Event honors organizations and individuals throughout PA Wilds, along with milestone anniversaries for PA Wilds and Allegheny National Forest
PUNXSUTAWNEY — On July 27, the 11 recipients of the 2023 Champions of the Pennsylvania Wilds Awards were recognized for their efforts to help grow and sustainably develop the region’s outdoor recreation economy and nature tourism.
Approximately 200 people from across the 13-county PA Wilds region and Harrisburg gathered to celebrate the award winners during the 2023 PA Wilds Dinner & Awards, held at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney, Jefferson County.
The event is organized by the PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc. (PA Wilds Center) and the PA Wilds Planning Team, and the theme for this year’s dinner was “Celebrating Decades of Conservation and Innovation.”
The Champion of the Pennsylvania Wilds Awards celebrate individuals, groups, organizations, communities and businesses that in the last year have made significant contributions to the region’s outdoor recreation economy, helping to create jobs, diversify local economies, inspire stewardship and improve quality of life.
Award winners, announced in May, include the following: Artisan of the Year, Sue Morris; Best Brand Ambassador, New Trail Brewing Co.; Business of the Year, Highland Chocolates; Conservation Stewardship, Kelly Williams; Event of the Year, Potter-Tioga Maple Weekend; Great Design, River’s Landing Event Center; Great Places, Cook Forest Sensory Trail; Inspiring Youth (Individual), Alex Luckenbill; Inspiring Youth (Organization), Allegheny Mountain Chapter of Trout Unlimited; Outstanding Leader, Erick Coolidge; and PA Wilds Planning Team Member of the Year, Dan Glotz.
“This was a monumental year, with many organizations around the region, including the PA Wilds itself, celebrating milestone anniversaries,” said Jason Fink, PA Wilds Center board member and Outreach Committee member who also emceed the event.
“In addition to celebrating the Champion Award winners this year, we took time to recognize the region’s long history of stewardship and economic development. The theme for this year’s dinner was ‘Celebrating Decades of Conservation & Innovation.’ This year marks the 20th anniversary of the creation of the Pennsylvania Wilds brand, the 10th anniversary of PA Wilds Center’s founding, and the centennial for the Allegheny National Forest, to name a few.”
“It was inspiring to be able to celebrate the history of not just the PA Wilds Center and the PA Wilds region but also the many organizations that have decades of service to this landscape and to our residents. This is truly generational work,” said Ta Enos, founder and chief executive officer of the PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship.
“There is hard work and effort being done every day within our Pennsylvania Wilds region to strengthen our communities, and the PA Wilds Dinner is a chance to reflect on those efforts and the many people who love and support our rural region.”
The awards were created by Lisa Conklin Conn of Conklin Studio Pottery, a Creative Maker in the Wilds Cooperative of Pennsylvania (WCO). Based in McKean County, Conklin Studio Pottery gave the awards a different look than in the past by creating them out of ceramic, with details such a beehive pattern to harken to the PA Wilds Center’s logo and a natural brown ceramic color to celebrate natural beauty.
Kelly Williams of the Clearfield County Conservation District received the 2023 PA Wilds Champion Award for Conservation Stewardship.
In addition to stream work and protecting wetlands, Williams was involved in the effort to improve water quality in the Deer Creek Watershed, which was impaired by Acid Mine Drainage and had not been able to support any aquatic life for over 70 years.
Wild trout can now be supported in this beautiful area of the PA Wilds, thanks to efforts of Williams and her colleagues at Clearfield County Conservation District.
Williams is a past recipient of the Golden Reel Award from the Allegheny Mountain Chapter of Trout Unlimited. The PA Wilds Champion Award was presented by Matt Marusiak, PA Wilds Center board member.
River’s Landing Event Center also received the 2023 PA Wilds Champion Award for Great Design, with Rob Swales (chief executive officer of Clearly Ahead Development) accepting the award.
River’s Landing Event Center is a two-story, 11,500-square-foot multi-occupancy facility in Downtown Clearfield.
River’s Landing incorporates several themes of the PA Wilds Design Guide, such as inclusion of water, glass, stone, metal, signage, lighting and locally-sourced materials.
Attention to placement of windows and outdoor seating was considered to take advantage of optimal shade and sun times.
Lighting was directed downward, so as not to impact our dark skies. The award was presented by Rick Vilello, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development’s deputy secretary of Community Affairs and Development.
