Eureka business owners, residents and organizations will not let the city’s annual Scarecrow Festival disappear.
Eureka officials announced last month that the city would no longer organize the annual event that started in 2014 and saw hundreds of scarecrows scattered around town. Julie Wood, Eureka’s city clerk and communications director, said the decision to end the festival was made in the spring after there was little interest from other organizations in helping plan the event.
David Staral, owner of Silver Spoon Ice Cream in Eureka, rallied the community to continue the festival by creating a Facebook page called the Eureka Scarecrow Tour. He said he was shocked by the amount of support shown when he held the group’s first meeting on Sept. 11.
“We didn’t know what to expect when we said we were meeting for the first time to just get ideas and get organized, and it was standing room only,” Staral said. “That, in itself, speaks volumes in terms of what the community wants. There’s been a lot of support and encouragement and nothing but positivity so far in the community.”
Staral said about 40 businesses have committed to putting out scarecrows, and volunteers have worked tirelessly to recreate the town’s scarecrows.
He said the goal of the Eureka Scarecrow Tour is to privatize the festival, reorganize volunteer efforts, and have the scarecrows on display by Oct. 1.
He also said the group plans to hold a contest through the Facebook page for people to vote for their favorite scarecrow creation. He said organizers are still deciding what the prize will be for the scarecrow that receives the most votes.
Barbara Scheer organized the first Eureka Scarecrow Festival in October 2014 after seeing a similar event in Cambria, Calif.
Scheer led the scarecrow creative committee, which made various creations for the city, businesses and community members by request, for 10 years. She retired from the committee following last year’s festival.
The Eureka Chamber of Commerce began to help organize the festival in 2017, expanding it to include numerous community events throughout October.
The Eureka Parks and Recreation Department took over most of the planning duties in 2021.
“A lot of people were sad it went away, and sadder yet that all the scarecrows were thrown away,” Scheer said. “I think (the Eureka Scarecrow Tour) is amazing. It’s like a Hallmark movie, where they always come together to save a town or save a business. It shows (Eureka residents) really, really wanted it.”
Staral said the Scarecrow Festival was a big draw for his business with people coming to Eureka to see the scarecrows. Silver Spoon Ice Cream opened in March 2023.
“We had so many people from out of town who didn’t know what was going on and asked what was going on with all the scarecrows, and they loved it, and they stayed in town longer and went around to other businesses,” he said. “It’s definitely a huge positive and it brings a lot of people in who normally wouldn’t stop in Eureka on their way through just because it’s so unique and different.”
Getting busy
Scheer said volunteers are starting from scratch as they assemble new scarecrows.
She said over the last 10 years, the creative committee had made 270 scarecrows and stored them in the Farmers & Merchants Bank basement. She said creations that included a marching band, choir, wedding party and family of bears are gone now.
Staral said he’s hopeful the volunteer group will be able to create three to four dozen scarecrows in time for October. Many businesses, including his own, kept their scarecrows from last year’s festival and will be displaying them.
Wyman Center officials offered space for the volunteers to store donated supplies and build the scarecrows, Staral said. The crew has enough donations thanks to community support, he said.
“The outreach for donations so far has just been amazing,” he said. “I just took two more truckloads over (to the Wyman Center) earlier this morning (on Sept. 18).”
For more information, visit the Eureka Scarecrow Tour Facebook page or its website, eurekascarecrowtour.com.
“This is all a result of the outpouring of support from businesses, residents and volunteers, so we couldn’t do it without them,” Staral said.