COOPERATION … Bryan art teachers, Stephanie Poncsak and Matt Neff, used this project from Best One Tire to give their students an opportunity to create in teams of two. Preston Williams and Darren Kranwinkel, who are 7th graders at Bryan Middle School, joined forces to have some artistic fun. (PHOTO BY REBECCA MILLER, STAFF)
By: Rebecca Miller
Chuck Wallace, the manager of Best One Tire Co. of Bryan, Ohio, had a creative idea during a brainstorming session earlier this season with some of the retail sales department.
How about a Pumpkin Contest that could also raise money for the Bryan Parks and Rec department!
Daisy Federspiel, from retail sales, explained that Best One purchased 110 pumpkins for the Bryan and St. Patrick’s 6-12 grade students to decorate.
Bryan Middle School Art Teacher, Stephanie Poncsak shared that Best One called the school and asked if they would be interested in having the art students decorate pumpkins for a contest/fundraiser.
She and High School Art teacher, Matt Neff, had 200 students pair up and do the pumpkins in teams of two, doing 61 pumpkins in the Middle School and 39 in the High School.
Their creativity and unique choices have been drawing “ooh’s and ahh’s” from customers at Best One as they are now on display there.
“It was a good break from what we normally do,” Ms. Poncsak said, “as the students got to learn to use acrylic paints.”
The ten sixth grade students at St. Patrick’s School took their pumpkins home and decorated them, Principal Tracy Koenig said.
When they brought them back, the pumpkins were put out in the hall for the other students to see before taking them to Best One for the contest/fundraiser.
“The other students were pretty impressed by them,” she said. Excitement over being part of a large contest brought an extra level of fun to their artistic moments.
At Best One, Federspiel explained the way the Contest/Fundraiser works:
- All Community members and customers can stop in at Best One on the corner of St. Rt. 15 and CR E and “be one of the Judges”. All one has to do is stop in while they are open, look at all the pumpkins, pick your favorite and tell Daisy F. which one you choose. She is keeping records and the voting will end on October 27th. Some of the pumpkins are inside the building, but a great display of them is outside the front door, so be sure you see them all. All are creative and some are downright professionally artistic, but it is obvious that everyone had fun decorating these pumpkins.
- On October 28th they will be taken to the McDonald-Ruff Ice Arena for the Parks and Rec Halloween event. That is where the Fundraiser happens, with anyone buying a pumpkin for a freewill donation. Pumpkins can be chosen for purchase ahead of time, but will be paid for and picked up at the Ice Rink. Best One also has donation cans for anyone to support the 2023 Parks and Rec Halloween event, with that money being added to the money raised by the sale of the pumpkins. All the money will go to Parks and Rec.
- There will be prizes (yet to be determined) given for the pumpkins that have the first, second and third highest number of votes. They will probably be announced or shown at the rink, but awards will most likely be taken to the schools where the student artists attend and their teachers will have the fun of giving them their awards.
Rebecca can be reached at rebecca@thevillagereporter.com
