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Date: 10/11/2022
EASTHAMPTON – In 2020, Ed Bloniarz and his wife Jenny decided to create and organize the Easthampton Citywide Scarecrow Contest during the first year of the coronavirus pandemic as a response to community events being canceled throughout the area.
Now going into its third year, registration for the 2022 contest is open and submissions are being accepted.
“Pretty much everywhere [community events] were getting canceled for COVID [-19], and understandably so,” Ed Bloniarz said. “But we have a pretty young family and are pretty active with the kids, so we decided to start this event because the way we do it, it’s spread out and you can socially distance and still have the community involved together.”
After the Harvest Festival was canceled – the Easthampton event that would typically host a scarecrow contest of their own – the Bloniarz duo set their sights on getting a new contest going for the fall.
“We couldn’t get it done without the community that we’re in. Easthampton’s been open arms with us and it’s all to benefit the Easthampton Community Center,” Bloniarz said. “As far as builds, the creativity has been amazing. We’ve had everything from spooky and scary to fun and creative and kids have entered.”
Bloniarz said he is setting up for this year that all children will receive a prize for their entry to encourage them to get involved in the community contest and use their creativity.
To register for this year’s contest, interested participants can email EasthamptonScarecrowContest@outlook.com with a name, theme and brief description of their scarecrow, as well as the address that the scarecrow will be visible to the public.
Scarecrows must be visible from the road and remain in good standing for the entirety of the contest (“New England proof” according to the contest’s press release). No rubber, plastic or store-bought masks are allowed, and political or excessively violent scarecrows will not be allowed and is up to the discretion of the event organizers.
The week of Oct. 16-23 residents are encouraged to use the soon-to-be-released google map legend for addresses with scarecrow entries and to drive around the city and check out this year’s competition. All entries will also be posted on the competition’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
“We’ve heard from people it’s a great way to see the entire city. There’s certain areas that people don’t usually go to, but I feel Easthampton is beautiful, every nook and cranny of it,” Bloniarz said.
Once you’ve registered and built your scarecrow, the Bloniarzes ask participants to send a picture so it can be posted to the event’s social media pages on Facebook and Instagram. While there will not be individual categories such as scariest or funniest scarecrow, it is encouraged that businesses enter and think of it as a fun and creative way to increase foot traffic.
A $5 donation to the Easthampton Community Center is encouraged, though not required. Donations go primarily toward community meals for the center.
A winner will be decided by ranked choice voting by the community, with voters asked to rank entries one through five – their top five favorite scarecrows. The top five vote getters will receive prizes, with number one receiving a bit extra in prizes, according to the contest’s release. All scarecrows must be entered and built by Oct. 15. Voting will run from Oct. 16-23 and winners will be announced on Oct. 24.
Bloniarz hopes to see continued growth in entries and interest for the competition.
“We’ve only expanded since our initial competition. Last year we had 34 total I believe, and I think [this year] we’ll eclipse that number,” Bloniarz said. “On a selfish note I guess I just want to see the creativity from these people.”