Oct 28, 2024 - News
When life gives you hurricanes, make "stumpkins" and sandbag ghosts
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Rachael Coy's "stumpkins." Photo: Courtesy of Rachel Coy
It's going to take a while to pick up all that debris from Tampa Bay's back-to-back hurricanes, so might as well have some fun with it.
State of play: That's exactly what sisters Rachael and Sara Coy were thinking when they decided to paint some tree stumps for Halloween.
- The so-called "stumpkins" now decorate their yards near the Seminole-Largo border. All credit goes to Sara Coy, her sister said — she came up with the idea, and "hers are much cuter."
Why it matters: When life gives you lemons… Well, you get it.
Nearby, Seminole resident Suzy Minkler's medium was sandbags.
- She picked some up ahead of Hurricane Milton after Helene's storm surge crept too close for comfort, about a foot from her garage, she told Axios.
- "Milton was a long windy night, but thankfully no flooding or damage for us," she said.
Flashback: Turning debris into artwork may as well be a Florida tradition at this point.
- In 2018, Hurricane Michael survivors in Panama City fashioned stumps, shingles and two-by-fours into Christmas decor.
- A year before that, a St. Cloud family made an eagle sculpture from a fallen tree after Hurricane Irma.
📸 Have or know of some fun Halloween debris art? Email it to [email protected], and we may feature it in a future newsletter.