New members on the Scarecrow Festival creative team built the event’s tallest scarecrow, which came by its name in a unique way.
Marsha and Jerry King assembled a 16-foot scarecrow placed outside Farmers and Merchants Bank, 619 Stockell Drive, and a 7-year-old Eureka girl named the creation.
Ava Decker, a second-grader at Eureka Elementary School, suggested “Bankabot,” and it was selected from the 12 names submitted. The winning name was announced Oct. 6.
“It’s at a bank, and it’s a robot,” said Ava, who is learning virtually this year through the Missouri Virtual Academy.
BJ Hillermann, bank vice president and branch manager, said the scarecrow creative team voted on the winner, but “Bankabot” was his favorite.
“I think it’s a great name, very fitting,” he said.
The Kings’ creation was set up Sept. 15, and a contest was held to name the robot-like scarecrow that was crafted with band hat boxes from Eureka High School and PVC pipes.
Barbara Scheer, who leads the creative team, said she was happy that the Jefferson County couple found a new use for the boxes that have been stored in the group’s headquarters in the basement of Farmers and Merchants Bank.
“Jerry had the mechanical aptitude to do the drilling and assembly of the myriad of pieces that make up our newest scarecrow creation for this year and the largest scarecrow we have created,” said Scheer, who brought the concept of a Scarecrow Festival to Eureka in 2014. “Marsha was right by his side the entire time, assisting him throughout the project.”
The festival is a month-long event held every October and features more than 200 scarecrows set up throughout the city. The month also features numerous weekend events tied to the festival.
Jerry, 71, said the robot scarecrow was the only creation he worked on this year, while Marsha, 72, also had a hand in making other scarecrows. The couple referred to their creation as “Lego man” while they were making it.
“He is cool the way he looks with the PVC between his legs,” Marsha said.
Ava’s name suggestion was picked over another family member’s submission.
Ian Decker, 9, a third-grader at Eureka Elementary who also is learning virtually this year, suggested naming the scarecrow “Mr. Robobanko.”
Along with family bragging rights, their mother, Amanda Decker, said Ava received a doll and candy from her father, Scott, while the second-grader made a prudent choice of what to do with the $100 prize she received for coming up with the scarecrow’s name.
“I put it in a savings account for college,” Ava said.
Creative couple
Marsha said she was able to put her degree in fine arts and interior design to good use while working with the creative team.
“I’ve always enjoyed art,” she said. “It just looked like it’d be a fun thing to do.”
The couple said they plan to help create more scarecrows next year.
“The people are all really nice,” Marsha said. “I feel like I am doing something for the community.”
Jerry said he was happy that his woodworking hobby contributed to the team’s goal of rolling out new scarecrows every year.
“He is very handy,” Marsha said. “There is nothing he can’t do.”
The Kings married 52 years ago when Jerry was 19 and Marsha was 20 after meeting in Oklahoma City during high school. Marsha attended Harding High School and Jerry attended Northwest Classen High School.
Along with Scheer and the Kings, this year’s creative team consisted of Dee Cullinane, Betty Elder, Sharon Farley, Darlene Hensley, Jean Christianson, Phyllis Mann, Kris Nowotny, Shari Hinni, Darlene Diekmann and Janelle Dunlap. Scheer said anyone interested in helping create scarecrows for future festivals should reach out to Eureka Parks and Recreation coordinator Lizzie Roberds at lroberds@eureka.mo.us.