BY RACHEL DOVE
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN

INEZ — Harvest Fest is coming soon, and the Greater Martin County Kiwanis Club is challenging the entire county – businesses and residents – to build and display scarecrows to celebrate throughout September.

There will be two contests, one for businesses and one for residential entries.

Each contestant must submit a photo of their scarecrow for voting on Facebook. Photos must be received before midnight Sept. 9.

Contestants can submit entries through Facebook Messenger or email to kiwanisharvestfestinezky@gmail.com.

Voting begins Sept. 11 and concludes at 2 p.m. Sept. 16. The entries with the most likes on Facebook before voting expires will claim first-place prizes.

Winners will be announced Sept. 16 from the Harvest Fest stage. The winners will also be acknowledged on the festival’s Facebook page, and their photos will appear in a future edition of The Mountain Citizen.

Amy Smith, organizer of the Scarecrow event, says all photos must be good quality and not blurry. The picture must include the name of the person or business entering the contest, along with the location of the display. The photo and information will be posted on Facebook.

Melissa Phelps, Kiwanis president, said when the scarecrow contest first began, it included downtown Inez businesses. When the COVID pandemic changed the face of events across the country, organizers decided to utilize social media to continue the displays. That choice allowed them to include all of Martin County. In addition to the businesses, private residences and churches were added to the list of those eligible to compete.

Smith encourages everyone who competes to let their imagination run wild and to get their creativity flowing.

It will be up to the public who visit the Facebook page and vote for their favorite.

For more information on the Scarecrow Contest, contact Smith at 606-626-5936.