By Natasha Ashenhurst
Miss Thurston County pageant contestants are known for their poise, composure, and grace, but on October 4th the community will have a chance to see a side of them that hasn’t been shown before, their dark side. This is the night when you’ll find them at the Rutledge Corn Maze “Haunting for Dollars,” a brand-new event where a significant portion of the admission price from the evening goes right back to the non-profit that haunts the maze, and on October 4th it will be Miss Thurston County, including the board of directors, the executive director and the contestants. They will all be at the maze, helping sell tickets, as well as taking a turn, in costume, doing their best to frighten friends, families, and community members that show up to support Miss Thurston County, or just happen to pick that night to go through the maze.
“We have an on-going tradition of partnering with non-profits, but this is a new approach,” said Ryan Rutledge. “It is a great opportunity for these groups as there is minimal up-front investment of time, but a really high potential return, plus it will be a lot of fun for the groups and the community. We expect people will join us to support a group they are familiar with, or perhaps they will want to experience the maze when it is haunted by football players, roller derby gals, or pageant contestants,” Rutledge said. During the month of October, at lease five different Thurston County non-profits will take their turn “Haunting for Dollars.”
Miss Thurston County contestants will be Haunting for Dollars on the 4th to raise scholarship money. The maze will provide scary costumes, but the young women may have their own ideas for how best to haunt the maze. Community members are invited come out on this night to experience the haunted maze, but they also may just want to show their support for this organization that has been in existence since 1975.
Diane Partridge, Executive Director of Miss Thurston County said, “I am excited to partner with Rutledge Corn Maze. They have been outstanding to work with. This is an excellent way for our supporters in the community to come on out and meet these outstanding young women and our board.” She went on to say, “It is a casual environment that provides a great opportunity to get to know each other. Our goal is to raise scholarship money for our contestants as well as build an awareness of our program in the local community, potential future sponsors, and future contestants.”
Awareness is particularly important to Diane and the organization. “We are more than just a pageant,” she said. “We are committed to mentoring young ladies in our community to better themselves, and teach them skills that will help them in their future, both in their education, and in their future professions.”
MIA – Roller Derby ladies will haunt the maze on October 11th. Raechel Kilcup, Co-President of MIA, invites supporters of roller derby, or those interested in the sport, to joint them on October 11th.
“This is a great way for the derby community to support MIA, plus it will be a very fun evening!” Raechel said. Olympia has three different roller derby leagues, plus groups in Fort Lewis and Centralia. “The Derby community is great about attending each other’s fundraisers,” Raechel said. “Our group is all about having fun, exercise, and promoting self-improvement. We are a diverse group as well – we have young woman in their early twenties on up to women in their late forties and one in her early fifties.”
In addition to supporting each other, the local derby groups are also great at promoting various underground cultures from around Olympia. For example, they recently had a break-dancing competition during a derby half-time. “Derbies are also just plain fun,” Raechel said. “We have a beer garden as well as taco and BBQ trucks outside.”
October 18th Olympia ArtSpace will take a turn. The Olympia ArtSpace Alliance is a grass roots effort led by a group of local artists, business, and civic leaders, who have organized as a nonprofit to help bring live/work spaces to downtown Olympia, to revitalize downtown, and to build community through the Arts. On their night of Haunting for Dollars, ArtSpace is collaborating with local high school students that are interested in gaining public service hours, a requirement in many schools.
The students will do the haunting, while the artists create. “Our evening is going to have a pumpkin carving contest,” said Cheryl Selby of ArtSpace. “We are giving pumpkins to local artists for them to carve, and then the pumpkins will be displayed at the Corn Maze,” Selby said. Maze attendees will then have a chance to vote for their favorite pumpkin, and will also get a chance to bid for the pumpkin at a silent auction. “Come on over to the maze on October 18th to show your support for ArtSpace and local artists,” Selby said.
October 24th, Black Hills High School Football Team & Booster Club will be haunting the maze. Raechel Kilcup, who has a son on the team and is also active in the Booster Club, expects a large turnout for the Haunt. Players, students, parents, grandparents, and community members are all encouraged to join the team for a night of fun. “This is a very busy week for the team,” Kilcup said. “Pioneer Bowl (Tumwater vs Black Hills) marks the end, or close to the end of the football season for Black Hills, so come on out and show your support for the team.”
October 25th, Black Hills Gymnastics will be Haunting For Dollars to raise scholarship money. “Imagine a group of giggling teenage girls hopped up on candy corn and enjoying free reign of the place,” said Jennifer Stack of Black Hills Gymnastics. “This is a great group of fun-loving girls who are dedicated to helping their teammates, and are excited to be a part of this event. They will have no problem ‘getting their spook on,’” she said.
Black Hills Gymnastics invite any and all families in the area to attend this event. “It is going to be a great time for families to get out of the house and do something fun together. More specifically though, we are looking to attract local families that care about our community and see value in the people in it. We believe strongly in supporting youth in their pursuit of excellence and understand that our children are the future of this community. Families who come out to the Corn Maze on October 25th will not only have an awesome experience, but will be helping to fund a need-based scholarship for a talented and deserving young gymnast on the Black Hills Gymnastics Competitive Girls Team,” Stack said.
They want Thurston County to know that Black Hills Gymnastics is dedicated to developing well-rounded young athletes, and they accomplish this by teaching them important life skills through the sport of gymnastics. “We encourage our gymnasts to dream big and celebrate their successes, but also know that what is most important is the personal growth and development that occurs along the way. Come out to our event at the Corn Maze on October 25th and help us give much needed support to gymnasts with high aspirations and the heart to achieve them.”
Small children may opt out of the haunted maze in favor of the family-friendly maze. Ryan Rutledge agrees, but for everyone else he says, “people like the feeling of getting lost, but at the same time knowing that it is a safe way to do it. We have people out there in the mazes to keep kids and families safe.”
302 – 93rd Ave SE
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