Be Mammoth’s catch-phrase king (or queen)

If you’re good at coming up with catchy phrases and you’d like to have your words etched into Mammoth’s history, you might want to consider entering the Mammoth Gateway Monument Message Contest. Elizabeth Tenney and the rest of the Gateway gang are looking for two catchy phrases. One for the entrance side of the monument and one for the departure side. According to www.mammothgateway.org, “The planned Mammoth Gateway is worthy of a national park entrance. It’s been designed to last 100 years and more, so the arrival message has to be timeless. In a few words, it sums up the very essence of Mammoth–both community and spectacular surroundings.  Suggestions [for the Welcome side] so far are simply ‘Welcome’ or ‘Welcome home’ or no message at all or ‘Pure Mountain Fun’ or ‘California’s Mountain Playground’ or ‘Life’s bigger here.’ or ‘Small town. Big fun.'”

You can also send in your ideas for the departure side of the monument, but you have to do it soon, the contest ends at midnight on Nov. 20.

Entries should be brief with words that genuinely represent Mammoth and will wear well over the decades. Send your entries to  mammothgateway@gmail.com. You can also follow the Mammoth Gateway Project on Facebook for updates on the contest and the project.

After the community submits message suggestions, the Project’s stakeholders will review all entries submitted 1) for appropriateness of message, 2) that it will fit on the sign and 3) that it’s not already trademarked.

The stakeholders group will narrow down the group of entries to the top choices for both arrival and departure messages, most likely the best three or four entries for each, and then the community will be able to vote on those top choices online. A link to the voting site will be posted at www.mammothgateway.org just prior to the start of the voting period. Authors of the arrival and departure messages that receive the most votes will win. Mammoth Lakes Town Council will then confirm.

Winners receive a three-line personal paver on the south monument pathway, acknowledging their contribution to the gateway project.