Hudson: As Adam Martin painted a head and Taylor Hoppes worked on the tail end of a big purple dragon that filled a shop window at Solaire Hair Studio and Spa, Martin thought of the first window scene he painted seemingly not so long ago.
“I’m sad I can’t do it next year,” Martin said. “I looked forward to it when I was in fifth grade and I could do it for the first time.
“It’s not even embarrassing,” he said of his first window painting. “It’s nice to see how much you’ve grown.”
Adam, 18, and Taylor, 17, both seniors at Hudson High School, were among 505 kids who teamed up on Sunday to paint windows all over downtown Hudson, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the city’s Halloween window painting event.
Over the past 50 years, the event has become as symbolic of the fall season as changing leaves. Every October, Hudson school kids transform the windows of shops downtown into painted Halloween scenes with ghouls and goblins from their imaginations.
“I think it really reflects the whole spirit of the season,” Taylor said. “It just really makes people happy.”
50-year tradition
The Hudson Chamber of Commerce started the event back in 1967 when kids in fifth through eighth grade painted shop windows on Main Street for cash prizes.
By the fifth year, over 150 kids participated in decorating windows not only on Main Street, but also in the Hudson Plaza, Turner’s Mill, state Route 303 and the Acme Plaza.
In the 1980s, the contest grew so popular that prizes included 10 weeks of art lessons at the Cleveland Museum of Art and Kent State University.
Laura Hudeck of Hudson painted the very first year, and although she doesn’t remember what she painted, she does remember the whopping $10 first prize she and her partner got to split when they won the contest.
“We thought that was big money,” said Hudeck, who was 10 at the time.
Hudeck went on to serve on the event’s committee for several years. At that time, she got to watch her son paint windows just like she did as a kid.
“That’s kind of the cool thing about it. Other than getting bigger, it really hasn’t changed,” Hudeck said. “Hudson’s got some really unique things. It’s kind of what makes it a special place to live for a kid growing up.”
Changes over time
On top of the 50th anniversary, Sunday also marked a record number of participants who painted 206 windows around the downtown area.
First-time painters got to decorate shops on Main Street, while more seasoned painters got dibs on the bigger windows in the First and Main shopping plaza and down the road at Jo-Ann Fabrics, this year’s main sponsor.
Each kid signed up online and submitted their drawings, and members of the Hudson Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) assigned each student a spot.
Annette Affeldt, the co-chair for the event, said since Hudson’s shopping area has grown, more kids have been able to participate in the event.
“I think it’s amazing that a small community like this can keep such a cool tradition going,” Affeldt said. “It just shows what this community is all about.”
To be more inclusive, the event’s committee removed prizes from the mix a few years back. This year, each participant got a T-shirt that Adam and Taylor designed themselves, along with a commemorative coin for the event’s anniversary.
Also new this year were seniors from Hudson High School in the middle of the green carving pumpkins, which will be lit up during the city’s trick-or-treating on Oct. 31.
“It’s just a huge tradition,” said Gaby Palazzo, 17, who was carving a giant number 50 into a pumpkin. “It’s a great way to get out and see how the whole community comes together.”
As the event has grown over the years, it’s become just as much a tradition for the kids as it has for the parents. Many parents there with their children have fond memories of painting as kids.
“It’s great that the tradition continues and stores still allow their windows to be mostly covered,” said Samir Bhatia, whose son Nayan, 10, and niece Sunita, 10, painted a window at a Panera Bread together. “It was always a nice feeling to drive by and see your window, so I’m glad my son can experience that too.”
“I feel like it was just a few years ago that I was painting,” said Kabir Bhatia, Samir’s brother and Sunita’s father. Kabir and Samir painted windows together in the 1990s.
And businesses downtown get more than just pretty windows. Many families stop by after a long day of painting for a bite to eat or something to drink.
“It’s crazy for the window painting,” said Deborah Pinnell, the owner of Open Door Coffee Co.. “It’s near and dear to people’s hearts.”
Theresa Cottom can be reached at 330-996-3216 or tcottom@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her on Twitter @Theresa_Cottom .