the image, rather than cutting all the way through. In the past three years, he started doing a more intricate relief carving, which goes a little deeper than the etched image on the pumpkin. Each sculpture takes about four to five hours to create — and that does not include the time it takes to pick out the pumpkin, transport the 100-pound squash to his house and then to the hospital (first to the hospital conference room and then to the front of the hospital), and to create a lighting plan for the objet d’art.
Although Dr. Seybert started out by doing Disney characters, he has taken on the far greater artistic challenges of making images of gargoyles, plus newsworthy people and structures, including the presidential candidates. His John McCain and Barack Obama renditions looked very relaxed sitting next to each other in front of the hospital — certainly happier and less stressed than they looked during the debates.
No one smashed the candidate pumpkins, which reflected a respect sometimes lacking during the crazy election season, which in Princeton was characterized by a crime wave of stealing political signs. According to Dr. Seybert’s wife, Leslie, no one has ever smashed the pumpkin creations either in front of the hospital or in front of their home.
I guess everyone, including the mischief-making teenagers, appreciates the fact that this doctor-artist is truly cutting edge.
A longtime resident of Princeton, Pam Hersh is vice president for government and community affairs with Princeton HealthCare System. She is a former managing editor of The Princeton Packet

