A pumpkin art contest will be held this year in remembrance of a woman who dedicated decades of her life to bring art and creativity to Broomfield.
Sherill Bunetta, former president and treasurer of the Broomfield Council on the Arts & Humanities, created the contest in 2019 as a way to bring together holiday fun and creativity, said Keri Dillingham, executive director of the council.
“She passed away due to COVID in 2020,” Dillingham said. “We hold this contest every year in memory of her — it was supposed to be a one-time event, but we decided to make it an annual community event.”
Bunetta was one of the arts council’s longest-running volunteers, Dillingham said.
“She had been with BCAH for decades — in fact, almost since the beginning of BCAH, which was founded in 1973 here in Broomfield,” Dillingham said.
“She would be thrilled that we kept up this contest — she felt like it was a great way to bring the community together for connection, but also to celebrate art in a different way — having a theme for a holiday.”
The contest has two categories — one for people ages 16 and older, and another for those under age 16.
“We’ve found that teens 16 and older are extraordinarily talented, and so we put them in the adult category,” Dillingham said.
To enter the pumpkin art contest, participants are asked to fill out an entry form and pay a $5 entry fee. The pumpkins can then be dropped off Thursday at the Brunner Farmhouse & Garden’s pumpkin patch, at 640 Main St.
The first-place contest winner will receive $50, the second-place pumpkin will receive $25 and the third-place winner will receive $15, Dillingham said.
Online voting for the winners is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, and community members can also vote in-person at the free Brunner Farmhouse Annual Broomfield Halloween event from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.
The event will include trick-or-treating at booths from local businesses, monster rock hunting (the monster rocks are created by Camie Rigirozzi, a local artist, and her family), monster shuffle dance lessons and a Hunkta Bunkta performance.
