The 10-foot werewolf that’s charmed Plaza Midwood

If you travel down Commonwealth Avenue just past Plaza Midwood, you know Lefty. A ten-foot werewolf wearing swim trunks or bunny ears is hard to miss.

Myers Park may have its Hugh McManaway statue to mark special occasions; east Charlotte has Lefty the Werewolf. Lefty has become somewhat of a neighborhood icon, posing year-round in his holiday attire. If the neighborhood kids have any say, Lefty’s not going anywhere. And the kids are right: Lefty is silly, and he’s proven how much we all need a little silliness right now.

Lefty’s origin story began in 2022. Christian Crute shopped for last-minute Halloween decorations in Home Depot, but the store had moved onto Christmas décor. An employee noticed his disappointment and offered all she had in the back: an animatronic werewolf with no manual and, inexplicably, two left paws. Good enough.

After putting Lefty up in his front yard, Crute saw the flaw in his plan. What his mid-century bungalow had in character it lacked in storage. Where does one keep a 10-foot werewolf? He punted the problem by asking his best friend Bethany Jahn to decorate Lefty for Christmas. Then St. Patrick’s Day. Then Easter. As the friends feared the joke wore thin, they considered retiring Lefty. Then an unsigned note arrived:

“Thank you for your werewolf. My wife has been very ill for the last year. When we go out to the doctor she sees your big dude and she smiles. Thank you. You have no idea the gift you give.”

More cards arrived, mostly from neighborhood kids who waved to Lefty from school buses or on walks with their parents. One boy wrote to “The Wolf People” that he loved going to church on Sundays because he got to see the funny werewolf on the way. A child down the street insisted on daily walks to say hi to Lefty after school. Every day, cars pulled over so people could take pictures as they laughed.

Lefty stayed.

“It’s cool to know that someone might drive or walk by and it might make them smile,” Jahn says. “I’m all about doing little things that make people smile, like sending a quick note to someone.”

Lefty now has company. On Halloween of 2024, he married another 10-foot werewolf in a front-lawn ceremony attended by Dino, their new dinosaur best friend. (Just go with it.) That night, Crute’s front yard resembled a paparazzi event, filled with trick-or-treaters and parents jockeying for position to take photos of the happy couple.

Such is the joy of a neighborhood free from the constraints of a homeowners’ association. Here, two werewolves and their dinosaur buddy can party in full view of passersby. When people talk about keeping Plaza Midwood weird, they’re talking about things like this.

Despite the silliness, Jahn takes costuming seriously. Typically, she uses size 6X button-up shirts that she cuts open to put on then re-pins in the back. Skirts? Easy. Sweaters? Less so. Weather-appropriate fabrics? A challenge.

“Those six-foot skeletons that people decorate with on Halloween can move around,” Jahn says with a hint of jealousy. “But these guys? I can take a hand off, that’s it.”

Lefty dons everything from a tuxedo to a leprechaun hat, and no matter what, he fits in. “Plaza Midwood has a reputation where you can be who you want to be, whether you wear a suit or tie-dye,” Crute says. Also in Plaza Midwood fashion, Lefty is animal-friendly: Last year, a bird laid eggs in Lefty’s mouth, and Crute and Jahn paused costume changes until the chicks hatched.

It takes Jahn several evenings to decorate, and she has a self-imposed deadline: Each costume change must wrap up by Saturday night. She’s thinking of a little boy who will look for the werewolves on his way to church the next morning.

“I love kids. When we first decorated, we mostly thought about kids, but then we realized it’s not just for them,” she says. “It’s kids, it’s their parents, it’s older people. It makes people smile across all ages.”

Mr. and Mrs. Lefty love kids, too. In a bit of breaking news, I’m pleased to share that the couple will welcome a baby (cub? werepup?) this fall. Mrs. Lefty will celebrate the 2026 holidays with a growing baby (cub? werepup?) bump. This Halloween might spark another paparazzi event.

Lefty was just meant to be silly. Lefty was just meant to make people laugh. But Crute and Jahn underestimated how much a laugh would mean to so many people. Each costume change has become somewhat of a thank-you note to the neighbors who have told them so, including a couple driving to medical appointments, kids in school buses, and a little boy on his way to church. Signed, with love and silliness: The Wolf People.

Jen McGivney is a contributing columnist and former columnist for Charlotte Magazine.