Tennessee Tech Students Help Bring Five-Year Dream to Life in Historic WestSide
(UCBJ) — A five-year dream is coming to life this fall for Tennessee Tech lecturer Colleen Mestayer with Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery, a children’s story and interactive experience that will lead visitors through Cookeville’s historic WestSide.
Inspired by a scavenger hunt she discovered while attending a conference in Greenville, South Carolina, Mestayer envisioned a similar experience for Cookeville that would encourage exploration and community engagement.
Alongside fellow Tech faculty member Amy Hill, Mestayer received a Rural Reimagined grant from Tech to fund the project. From there, the pair partnered with English majors who explored Cookeville’s historic WestSide and began developing story concepts.
The winning idea, Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery, tells the story of a mother elephant searching for her daughter, who leaves clues behind in the form of ice cream scoops falling from the towering cone she carries. The trail Ellie follows in the book will be marked with permanent art installations created by local sculptor David Fricke.
“The story is that Ellie and her daughter go to Cream City, and her daughter gets 10 scoops on her ice cream cone and runs away,” Mestayer stated. “The mama is looking for her, and she follows the path of the drips and scoops that fall off the ice cream cone, each marked with a beautiful sculpture by David.”
The project grew into a years-long collaborative effort involving Tech students and faculty, local artists, businesses and city leaders.
Through the project, Tech students gained hands-on experience in creative writing, illustration and graphic design while helping create a permanent attraction for the Cookeville community.
“Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery took a tremendous amount of collaboration,” Mestayer said. “I’m especially proud of the impact this had on the students involved and how it created opportunities for not only collaboration but exploration of Cookeville.”
The creative team behind Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery included writers Ashley Hale, Justin Lee, Joseph Andrews, Kassi Haney and Lila Stamps, illustrator Aimee Lawrence Slagle and designer Otis Smyth.
Sponsors include:
- Builders Supply Block Company
- Citizens Bank
- Cookeville Honda
- Home Depot
Stops on Ellie’s route include:
- Cream City
- Cookeville Depot Museum
- Ralph’s Donuts
- Plenty Downtown Bookshop
- Cookeville Performing Arts Center
- Poet’s Coffee
- Heart of the City Playground
- Putnam County Library
- Crawdaddy’s WestSide
- Cookeville Visitor Shop
Physical copies of Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery will be available for purchase at Plenty Downtown Bookshop, the Depot Museum and the Cookeville Visitor Shop. The project will officially debut during Cookeville’s Art Prowl Nov. 13-14, inviting residents and visitors to follow Ellie’s journey through downtown Cookeville while discovering local businesses, landmarks and public art.
Cover art for Ellie’s Ice Cream Mystery, illustrated by Aimee Lawrence Slagel.
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