Kicking off the Woodfest 2024 on World Wood Day at the Hardwood Mall was L-R: Senator Scott Hutchinson, ACV Superintendent David McDeavitt, Mike Vereb, Woodfest Coordinator; Venango County Commissioner Sam Breene, Hide Karns, Marketing Director for Clarion County Economic Development Corp.; Amy Shields, Ex. Dir. for Allegheny Hardwood Utilization Group; Jarred Heuer, Ex. Dir. for CCEDC; Jonathan Geyer, Ex. Dir. for PA's Hardwoods Development Council; Paul Smith, WoodMobile Coordinator; and Joe Kolesar, Mgr. of the Hardwood Mall.
Woodfest 2024 kicked off on Thursday, March 21, 2024, at the Hardwood Mall in Emlenton, on Squaw Valley Rd. March 21st was World Wood Day and International Day of Forests.
Woodfest is new this year in the Progress News reading area, and it was geared for everyone to share in the celebration of the forests and Pennsylvania woods.
The WoodMobile was on site Thursday, March 21, at the Hardwood Mall, it was at the ACV High School Friday morning, March 22nd, and was scheduled to be at the Clarion Mall Friday afternoon and Saturday.
The Hardwood Mall was the site to kick-off the 4-day event with speakers making brief comments about the wood industry in Pennsylvania. The hardwood industry in Pennsylvania has an annual impact of over $1 Billion in exports. And according to the plaque on the wall in the PA WoodMobile, the hardwood industry also generates $21.8 billion from direct output. $39.1 billion total output, over 60,000 direct jobs, 2,100 companies and 740,000 forest landowners, that creates an interest for all concerned for the economic interest in protecting our forest health and productivity for future generations.
There will be more about Woodfest next issue, as it continued for the rest of the weekend at the Clarion Mall, and was past the press deadline for The Progress News.
Joe Kolesar, manager at the Hardwood Mall in Emlenton checks out the bicycle, displayed in the WoodMobile, made of wood.
Joe Kolesar is explaining how the timber framework at the Hardwood Mall was taken from a barn in Venus PA and reassembled for the Hardwood Mall.
A display of a hardwood floor and furniture at the Hardwood Mall.
Mrs. Orton’s 5th grade class at ACV toured the Penna WoodMobile. Paul Smith, the WoodMobile Coordinator talks about wood products displayed in the case, while at the ACV School in Foxburg on Friday, March 22, 2024.
Mrs. Orton’s 5th grade class just completed their tour of the WoodMobile.
ACV 5th graders tour the WoodMobile on Friday, March 22, 2024.
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