Community

Third Annual WinterFest a success

Sugar Valley Rural Charter School's Third Annual WinterFest was held in the center of Loganton on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. What started as a blustery, windy day turned into a sunny, but cold afternoon! Despite the brutalness of the air, the afternoon turned into another amazing event, supported by hundreds of community folks and their families! The afternoon began at 3 p.m. with the musical performance of the community's own Sugar Valley Community Band led by Ashley Crust. Following that came SVRCS's Band led by Joe Mauck, and choir led by Shelby Folmar. Santa and his right hand elf arrived in style escorted into the town square by none other than our very own Sugar Valley Community Volunteer Fire Company truck driven by Chief Chris Miller! Santa and his elf proceeded to his hut which had been beautifully decorated and ready for his arrival. The children -- young and old alike -- lined the walkway to wait their turn to sit upon his lap and tell him their special requests for this holiday season. Santa's mailbox had returned for this year again waiting to receive the letters written by the community children and if they had not yet written their letters, a table was prepared for them to sit and do just that.

Other activities available were crafts and free books. The local Girl Scout Troop 40090 was on site assisting others in creating cards for service people and/or seniors in local care facilities; CMMS Renaissance Leaders offered up their afternoon to delight the children with face painting; Sugar Valley Church of the Brethren braved the elements to offer games for the crowd such as a ring toss and pin the nose on Rudolph; and the SVRCS Foundation provided a holiday Tic-Tac-Toe game to challenge those eager to beat their foe and Albright and Trinity Methodist Churches joined forces to extend some holiday cheer by handing out many delicious reindeer hot cocoa bags.

There was no shortage of photo opportunities either! Live reindeer were on site and ready to pose with families beside a beautifully restored sleigh provided by Jim Harbach. Some folks met up and posed with the SVRCS Phoenix mascot, Miss SVRCS's Isabell Culvey and even the Grinch!

Midway through the afternoon a contest was announced inviting those adventurous folk to take a stroll down main street searching for the hidden Yule Log. Two of our delightful face painters took on that challenge and won themselves a cake for their troubles made by Heather Hoey -- beautifully decorated to look like the real yule log!

Below the First National Bank there were two of the most beautiful black Percherons from Spring Valley Percherons pulling a lovely white carriage. Led by owner, David Hershey, these beautiful creatures carried small groups of townsfolk down South Street and back for a stroll back in time. Every half hour, guest readers made their way to the small park beside the bank to read holiday stories to small groups of listeners -- Mrs. Geisewite, Mrs. Kennedy and Mrs. Conoway each took some time to share a special story with those who sat before them.

Was there food, you ask? Why yes, of course! No holiday event is complete without delicious food made and served by several wonderful organizations! The Sugar Valley Lions Club was first on the scene setting up their tent and portable heater ready to serve hundreds of hot dogs! Continuing down the walk for those needing some warming up were the friendly ladies of the First National Bank who were constantly busy refilling the hot coffee and hot cocoa thermos! Hot, buttery popcorn was popping all afternoon and filling the air -- enticing those within its space to stop by for a bagful! Loganton Wesleyan Church Seeker's Group had been busy giving away lots of homemade baked goods and delightful treats. At the end of the walkway was the amazing selection of hot, delicious, homemade soups! Sugar Valley Concerned Citizens provided eight large roasters full of different soups to fill the tummies of those walking around town. Last, but certainly not least, the donut and cookie table -- oh, the cookie table! When the committee reached out to ask for donations for WinterFest, they could not believe the generosity of the community bakers! Cookies arrived by the dozens! And good thing they did because there was an amazing selection for all to contemplate and plenty to go around!

WinterFest is a free event for all, sponsored by the SVRCS and led by its WinterFest Committee. This event, however, cannot and does not exist without the donations and financial support of its sponsors. This year the following sponsors showed up in big ways to help make this magical event available to the community for free! Please show these businesses and organizations your appreciation this holiday season and all year round:

Carroll Truck Garage, Carroll Alignment, Twilight Diner, Nicholas Meat, LLC, The Hair Chalet, Teressa E. Miller L.M.T., Inn Style Salon, First National Bank, Earl's Garage, Schracks Valley Service, Loganton Borough, St Paul's Lutheran Church, Sugar Valley Community Fire Ladies Auxiliary, Sugar Valley Concerned Citizens, P Stone, Turf Masters, Robert & Janice Weaver -- Weaver Tree Farms, Schrack Farms, Nan's Donuts, Bobbie Jo Lamey, Ingram's Market, Gedon Funeral Homes & Cremation Services, LLC, R&S Miller Trucking, Booneville Barn, Sugar Valley Volunteer Fire Company, Sugar Valley Volunteer Fire Police, Sugar Valley Rural Charter School -- Staff and Students and their Wonderful Cookie Bakers.

They also would not have been able to entertain and serve our community without the help of the following organizations and businesses who graciously and lovingly gave of themselves and their time to serve the children and families who attended! They thank you all for the amazing work and your heart to give back to our community: Sugar Valley Lions Club, SVRCS Foundation, Trinity United Methodist Church, Albright United Methodist Church, Sugar Valley Church of the Brethren, Loganton Wesleyan Church, SV Girl Scout Troop 40090, First National Bank, Sugar Valley Concerned Citizens, Santa and his elf, Sugar Valley Community Band and the SVRCS Band and Choir.

Finally, a mighty big THANKS to all their volunteers who are too many to name but are certainly appreciated in a HUGE way!

And to the community -- they hope you felt loved and appreciated by those who provided this for you.