INNISFAIL – The snow stayed away but the wind came.
And while heavy gusts caused some havoc on Oct. 7 for the fourth annual Scarecrow Festival it did not diminish the enthusiasm for the annual Thanksgiving long weekend event.
“It's awesome. We are really enjoying it and with the horse wagon ride it is a really nice family-friendly event,” said Calgarian Bonnie Seip who attended the festival with her daughter Cheyenne. “It's outside and gets people together to talk and visit.”
The morning, unlike last year's snowy wintery spectacle, started wonderfully for organizers with perfect blue skies and pleasant temperatures, particularly for folks who took a horse and wagon ride, courtesy of Innisfail Lions Club. But shortly before noon, the winds arrived, howling and blasting. Event organizer Deb Stoski said the high quality creative talent displayed along Main Street made up for the minor inconvenience.
“The artistic talent with people in Innisfail just blows me away. They are awesome,” said Stoski. “Somebody should have done the Wizard of Oz with this wind,” she said with a chuckle about the heavy gusts.
This year's festival attracted 35 entries, down from the 68 featured last year. Stoski said she could not offer a reason for the lower total but vows to keep the popular event going.
“I think it is just one of those things that we have to just keep doing it, keep building it up,” she said. “I think psychologically I am going to put up less poles next year and then there will be more and I will have to scramble to get more poles to put scarecrows on. If I do less then I will need more. That is my theory.”
Stoski said the town gave her $1,900 from its Community Grant Program (CGP), money that was used to cover her expenses.
“Which was awesome. That's what I needed,” she said. “That was my expenses and they covered them.”
The event was also a fundraiser for Innisfail Seniors Drop-In Centre.
“The reason why we do this is that we have people pay a loonie for the People's Choice Award ballot. That way you stop somebody from grabbing just People Choice ballots and putting in 500 for their own scarecrow,” said Stoski. “This way I feel we get an honest People Choice Award, and we decided from that all the money goes to the seniors' drop-in centre.
The People's Choice Award was one of six categories judged at the event. All winners received a plaque with a photo of their scarecrow. The winners were:
* 1st Place for Business Category (Alice in Wonderland)
Inspiration Ink Tattoos
* 1st Place for Individual/Adult Category (Man Eating Plant)
Kaitlyn & Charlotte MacKinnon
* 1st Place for Individual/Child Category (Wood Scarecrow)
Daniel Spiller
* 1st Place for Group/Non Profit Adult Category (Seniors Playing Cards)
Innisfail Seniors Drop in Center
* 1st Place for Group/Non Profit Children Category (School Pumpkins)
Little Scholars Pre School
* 1st Place People Choice Award (Alice In Wonderland)
Inspiration Ink Tattoos
Other winners (second and third place):
Business Category
* 2nd – Innisfail Tire & Lube
* 3rd – Donna's Finder's Keepers
Individual Adult
* 2nd – Elaine Knorr
* 3rd – Vezina Family
Individual Child
* 2nd – Kaden & Carson Strabel
* 3rd – Murray Family
Group/Non Profit Adult
2nd – RE/MAX Compass
3rd – Catholic Social Services
Group/Non Profit Children
2nd – Vilot & Velcia
3rd – Noble Riding Horse 4H
People Choice Award
2nd – Murray Family
3rd – Innisfail Tire & Lube
Deb Stoski, festival organizer
"The artistic talent with people in Innisfail just blows me away. They are awesome."
