SOURCE: Sunday Republican (Springfield, MA)
Author: RICHARD NADOLSKI
HAMPSHIRE COUNTY, MA – A selection committee with an apparent bent for the macabre has chosen the eerie work of South Street artist Michael Melle and his children as the “Best of the Hilltowns” scarecrow in a contest sponsored by the Hampshire Hills Bed & Breakfast Association.
Besides being the best exhibit of the dozens created for the first annual Hampshire Hills Scarecrow Competition, Melle’s scarecrow, with its 12-foot wingspan made of hemlock boughs, a pig’s skull for a head and tomatoes for eyes, was the hands-down winner as the scariest scarecrow in the contest as well.
Melle’s wife, Linda, said the scarecrow contest, which began in August, has attracted numerous sightseers to their somewhat removed street through the month of September.
“We’ve never had so many cars on this road. This is a road nobody takes. Sometimes, two or three cars are out there,” she said.
Melle said her husband, who has a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Massachusetts, and their two children, Eliza, 14, and Eric, 11, started the scarecrow project on a Sunday and worked through the week bit by bit before finishing it.
“I fed them to keep them going,” she said with a laugh.
“He can’t sit, he falls asleep. He has to be doing something all the time,” she said of her husband.
For winning the grand prize, the Melle family will receive a $50 cash prize and a gift certificate for an overnight stay for four or two overnight stays for two at any of the association’s bed and breakfasts. They will also receive a three-tier gourmet spice collection from Tube Products Inc. of Easthampton, which is a subsidiary of McCormick Spices. Theirs and other prizes will be awarded tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at a coffee and dessert reception at Mac’s Restaurant on Route 9 in Cummington.
Meanwhile, The Chesterfield Fire Department got the most yuks and won the “most humorous” prize for its midnight raids on the Goshen Fire Department scarecrow. The Chesterfield contingent decorated the Goshen scarecrow scene with four of its own crows and also, in a subsequent raid, placed a large scarecrow that looked more like a black Big Bird atop the former Goshen firehouse. For its part, Goshen had decorated its scarecrow with a picture of Chesterfield Fire Chief Winston Bancroft.
“The best thing about that rivalry first of all is that volunteer fire departments are our most unsung heroes in the hilltowns,” said Jody Kerssenbrock, publicist for the event. Kerssenbrock said the fire departments constantly need new blood and the kind of fun generated by the contest inspires others to join. She invited other area departments to get involved next year.
The intent of the event, besides having some good-natured fun, was to generate public interest in visiting the hilltowns and staying at its bed and breakfast establishments during September before the droves of tourists seeking fall colors arrive in October. From the point of view of generating publicity, the contest appeared to have achieved its purpose.
Kerssenbrock said she had calls from people as far away as Las Vegas, Nev. and Marin County, Calif., who had read about the contest in their local newspapers. Warren Smith, an art teacher at Hampshire Regional High School, judged the contest along with Walter Korzek of the association.
“We had so many great scarecrows that we had to create other categories for prizes,” said Smith. Other prize categories included “most traditional,” awarded to Art and Doris Reed on Central Street, “most contemporary,” won by Jay and Penny Coffey, and “prettiest,” taken by Iris Martin of Main Street. The best scarecrow in each participating hilltown also received prizes.