The name is “Dewey.”

Martha Pettigrew’s rabbit sculpture will be called “Dewey” in honor of the newly-decorated Fountain Hills Branch Library.

Sydnee Pilarski was the winner of a naming contest sponsored by the Library Association.

Pilarski, 10, is a Fountain Hills resident and is in the fifth grade at Laguna Elementary in Scottsdale.

“Reading and the Fountain Hills Library have both been a huge part of Sydnee’s upbringing, and this just adds to the positive influence literacy has had on her,” said her mother, Jayne Pilarski.

Interest in the contest was encouraging to FHLA board members.

Everyone who entered the library this past month immediately saw the playful rabbit sculpture sitting in the middle of the lobby, with the invitation to enter the naming contest.

Some 206 young people, 18 and under, submitted entries to name the rabbit.  One enterprising elementary teacher made contest entry forms for all of her students.

Selection of the “right” name was difficult.  Names such as Trickster, Ihop, Fluffers, Duchess and many others caught the eyes of the committee.

However, Pilarski’s “Dewey” emerged at the top of the list. Her appreciation and love for books and the local library won the day.

As the winner of the contest, Pilarski will receive three gifts: a certificate for $50 from Phil’s Filling Station Grill; a $20 certificate from Chocofin; and another from Redendo’s Pizza.

The FHLA extends a big “thank you” to these generous businesses for honoring the contest winner.

The Rabbit Naming Contest not only drew the interest of Fountain Hills’ younger people.  Forty-six adults, ranging from 19 to 90, also had fun entering names for the rabbit.

The Dewey Decimal System has been used by libraries all over the world for decades. Even though the local library is currently in the process of making some changes in its system, it has also used the “Dewey” system since its inception.

“Dewey” the rabbit will be placed permanently in the Centennial Circle in front of the library and dedicated on Feb. 12 during the ceremony in honor of the state’s 100th birthday.

The purchase of “Dewey” was made possible by major donor The Fountain Hills Library Association; and other generous donors who contributed to its purchase: Akito Masunaga, Carol and Sid Coates, Dennis and Linda Kester, Al and Sharon Koehlinger, Bill and Sally Mantle, Wally and Sheila Nichols and Sandi Thompson and Norm Nominee.