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* Applause to the unexpectedly large crowds that came out for 85th Mountain State Forest Festival events last week. "We noticed that there were a lot more people out doing stuff downtown on the first night (of the Forest Festival) than in years past," Elkins Mayor Jerry Marco told The Inter-Mountain. "If the numbers are as high as they've been the first couple of nights, we expect really big turnouts once Thursday rolls around and into the weekend. But we are prepared for it because we really have top-notch employees working for the city." Here's hoping everyone got to come out and enjoy the MSFF fun today with their friends and neighbors.
* Applause to the Mountain Loggers Group for hosting its annual Ted Harriman Memorial Log-A-Load for Kids Auction last week at Newlons International Sales on the Beverly Five-Lane. The event is held each year during the Mountain State Forest Festival, with all proceeds going directly to the Log-A-Load Kids Fund and the WVU Foundation to benefit WVU Medicine Children's Hospital. Donors attending the event include forestry and wood products companies, as well as individuals from throughout the state. More than 70 companies and individuals raised more than $170,000 at last year's event. Since 2006, the loggers have raised a total of $2,272,202 to WVU Children's Hospital.
* Applause to the Randolph County Republican Executive Committee for naming Don Wetsch as Republican of the Year during the Lincoln Day Dinner in Elkins. Westsch has lived in Elkins for more than 55 years. He served in the Army, attended West Virginia University, and then had a 22-year career in the U.S. Forest Service in Montana, Idaho, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He served as the administrative officer of the Monongahela National Forest in Elkins, then worked with the U.S. Treasury Department in Washington, D.C. Westsch is a member of the Post 29 American Legion.
* Applause to Isaac Casto, who was announced last week as the new Upshur Cooperative Parish House's executive director. Casto had been serving as acting director since July. Casto previously served as assistant director and finance manager at Parish House, and did some work with the organization while he was attending college in Buckhannon. The Parish House has been helping low-income families in Upshur County since 1992. Parish House offered a backpack distribution this year, supplying more than 900 school supplies to Upshur County students at the start of the school year.
* Applause to the Randolph County Senior Center Fall Bazaar, a local annual tradition during the Mountain State Forest Festival which provides visitors with a chance to buy handcrafted items from local seniors. Randolph County Senior Center Executive Director Laura Ward told The Inter-Mountain the Fall Bazaar has been a staple during the MSFF for more than 30 years, and that supporting the crafters helps both local seniors and the Senior Center.