St. Charles Scarecrow Festival gives you a chance to get creative
The 25th annual St. Charles Scarecrow Festival, Oct. 8-10, is just around the corner.
Kathy Loubsky, festival coordinator, is putting out the call to creative minds that now is the time to think about the festival's mainstay activity - the Scarecrow Contest held yearly in Lincoln Park. What started out as a display of just a dozen has now turned into a delightful display of more than 100 scarecrows created by area residents, clubs and businesses.
The contest is an opportunity for everyone to tap into his or her artistic and imaginative resources while, at the same time, to have fun creating a scarecrow in one of seven categories. The resulting scarecrows range from small to tall, traditional to wildly outrageous to the delight of thousands of festival attendees who each year flock to Lincoln Park to enjoy them.
The contest is free and open to all: individuals, families, organizations, school groups and businesses, both in and out of St. Charles; individuals, families, shops, restaurants, service clubs and corporations. Contest entry forms are available by calling the St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau at (630) 377-6161 or online at scarecrowfest.com.
Seven divisions provide for a wealth of creativity. (All categories may have battery-operated lights but only the Mechanical Category will be provided electricity.)
New is the Family Category, open to individual families with children 12 years and younger.
Traditional creation must closely resemble the residents of farmers' fields and gardeners' vegetable plots of years past. Straw, burlap, flannel shirts, a wood frame and a bit of "whimsy" are all that's needed.
Whimsical offers lots of leeway for expression. Nearly anything goes in this division, as long as it's in good taste. The only restriction is no movement. Those are reserved for the mechanical category.
In the Mechanical Category, the entry can move, shake, talk, twirl, illuminate and be automated and all entries must use electrical power, provided free by the festival.
Children's is open to children's organizations for kids 12 or younger. Anything goes in this category except mechanical and, to encourage creativity and design, parental participation must be minimal.
St. Charles Business and Area Business Categories are open to all "for-profits" businesses to promote a product, service, restaurant or shop to festival guests. Anything goes, but please, no handout materials from the scarecrow display.
Each entry is given a categorized sign and voting number upon check-in, which takes place Wednesday, Oct. 6, or Thursday, Oct. 7, at the Lincoln Park information booth. All scarecrow entries must be named for identification purposes.
Winners are chosen by popular vote of festival attendees. There is no age limitation but they do ask "one vote per category and per person."
The top three vote-getters in the Traditional, Whimsical and Mechanical categories receive a cash prize and certificate of appreciation. Six scarecrows in the Children's category and four in the Family Category receive cash prizes and certificates. The top vote earner in the St. Charles and Area Business division receive a free ad in a local newspaper. Three honorable mentions receive a certificate of achievement and appreciation in this category, as well.
Call the St. Charles Visitors Bureau at (630) 377-6161 or go online at scarecrowfest.com/contest to download and complete an entry form. Fax or mail the completed form to (630) 513-0566 or drop it off at the visitor bureau offices, 311 N. Second St., St. Charles.