Coloring contest winners: A basket of eggs worth shell-ebrating

Spokesman-Review staff members were egg-cited to hop on this year’s Easter Egg Coloring Contest, with dozens of entries from kids of the Inland Northwest.

The contest is divided among three age groups: 0 to 4, 5 to 8 and 9 to 12.

This year’s event didn’t disappoint, with several hard-to-choose-from entries of striking vivid colors, whimsical designs and humor that leave the judges in deep, analytical conversation – that’s not an eggs-aggeration.

OK, enough with the puns. Here are the nine finalists:

Ages 0 to 4

One judge described Ophelia Bond’s art piece as a “quilt of colors,” which brought a lot of joy to others in the room who agreed. Ophelia, 3, of Spokane, presented a classically designed egg, reminiscent for the adults who fondly remembered painting eggs at that age with our parents and grandparents.

Four-year-old Sloane Burke, who sent her entry in from Pullman, kept the judges in conversation with debate over its meaning. “That could be any of us,” a judge chimed about the figure inside an aura of rainbow colors. Among other figures judges discussed were past presidents – James K. Polk, William McKinley, Grover Cleveland and James A. Garfield were among many listed. (We know Sloane has a few years to go before her first history class.) We appreciated the discussion this piece inspired.

Returning finalist 4-year-old Ryker McConnell, of Spokane, won the judges over with his egg-cracking, cobalt-blue dinosaur bursting from inside its bright-green shell. Ryker’s was the only dino of the bunch and on theme with its birth symbolism. And, did you know, the T. rex shares an ancestor with chickens and other modern birds? I’d say that makes the baby dino a worthy chick substitute.

Ages 5 to 8

Ella Toth, 8, of Spokane, captured the landscape surrounding the Spokane area with her color choices, instead selecting more muted tones over vibrant hues. Her crisp lines captured hills, mountains, trees, waterfalls and a river, which the judges said reminded them of Spokane Falls. Ella’s artwork would make for a lovely location to hike.

Alfonso Burton’s entry, as one judge put it, was “meta” because of his dedication to assigning all parts of his piece to chicks and chickens. This included a batch of hatching chicks inside a colorful cracked egg, a chicken sun and chick town, as the egg appeared to be named. The repeated motif was charming and reminded some judges of “Alice in Wonderland” thanks to the artwork’s layers and swirls. Alfonso is 8 and also hails from Spokane.

Last among the 5 to 8 age group is 8-year-old Katelyn Thomas, of Spokane Valley. Katelyn’s entry was one of the few that drew from pop culture. While the “Wizard of Oz” might not have much to do with springtime and Easter, her artistic skills caught the judges’ attention. The multimedia use was also a plus, especially the added shine to the yellow-brick road.

Ages 9 to 12

Among finalists was repeat winner and Ryker’s big sister Addilyn McConnell. Nine-year-old Addilyn, who hails from Spokane, like Katelyn, drew familiar pop culture figures, but these ones were contemporary. The cast of “Hello Kitty” appeared to be enjoying a springtime picnic. Addilyn’s intention to draw outside the border and use the entire space also caught the judges’ attention. And lucky for her, some of the judges are fans of the cartoonish cat and her friends.

Paige Henry, 10, also from Spokane, presented an egg of eggs, which gave the eye a lot to look at in its repetition. The judges appreciated the intention behind the design and how the sizes changed from top to bottom. It was “the most eggs I’ve seen in one place,” one judge pointed out. Another thought it looked akin to a dragon’s egg with scales.

Greenacre’s Antonio Quiroga, 12, delighted the judges with his egg. As soon as one judge finished reading the message he wrote, several people cast their vote in his favor. His egg represents a real person dressed in blue and wearing a reddish-brown beard.

Antonio wrote: “This is Stevan the rabbit. Modeled after a real person. I made him for fun and I hope real Stevan finds this as funny as I do.”

We hope real Stevan finds it funny, too. We certainly did.

Entries are on display at the Mobius Discovery Center, 331 N. Post St., to where each winner earned a gift card.

The Spokesman-Review newsroom staff is overjoyed to judge each contest, so much so nearly everyone working drops what their doing to participate. The 2025-26 cycle, however, brought fewer entries than past years, with the Mitten Coloring Contest having to span two age categories instead of three.

S-R staffers enjoy participating and hope to be able to continue the tradition in years to come. We encourage parents, grandparents, guardians and teachers across the region to share with their little ones for future coloring contests.

We look forward to your entries for the Pumpkin Coloring Contest in the fall.