A search for the 'Great Pumpkin By Alison Grant Indiana Daily Student October 22, 2002

If you're like Charlie Brown's friend Linus, searching for the Great Pumpkin each Halloween, this year you need to look no further than Downtown Bloomington.

The second annual Pumpkin Walk on the Square takes place this week from Oct. 22 through Oct. 27 and features about 25 pumpkins decorated by local artists and community members. The works of art are placed on display in storefront windows around the square and along Kirkwood Avenue.

The pumpkins, which were donated by Oliver Winery, will sit in local store windows such as the Bakehouse, Game Preserve and Natural Home. Visitors can admire the gourds and stop by the Downtown Visitor's Center to bid on their favorite pumpkin in a silent auction.

Auction proceeds will support programs for youth and disabled adults at the Hilltop Garden and Nature Center, said Nancy Fribley, assistant director at Hilltop.

She said their programs include therapeutic horticulture, which emphasizes activities such as greenhouse work and arts and crafts.

Tyler Ferguson, secretary for the board at the Hilltop Educational Foundation, said she dreamed up the event and worked to coordinate the details.

Ferguson said she has high hopes for this year, coming off the inaugural event a year ago.

"Last year was wonderful," Ferguson said. "The art part of the event was incredible. The pumpkins were a hoot, and there was a neat mix of hard-core artists and members of the community."

This year's artists include local favorites Joe Lee, who painted a Mona Lisa pumpkin last year, cartoonist Mike Clagle, and Barb Stutz, who painted the signs at Laughing Planet, a restaurant on the corner of Kirkwood Avenue and Grant Street.

Stained glass artist Tim Clougher, who volunteers with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Monroe County, said he is using the event as a chance to bond with Dale Eavey, his little brother. Clougher and Eavey, 14, requested that their pumpkin be displayed at the Game Preserve because they enjoy playing a Pokemon-like trading card game called Yu-gi-oh. Clougher said their pumpkin will feature characters from the game with a Halloween-specific theme and will fit in with the store's array of games.

"It should be a lot of fun," Clougher said. "It gives us something to do together, and he seems pretty excited about it."

Last year Clougher carved a pumpkin with stars in an attempt to work with a stained-glass theme, but said he plans on painting it this year.

In an attempt to preserve the artwork for as long as possible, artists said this year's pumpkins will be either painted or surface carved without any penetration.

Ferguson said this opportunity is a great thing for all. She said the artists benefit because the public will see their art in almost a gallery-like setting, store owners will have more foot traffic as people stop to look in their windows and the Hilltop center will have funding for its programs.