Scarecrow Contest Winners Announced

By Eliza Hallabeck

The winners of this year’s My Favorite Scarecrow Contest were announced Wednesday, November 9, at Newtown Middle School. This year “Monsters Inc,” or scarecrow 36, took first place.

“Crayon Dragon” (scarecrow 12) took second place, and “Tweety Bird” (scarecrow 13) took third place, according to the school.

Each year groups of eighth grade students are challenged to assemble scarecrows that will frighten away a demon of the group’s choosing. The groups are limited to using only $25 and to working on the projects outside of school. The creations must be larger than life and be able to withstand weather.

The scarecrows are then put on display on the school’s front lawn for residents to vote, $1 per vote, for their favorite entry into the contest. Ballots were collected at both Newtown Middle School and at The Newtown Bee’s 5 Church Hill Road office this year, as in past years.

Michael Roche, Chris Grasso, Sam Duffy, and Kevin Finnegan learned on Wednesday while at school that their scarecrow had taken first place in the competition.

Sarah Lyon and Abbie Kohler created “Crayon Dragon” and Brittany Bucci and Margaret Elkins created “Tweety Bird.”

This year the scarecrows were scheduled to be on display from Saturday, October 22, through Saturday, October 29, but due to the Winter Storm Alfred’s timing and aftermath, they remained on the front lawn beyond that time.

By Monday, October 31, limbs from trees on the property had fallen on a select number of the scarecrows, while some had been blown over by the storm’s strong winds.

After learning of their win on November 9, Michael, Chris, Sam, and Kevin, spoke to the efforts their group made in creating their scarecrow.

“We got stuff donated to us, and we used just anything that we could find that would help make it, like shoe boxes and wire hangers,” said Michael.

The scarecrow was built in Chris’s family’s garage, and Chris’s father, also named Chris, helped the boys obtain materials, like the door that the scarecrows peeped around after the finally being completed.

The group met roughly four times and worked for two to three hours each time they met after school to work on the project.

While Michael said it was Chris’s idea to make the monsters in Disney’s Monsters Inc come to life, Chris said, “I think as a group we all came up with it together.”

Chris said the group started generating ideas together, then once “Monsters Inc” was chosen each student started creating sketches.

Kevin joined the group a little after it was formed. He said the group made the tall blue monster, named Sully, look real by adding fur over the monster’s body.

Once the blue fur was purchased, Kevin said Sam sewed the fur for the body of the monster.

“That was fun,” Sam said about sewing the fur for Sully.

Sam also said he has never sewn before working on the project.

“I think Mike [the small green monster] was easier,” Kevin said, “because it was only a ball and then we [used] papier-mâché and painted it on.”

Now, with the project completed and their group named the first place winners for the 2011 contest, Sam said, “I thought it was a really fun experience.”

The group has yet to decide which charity to donate their winning money to, a tradition of the scarecrow contest at NMS.

According to the school, $1,121.36 was raised from the contest, and each of the winning teams will divide the money up to donate it to a charity of their choosing. The first place group will receive a larger sum than the second and third place groups.