Many times we encounter people around us but we don’t know of the good things they do in and for our community. This monthly column will spotlight people of all abilities who are our friends and neighbors. It will shed some light on the positive and kind achievements we are making as a community.
Would you like a smile with your pumpkin spice? Let me introduce you to one of our Pumpkin Show Community Champions. Her name is Diane Sutton and although she is busy doing lots of things, some of you may not realize just how much.
Diane is the Trustee for the Home Arts and Crafts Department of our Pumpkins Show since 1997. From 1992 to 1997, Diane served as a chairperson under the direction of Martha Poling who established the department in the late fifties. Each Department has more than one Trustee and Diane shares this responsibility with her co-trustee, Katie Schneider since 2008.
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The responsibilities of the Home Arts and Craft Department include sending out the Premium Sheets with the various class available in mid-August, obtaining judges, overseeing registration and the safety of all of the projects, preparing the winners list for publication and getting premium money ready for the entrants when they pick up their projects on Sunday.
“We operate with a committee of about 25 volunteers that we couldn’t get along without,” stated Sutton. “These volunteers staff the building that houses the projects in 3 hour shifts from 9 am – 8 pm each day of the show to ensure the safety of the displays,” she continued.
Diane got started with all of this because she had started entering projects the year after she arrived in Circleville as a resident. She entered crafts and sewing projects for many years.
When I asked Diane about the most unusual thing she has experienced with the Pumpkin Show Arts and Crafts she shared with me that in the beginning macramé was very popular and there were quite a few entries that year. “One student brought in a “room” that was about 6 foot tall with additional furnishing done in macramé and four years ago a student brought in a hog roaster he had made using an old tractor. The hog roaster was entered in the “Treasures from Trash” category and won the Juvenile Best of Show”, Sutton shared.
I also asked Diane who the most interesting person or people she’s met while at the Pumpkin Show. She shared with me that her mother lived in Nebraska and loved to visit during the Pumpkin Show and there was a year in which they were walking along before the afternoon parade and had the opportunity to meet Ted Lewis. She said that Mr. Lewis talked with them briefly and gave his autograph to them.
When you ask Diane Sutton what inclusion means to her, she has this to say: “Inclusion means being welcoming to all people. I think Pumpkin Show exemplifies that.” You can see that inclusion is interwoven into Diane’s Arts and Crafts Department as there are class entries offered to all ages and all abilities and all interests.
“Our community members are encouraged to take part in the contests and volunteer for the many organizations that make the Pumpkin Show what it is. Visitors with physical limitations will find accommodations and lots of places they can sit, rest and enjoy the crowd”, shared Sutton.
We hope to see you at the 2019 Pumpkin Show! General questions regarding The Pumpkin Show can be directed to 740-474-7000 or see our website at www.pumpkinshow.com
