A fresh new perspective, a timeless tulip

COEUR d’ALENE — A silhouette of a runner, the backdrop of sunlight hitting the mountains and lake, and, of course, the Spring Dash tulip.

This is what Coeur d'Alene High School junior Megan Wood envisioned as she crafted her entry for the United Way of North Idaho's 2019 Spring Dash T-Shirt Design Contest, and it's what roughly 1,000 people will be wearing when the race takes place April 27.

“They always use the tulip,” Wood said Tuesday afternoon. "I thought that would be the thing that you see first, but when you look inside the tulip you can see it’s a running race and you can see part of Coeur d’Alene, so I wanted to incorporate all that, but I mostly wanted to bring out the tulip."

She said being selected as the contest winner is exciting and gives her a great sense of accomplishment while motivating her to continue her work in the arts.

"You never think that you would win something so achieving like that," she said. "It’s amazing to see people wearing your artwork and keeping it. They’ll have that forever."

Wood used pen and a little paint to create her unique version of Spring Dash art. She is a commercial art student in longtime CHS art teacher Terri Leonard's class, and two of Megan's classmates were runners-up in the contest. Several Spring Dash T-shirts hang on the classroom wall to celebrate the work of many previous winners who were also Leonard's students.

"The effort that they put out, it’s wonderful when it can be acknowledged by our community,” Leonard said, turning to Wood.

"When you’re able to see your work being professionally used on a T-shirt like this, I hope it gives you the encouragement to keep on going in your art," she said to her.

Leonard's classroom was visited by UWNI executive director Mark Tucker and a few representatives of Idaho Central Credit Union, one of the 2019 Spring Dash sponsors.

Tucker awarded Wood the $100 prize and shared her accomplishment with the class. Her piece was one of about 60 entries from high-schoolers around North Idaho. The submissions were reviewed by a diverse committee, which ultimately selected Wood's artwork as the winner.

"The artwork was fantastic," said Tucker, who has a minor in and keen eye for graphic design.

"I also think about it from an event producer's perspective of, 'What will look good on a shirt, what will people wear to help reinforce our brand in the future with a design that looks good on a shirt as opposed to just a poster or a piece of artwork?'" he said. "And of course there's the quality piece. And so, while some (entries) may be stronger than others, what we're looking for is something that encompasses all that, and we feel like this did."

The 37th annual Spring Dash will be held in downtown Coeur d'Alene, starting in McEuen Park. The 5-mile run goes through the Sanders Beach neighborhoods, along Coeur d'Alene Lake Drive and back to McEuen. The Dash also includes an untimed Tot Trot for kiddos 10 and younger and serves as a qualifier for Bloomsday's second seeding.

Registration for the Dash is $30 per person and $10 per person for the Tot Trot

Info: www.unitedwayofnorthidaho.org/springdash