Tuesday, October 3, 2023

Whimsically Witchy Halloween Fundraiser for Public School Art and Music

A Staunton mom has combined her love of crafting and her passion for arts education into a Halloween-inspired fundraiser to benefit elementary public-school art and music programs. “Whimsically Witchy” is a family-friendly Halloween display located across the street from McSwain Elementary School in Staunton. The Halloween display will be up from October 3-31. The display is free, but visitors are asked to donate to the art and music programs through the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge payment portal via QR code displayed on yard signs.

“Whimsically Witchy” is the brainchild of Camille Dierksheide, a local mom and classical singer. Dierksheide designed and hand-crafted the display with recycled materials, electronics and building supplies she and her husband purchased as well as generous donations materials, time and talent from local businesses, family and friends all over the country. The display features:

• A cast of six life-size witches in period dress made from recycled vinegar bottles and garbage bags;
• A haunted forest of seven-foot trees with light-up faces;
• The “Booridge Gardens,” a cemetery of hand-made head stones, featuring the graves of Halloween icons including the Sanderson Sisters; and
• Motorized flying bats atop nine-foot Grecian Doric columns.

The Whimsically Witchy Halloween display is located at 1101 North Coalter Street in Staunton, across from the McSwain Elementary School Field. Details about the display and information on how to donate are available at the link below: