ROCKINGHAM – Every year, right around this time, it seems that people develop a strong craving for crisp, white, powdery snow. Although many times this craving goes unquenched, this past weekend, many North Carolina residents got exactly what they asked for.
Late last Wednesday afternoon, the sky parted and large flakes began to drift down. As darkness crept in, the snow continued to fall, and entirely transformed the landscape of Richmond County from the ordinary into an extraordinary winter wonderland.
With everything then covered in a blanket of white, much of the area was closed. But many local residents did not seem to mind, and used this extra time off of work or school to embrace their inner child and go out to play in the snow.
Of course, though, in the current world of social media dominance, what would such an experience be if there were not a long line of Snapchat stories, Instagram posts, and Facebook albums to prove it?
For Remax Rockingham owner and Rockingham Downtown Corporation member, Jamie Moss, seeing the enchanted snowscape and the flood of Facebook posts of people enjoying their time in the snow sparked an idea – why not host a photo contest?
And as naturally as a snowflake is formed, Moss began working with the Downtown Corporation to turn her idea into a reality.
Through a small series of Facebook posts, the “spur of the moment” contest was launched, and took off like wild fire.
“It’s like it went viral,” Moss lightheartedly remarked. “It started with just an idea. I thought we’d maybe have 10 or 15 entries, and we ended up with over 500.”
The details of the contest were simple, because, as organizers explained, there really weren’t any rules. All entrants had to do was capture and submit a picture of their time in the snow and share the Remax Rockingham NC Facebook page. It was that simple.
But with such an overwhelming number of submissions, and an unlimited amount of creativity displayed by contest entrants, came the difficult task of selecting a winner.
So, Moss enlisted the help of her fellow Rockingham Downtown Corporation members to choose the best photo in each of two categories: landscapes and people/pets. Judges Robin Roberts of Hudson Brothers, John Hutchinson of Wells Fargo, and Susan Kelley of the Extension Office all reviewed the submissions and selected their top photo for each category. Moss then presented these selections to professional photographer, Jimmy McDonald, who chose the overall winners.
Ann Lammonds DePrizio was the winner of the landscape category with her submission titled “snow globe.”
Ann Lammonds DePrizio’s “snow globe” photo.
DePrizio, who embraces photography as one of her hobbies, found inspiration for her submission in her own backyard.
“I’d been out in the yard, and I just love the way that [garden] globes look in the snow,” she remarked. “I had a new globe that I wanted to play around with, so I took it out there and set it on the fence of my backyard. I was out there for three days doing it, just playing in the snow.”
Kathy Wolford, who was unable to attend the public award ceremony, was the winner of the human category. Wolford’s submission was titled “snow blowing” and featured a close up of her young grandson enjoying his time in the wintery wonderland.
Kathy Wolford’s “snow blowing” photograph.
Both winners received $100 in gift certificates to enjoy a hot meal at any of the downtown’s three restaurants, Hudson Brothers, Pattan’s or Henry’s Café.
For Moss, keeping the prizes specific to downtown was a top priority.
“We wanted to make sure that whoever one used our resources downtown so we can put good things back into our area,” Moss commented.
All involved in the orchestration of this contest were delighted and passionate about how it seemed to bring the community together, and how it provided an opportunity to use the presences of social media for something positive.
Following the success of this photo contest, Moss and her Downtown Corporation counterparts are already brainstorming ideas for what they can do next. Although nothing has been set in stone yet, they are turning their focus towards the upcoming Valentine’s Day holiday, and are looking to cupid for some potential inspiration.
