By Elizabeth Sirianni
On December 30th and December 31st the Bethlehem Steelstacks held their 10th annual Peepsfest celebration. The event consists of all sorts of activities that children and their parents can participate in such as a scavenger hunt, balloon making, a mascot run, live music, and a Peepsonality contest in which you could create an outfit inspired by the chick-shaped and bunny-shaped marshmallows. The main event occurs on December 31st in which a 4 foot, 9-inch tall Peep (weighing in at 400 pounds) is dropped to commemorate the new year.
I heard about the Peepsonality contest in November when I picked up a Peepsfest magazine at Steelstacks. I was very intrigued by this aspect of Peepsfest in particular because I love to get creative especially when it comes to costume design. An idea instantly popped into my head: I could glue a bunch of different colored peeps to a dress. Although this may not sound like a very exciting outfit concept, I thought it may be just enough to win the contest. A few weeks later I ordered a bunch of peeps off of Amazon.com, and as soon as they arrived I brought out a bright orange dress that I had lying around and got to work. After I decided how I wanted to place the marshmallows on the dress, I glued them down and hoped that they would stick on. I then got another idea: I could cut out pictures from the Peepsfest magazine and glue them onto a pair of old rain boots that I had in order to add some extra flair to my outfit. After about an hour I finished my boots and then had yet another idea: I could wear a hat and glue a bunch of peeps to it, as well as tape a picture of the 400-pound peep to the top of the hat to make it look like it was being dropped down from my hat.
By the time I had finished the dress, boots, and hat, it was the day of the Peepsonality contest. I put on my outfit (along with a bright pink wig) and made my way to Steelstacks. It was embarrassing walking down the street in a goofy outfit with everyone staring at you but I knew it would all be worth it in the end. As soon as I got to the entrance of the building an employee approached me and asked what my name was so I could be entered in the contest. He was amazed that I put so much effort into my outfit, as most of the other people who were entering just threw on a peeps t-shirt and called it a day. I told him a bit about my process of making the dress and boots, and after that I walked around Steelstacks until it was 12:30pm, which was when the results of the contest would be announced. Luckily, a few minutes after 12:30, I heard my name called through the intercom and made my way to the stage where the announcement was made. I was greeted with a giant gift bag as my prize and got to hug the Peep chick mascot, which was certainly a crowning achievement in my sixteen years of life. As I thanked the announcer for my prize, I made my way back to the parking lot and made my way home. When I got home I immediately pulled out the contents of the gift bag which included a tin lunch box, earbuds, two stuffed animals, and a tumbler cup – all Peeps-themed, of course. There was also a lot of the actual peeps marshmallows included, varying from chicks to bunnies to snowmen shapes. Lastly, I got a few boxes of Mike and Ikes in the gift bag as well, which was pretty random but was appreciated nonetheless.
In conclusion, although I was over the moon about winning the contest and receiving my prizes, I would have also been happy if I didn’t win because I had fun and worked hard which is all that really matters at the end of the day.
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