EASTHAMPTON — Looking out over the scenic Mt. Tom range in Easthampton stands Stu, a 12-foot-tall plastic skeleton. Though it is not Halloween, Stu stands proud in a rainbow tutu, waving a Pride flag for all passersby to see.
“Sometimes people stop in the road and take pictures,” says Grace Morin, Stu’s honorary sister.
Meghan and Johnny Morin, Stu’s owners and Grace’s parents, decided that they wanted to dress him up for Pride month — which ends Friday — when they saw a Facebook post of someone else’s 12-foot skeleton that was decorated to show its support of the LGBTQ+ community.
Stu and his family live on Park Street in Easthampton, with a yard that sprawls out in front of their home. The Morins said that they really wanted to do something with all of the space in front of their home that would “make people smile.”
During COVID, they began to experiment with various decorating techniques. First, they decorated their entire house in giant spiders. Johnny recounted thinking “Let’s make our house a show, we have nothing else to do.”
Meghan was the member of the family who was initially interested in buying the skeleton. When she and her family were visiting the South Shore of Boston for Christmas two years ago, she noticed a giant skeleton hanging Christmas lights in someone’s lawn. Meghan recalled being instantly inspired, thinking “that would look good in our yard.”
However, the particular skeleton she wanted was known for being on constant back-order at Home Depot. It took about 10 months before Stu joined the Morin family. Grace and Meghan picked out his name, and, as he was so hard to get ahold of, they decided right away that Stu was there to stay, whether or not it was Halloween.
Since then, Stu has been dressed as Santa, has been seen chasing a human-sized scarecrow decoration that the Morins named “Jessie,” and has been decorated as he currently is, in rainbow-garb. To provide a sense of just how big he really is, Meghan told me that Stu wears a 5X in “people clothes.”
Meghan recounted that her family felt that it was especially important to dress Stu up as a LGBTQ+ ally this year because they felt that there was “not as much support for the community,” so they decided that “this year was the year to make a statement.”
Though none of the Morin clan identify as members of the LGBTQ+ community, Meghan claimed that they have many extended family members who do.
When they aren’t decorating giant skeletons in their front yard, Meghan and Johnny Morin spend their time running the nonprofit they founded in 2006, Bikes Fight Cancer. While organizing the annual bike ride they hold to raise money for the Dana Farber Institute, Cooley Dickinson Hospital and Cancer House of Hope in West Springfield is not either of their primary careers (Johnny works for Outside Media, and Meghan is an independent marketing consultant), they spoke passionately about their nonprofit.
Since 2006, Bikes Fight Cancer has raised over $1 million for cancer research. This past year, they had 400 riders register, but only 300 participants due to an unexpected downpour. Regardless, they were proud to have held another bike ride to support a cause they care so deeply about.
The Morins stated that they had received a lot of positive feedback about Stu in addition to people driving by in cars and honking their horns. They have been told countless times by family and friends that their children have asked to take the long way home to pass Stu. Overall, the Morins believe that they can use Stu as a unique and creative way to bring joy to people who drive by.
“He’s not going anywhere,” says Meghan.