Posted 10:42 am Wednesday, October 31, 2012
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Stuffed with scarecrows: East Texas town decorates
MALAKOFF — Scarecrows, not little store-bought scarecrows, but handmade, fully life-size scarecrows, are popping up all over this small town. “We have gone scarecrow crazy,” said Loretta Humble, suggesting Malakoff may be the scarecrow capital of East Texas.
Scarecrows appeared in front of businesses, schools, residences, organizations and other places, with more suddenly showing up every few days. At last count, there were at least 33.
It's all in good fun, Ms. Humble said of the scarecrow craze sweeping the town for the first time this year.
“Maybe some of them aren't real beauties, but they are all amazing,” she added.
The scarecrows represent the businesses where they are displayed.
For example, a colorful server scarecrow on skates and holding a tray perches in front of the Sonic Drive-In.
At First State Bank, a banker scarecrow dressed in a three-piece suit sits at a desk with a calculator and a bag of fake money.
“It's so real sitting there I wave at it every time I turn in; it's really neat,” Tommy Taylor said with a laugh as he got into his car in the bank parking lot.
At some locations, there are multiple scarecrows. Cedar Lake Nursing Home has eight scarecrows representing departments within the facility, such as a maintenance man with goggles, a tool belt and saw working at a sawhorse. A nurse scarecrow attends a scarecrow patient sitting in a wheelchair at Cedar Lake Home Health and Hospice.
Three scarecrows are in front of Quick Service Oil, Lube & Tire, one sitting at the steering wheel of a real T-bird, another cleaning the windshield and a third changing a tire.
The display has attracted considerable attention from passers-by, many of whom stop to look at it and take pictures, Billy Garrison, manager, said.
Scarecrows appeared in front of businesses, schools, residences, organizations and other places, with more suddenly showing up every few days. At last count, there were at least 33.
It's all in good fun, Ms. Humble said of the scarecrow craze sweeping the town for the first time this year.
“Maybe some of them aren't real beauties, but they are all amazing,” she added.
The scarecrows represent the businesses where they are displayed.
For example, a colorful server scarecrow on skates and holding a tray perches in front of the Sonic Drive-In.
At First State Bank, a banker scarecrow dressed in a three-piece suit sits at a desk with a calculator and a bag of fake money.
“It's so real sitting there I wave at it every time I turn in; it's really neat,” Tommy Taylor said with a laugh as he got into his car in the bank parking lot.
At some locations, there are multiple scarecrows. Cedar Lake Nursing Home has eight scarecrows representing departments within the facility, such as a maintenance man with goggles, a tool belt and saw working at a sawhorse. A nurse scarecrow attends a scarecrow patient sitting in a wheelchair at Cedar Lake Home Health and Hospice.
Three scarecrows are in front of Quick Service Oil, Lube & Tire, one sitting at the steering wheel of a real T-bird, another cleaning the windshield and a third changing a tire.
The display has attracted considerable attention from passers-by, many of whom stop to look at it and take pictures, Billy Garrison, manager, said.
The scarecrow mania grew from a loose group of women calling themselves Friends of Malakoff who gather frequently to drink tea and visit at Favorite Things, a place that sells novelties, sandwiches and bakery goods.
“It was great minds confirming one another,” Ms. Humble said of the idea to encourage scarecrows across the city.
The women created scarecrows in different costumes. They “googled” scarecrows and learned there are several ways to make them life size. The one they liked best and the easiest involves stuffing pantyhose to make the arms and legs, plus stuffing a shirt and pants with hay.
They started calling and emailing a few people to do likewise. Other people just saw the scarecrows and joined in the displays on their own accord.
Somebody said crows are going to be so scared that Malakoff is not going to have a single crow, Ms. Humble quipped.
“Fun and community building” is the purpose of it, she said. Maybe the scarecrows will attract enough attention that somebody will think Malakoff is a fun enough place to come here, she added.
A good time to come would be 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday when Malakoff Rotary Club will sell barbecue plates across from Brookshires, Ms. Humble said, adding that there are plenty of other great places to eat and shop in Malakoff.
The scarecrows are not just for Halloween but will be up for awhile, Ms. Humble said.
Jessica Crye, another member of the Friends of Malakoff group that spearheaded the scarecrow movement, observed that “the community has really come out with big support.”
Businesses and multiple private residences too have joined the fun and been “so creative,” she said. “It's fun because the scarecrows cropped up over about three weeks. It's fun for us to discover them around town because we didn't know (a new one) was going to be there,” Ms. Crye said.
People have come in exclaiming what a fun town and what community support there is for so many people to have participated, Ms. Crye said.
“It was great minds confirming one another,” Ms. Humble said of the idea to encourage scarecrows across the city.
The women created scarecrows in different costumes. They “googled” scarecrows and learned there are several ways to make them life size. The one they liked best and the easiest involves stuffing pantyhose to make the arms and legs, plus stuffing a shirt and pants with hay.
They started calling and emailing a few people to do likewise. Other people just saw the scarecrows and joined in the displays on their own accord.
Somebody said crows are going to be so scared that Malakoff is not going to have a single crow, Ms. Humble quipped.
“Fun and community building” is the purpose of it, she said. Maybe the scarecrows will attract enough attention that somebody will think Malakoff is a fun enough place to come here, she added.
A good time to come would be 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday when Malakoff Rotary Club will sell barbecue plates across from Brookshires, Ms. Humble said, adding that there are plenty of other great places to eat and shop in Malakoff.
The scarecrows are not just for Halloween but will be up for awhile, Ms. Humble said.
Jessica Crye, another member of the Friends of Malakoff group that spearheaded the scarecrow movement, observed that “the community has really come out with big support.”
Businesses and multiple private residences too have joined the fun and been “so creative,” she said. “It's fun because the scarecrows cropped up over about three weeks. It's fun for us to discover them around town because we didn't know (a new one) was going to be there,” Ms. Crye said.
People have come in exclaiming what a fun town and what community support there is for so many people to have participated, Ms. Crye said.
