Sign Up Now to Enter Scarecrow Festival,
September 20, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Michael Hoke, Director
409.670.9113
mhoke@shangrilagardens.org
Sign Up Now to Enter Scarecrow Festival
ORANGE, Texas, September 19, 2011 – Members of the public, including businesses, churches, organizations, school groups and individuals are encouraged to submit entries soon for this year’s Scarecrow Festival at Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center, as spots are filling up fast. This event will take place from October 18 through November 12, 2011. Over a hundred scarecrows are expected, and visitors during the Scarecrow Festival will be able to vote for a favorite. Prizes will be awarded in several categories. Scarecrows should be created from recycled materials whenever possible to help represent Shangri La’s ‘green’ theme. Entries will be placed along the pathways of Shangri La and must be able to withstand being outdoors for the duration of the festival.
Participants must complete an Official Entry Form no later than Friday, October 7, 2011 at 5:00 p.m., but with spots filling up, participants are encouraged to turn in entry forms earlier. A complete entry form along with rules and other information can be found at http://www.shangrilagardens.com/. Installation will take place from October 15 through 17, and entrants will need to check with the Shangri La Admissions Window for scarecrow placement location.
“There are quite a few entries already,” says Director of Shangri La Michael Hoke, “we just want to make sure those planning to enter a scarecrow in this year’s event get their entry forms turned in.”
Located at 2111 West Park Avenue in Orange, Texas, Shangri La is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. and Sundays, noon – 5:00 p.m. For more information, visit http://www.shangrilagardens.org/.
For larger or higher resolution photos, contact Amanda Adams at aadams@starkfoundation.org.
About Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center
Nestled within 252 acres in the heart of Orange, Texas, Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center is a program of the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation, a private foundation whose mission is to improve and enrich the quality of life in Southeast Texas and encourage and assist education. The unique ecosystem of Shangri La presents an ideal opportunity to further that mission as well as carry on the vision of H.J. Lutcher Stark, the man who originally developed the gardens more than 60 years ago.
Amid nature's pristine ecosystems, the formal gardens at Shangri La reflect a use of more than 300 plant species to paint beautiful landscapes among a series of theme-based garden rooms. Around every corner a new vista awaits the visitor with exquisite sculptures, a great lawn, serene waterscapes reflecting beautiful colors and a Cypress Gate framing blooming plants and soaring birds. The Nature Center includes Adams Bayou boat excursions to educational outposts, a 15-acre Beaver Pond, a state-of-the-art bird blind, a bat house, and more up-close encounters with nature.
Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center is the first project in Texas and the 50th project in the world to earn the U.S. Green Building Council's Platinum Certification for LEED®-NC, which verifies that the design and construction of Shangri La reached the highest green building and performance measures. Shangri La was also named by the American Institute of Architects and its Committee on the Environment as one of the top 10 green projects throughout the world.
Shangri La offers a glimpse of how people can live in harmony with nature, as it strives in its mission to Mentor Children of All Ages to Be Kind to Their World.
Other programs of the Stark Foundation include the Stark Museum of Art, The W.H. Stark House and the Frances Ann Lutcher Theater for the Performing Arts.