During Holden’s annual Farmer’s Day celebration on Saturday, June 8, the Village unveiled their brand-new logo, chosen from the 17 design submissions from community members. Nilan Kostyk’s design, a resident of Holden and Grade 10 student attending Holden Rural Academy, was crowned first place and will succeed the Village’s previous logo.
The Village decided the need for a refreshed logo as a result of coming up with a new slogan for the Village, Holden Has Heart. Previously the slogan was, ‘Share the Charm of Country Living.’
“The Council had a strategic planning session in 2023, from that we came up with a new tagline, ‘Holden Has Heart,’ and it was decided to change the logo. Holden’s culture, recreation, and the school, are possible due to the compassionate hearts of the many volunteers who make all of these things possible, and as such, Council and Administration wanted to reflect that in the new logo,” Village of Holden Chief Administrative Officer Rosemary Offrey said in an earlier interview.
Kostyk said he wanted to create a logo for the Village as soon as he heard about the contest.
“My mom works at the Village office, so I heard about it right away. I was interested in submitting something pretty early, because it would be pretty cool to have my logo be part of it. I wanted to do a heart of some kind, because of the new catchphrase for Holden, Holden Has Heart. My mom thought about how Holden has teamwork and everyone’s bonded, so that’s why I thought of the heart-shaped handhold,” Kostyk said.
Kostyk said while the idea was simple enough, it took a bit of time to draw out.
“I did it by hand, and I’m not really the best at drawing, so it took a little bit to draw, but the idea came pretty easy,” he said.
Kostyk submitted two designs, the contest maximum, the second being a heart with a little cowboy hat. The contest submission deadline was April 4, and designers had to wait until Farmer’s Day for the final reveal.
“My mom knew that I was the winner on the day that Council voted, but she didn’t tell me, and kept it a secret,” Kostyk said.
Kostyk has lived in the village for the majority of his lifetime, and had relatives who have lived in Holden as well.
“I moved here when I was around two or three, but I’ve lived here since then. I’ve lived here most of my life and I’ve had some older relatives here too, so it’s an honour to have my drawing be the new logo of the village,” he said.
Following the unveiling, a free game of Plinko was set up, and whichever slot the chip landed into indicated the item won, which included bags, stickers, keychains, frisbees, ball caps, and pins, most displaying the new logo design.
There were cash prizes for the top three logos, $500 for first place, $250 for second, and $100 for third place. The Village was contacted regarding the second and third place winners, but a response was not received by press deadline.
Kari Janzen
Staff Reporter
