OHIO offices, Athens businesses take top Paint the Town Green honors

Passion Works Studio’s colorful entry was deemed the “Best Window Display” in Homecoming 2018’s Paint the Town Green decorating contest. Photo by Emma Howells

It’s official! The winners of this year’s Paint the Town Green contest have been announced, and Bobcat bragging rights go to one office in Ohio University’s Patton College of Education, two offices within the Division of Student Affairs and two uptown Athens businesses.

The winners of Homecoming 2018’s Paint the Town Green on-campus decorating contest are:

• First place – The Patton College’s Department of Human and Consumer Sciences
• Second place – The Office of Community Standards and Student Responsibility
• Third place – The Office of the Dean of Students

The winners of the Paint the Town Green off-campus decorating contest are:

• Best Representation of the Homecoming Theme – Mountain Laurel Gifts
• Best Window Display – Passion Works Studio

The winners were announced at the Oct. 18 Yell Like Hell Pep Rally.

An Ohio University Homecoming tradition for the past 16 years, the Paint the Town Green decorating contest challenges local businesses and organizations as well as OHIO offices to showcase their Bobcat pride. Entries are judged on criteria that includes creativity, presentation of decorations and overall use of this year’s Homecoming theme, “Athens State of Mind.”

Fourteen entities entered this year’s contest, which is sponsored by the Campus Involvement Center and the Student Alumni Board. For a look at this year’s entries, click here.

This year marked the third consecutive win for Mountain Laurel Gifts and the second consecutive win for OHIO’s Department of Human and Consumer Sciences.

Melanie Quolke, BSS ’14, an administrative specialist in the Department of Human and Consumer Sciences, worked with students employed in the office to create both this year’s and last year’s award-winning entries.

Quolke said participating in the Paint the Town Green contest allows her and the students with whom she works an opportunity to showcase their Bobcat pride and to tap into their creativity. She uses the experience to show the students that you don’t have to be a professional artist to create great art, drawing on techniques she learned by participating in the Department of Housing and Residence Life’s Marti and Stewie Craft Nights as an OHIO undergraduate.

Here’s a look at this year’s award-winning Paint the Town Green entries:

Photo by Emma Howells

Visitors to the Department of Human and Consumer Sciences in OHIO’s McCracken Hall were invited to enter the office through a replica of OHIO’s iconic Alumni Gateway. The interior of the office suite featured green and white decorative paper chains and pompoms as well as an illustration of two minds “exploding” with OHIO Homecoming photos dating back to the 1960s. Taking an interactive approach to their display, the office offered visitors an opportunity to take their pictures using photo frames in the shapes of Ohio and Athens County, inviting visitors to put themselves literally in an “Athens State of Mind.” To top things off, a bowl of green and white beads was available for visitors to take with them.

The Office of Community Standards and Student Responsibility on the third floor of Baker University Center transported visitors to uptown Athens through its Paint the Town Green display. The front window of the office featured this year’s Homecoming logo and artistic drawings of some Court Street businesses that are part of Bobcats’ OHIO experience. The uptown Athens theme continued inside the office with tributes to Passion Works Studio and the Athena Cinema, including a replica of the cinema’s marquee, proudly displaying the “Athens State of Mind” Homecoming theme. Each staff member’s door was dedicated to one of that individual’s favorite uptown eateries, including Court Street Coffee and O’Betty’s Red Hot.

Photo by Emma Howells

The Paint the Town Green display at the Office of the Dean of Students on the third floor of Baker University Center was beaming with OHIO and Athens pride, showcasing words, phrases, businesses and locations near and dear to members of the collective community. The office was filled with historic OHIO photos, artwork and memorabilia. Staff within the office proudly displayed their personal OHIO decorations, and each staff member’s office door was decorated with photos and drawings that conveyed what Athens meant to them. Senior Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jenny Hall-Jones went above and beyond, displaying song lyrics on her office door that proudly boasted, “I’m always in an Athens State of Mind.”

Photo by Emma Howells

Mountain Laurel Gifts’ Paint the Town Green display was designed by one of the shop’s co-owners, Brian Rollins. The business’ window display included a replica of this year’s Homecoming logo and a “Welcome Alumni” sign, greeting Bobcats returning to the bricks of Athens and their beloved Court Street.

Photo by Emma Howells

Created by more than 40 artists and volunteers, Passion Works Studio’s Paint the Town Green display was by far the most colorful of the bunch. Bursting with Passion Flowers, the official flower of Athens, and other Passion Works creations, the display highlighted this year’s Homecoming theme in both words and visuals and even paid tribute to Southeast Ohio’s pawpaw, a native fruit.

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Ohio University’s Homecoming festivities continue through Saturday, Oct. 20. For more information and a complete schedule of events, visit Ohio University’s Homecoming website and follow #OHIOHC2018 on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.