UPDATE: UNFORTUNATELY, DUE TO SHORT STAFFING OF THE BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS THAT WERE TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS EVENT, IT HAS BEEN CANCELED. THE ENDLESS MOUNTAINS HERITAGE REGION WILL BE CONDUCTING ACTIVITIES IN AND AROUND VOSBURG NECK STATE PARK ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30. VISIT www.EMHeritage.com FOR MORE INFORMATION.
The Endless Mountains Heritage Region (EMHR) is celebrating its 25th anniversary throughout 2023 with a wide variety of recreational activities, 2023 PA River of the Year events, preservation workshops, and its first ever Endless Mountains Outdoor Heritage Expo (EMOHE). The Expo will be held on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 29 and 30 at the Wyoming County Fairgrounds, west of Meshoppen.
“The Endless Mountains Outdoor Heritage Expo will certainly be the biggest event of its kind ever conducted in our area,” said EMHR executive director Cain Chamberlin. “We’ll be pulling together a large number of outdoor recreation and heritage vendors, representatives from various historical societies and heritage organizations, and guest speakers on a wide array of related topics. It’s the best way that we could think of for sharing our valuable resources and our vision for the future of the Endless Mountains Heritage Region.”
Admission is free for the public, members of which will also have the opportunity to participate in a guided hike at the new Vosburg Neck State Park, educational programming, and a guided paddle of a nearby stretch of the North Branch Susquehanna Water Trail, which was voted Pennsylvania’s “River of the Year” through an online contest hosted by the Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds & Rivers (POWR).
Details are evolving daily as new organizations and businesses associated with heritage and outdoor recreation come on board. But there is still plenty of room for new vendors to join in and opportunities for sponsorship at three levels. There is a nominal fee for vendor space – $50 for businesses and $25 for non-profit organizations and agencies – and sponsorship ranges from $750 to $1,500, with benefits to sponsors increasing incrementally.
“Whether your entity engages the public with the outdoors, manages public land or trails, promotes our regional history, or sells outdoor recreational gear, this Expo is for you,” Chamberlin stated. “It will be a great opportunity to promote your mission, attract newcomers, boost membership, showcase and sell your merchandise, provide demonstrations or lead one of our informative sessions. The possibilities are Endless.”
Booths at the Expo are focused on outdoor/heritage businesses and organizations, but sponsorships are available to all companies. Top-level “Outdoor Sponsorship” costs $1,500 and includes recognition in all marketing materials, including social media posts, newspaper ads, and press releases. The company’s logo will be featured in the event program, and the company can pick its vendor location. “Heritage Sponsorship” costs $1,000 and includes social media post acknowledgment. “Preservation Sponsorship” costs $750. All levels of sponsorship allow for the display of a sponsor banner provided by the company, opportunities to provide promotional items to event attendees, free vendor space, and inclusion of company logos on event signage. EMOHE coordinators are also accepting donated merchandise for raffles.
Proof of insurance is required, or single-event insurance can be purchased at a nominal fee. Overnight camping for vendors coming from out of town is available at the Fairgrounds on Thursday and Friday nights for an additional $30. There are also options for camping at local campgrounds and lodging at several local hotels.
The Endless Mountains Outdoor Heritage Expo is being funded in part by the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Endless Mountains Visitors Bureau, and the Wyoming County Room Tax Fund. All forms for vendors and sponsors, as well as camping, lodging and insurance information can be found online at www.emheritage.org under the “events” tab or by sending an email to sschools@emheritage.org.
The Endless Mountains Heritage Region serves a 2,850 square mile area of northeast Pennsylvania that includes Bradford, Sullivan, Susquehanna and Wyoming counties. The organization serves as water trail manager for the North Branch Susquehanna Water Trail and is home to the new Endless Mountains Gravel Bikepacking Loop. For more information, including membership and volunteer opportunities, interested readers can log on to www.emheritage.org.
