Keystone Central Reps to Laurel Festival
WELLSBORO — The Wellsboro community is inviting the public to join in the weeklong 75th Annual Pennsylvania State Laurel Festival celebration Saturday, June 11 through Sunday, June 19. The family-friendly event includes the Pennsylvania State Laurel Queen competition.
This year, Paige Alexis Sockman of Leidy Township will represent Bucktail Area High School of Renovo and her community as a Pennsylvania Laurel Queen candidate.
Miss Sockman is a daughter of Shawn and Michelle Sockman and was on honor roll as a senior. All four years of high school, she was a member of the Bucktail High School Girls Softball and Basketball teams, and of student council and the Environmental Club, serving as president of both organizations as a senior. She was a Rotary Interact Club member as a junior and senior, and a five-time blood donor for which she received a red cord at graduation. This fall, she plans to attend Lock Haven University and major in criminal justice.
And, Emily Walbridge of Mill Hall, will represent Central Mountain High School and her community as a Pennsylvania Laurel Queen candidate.
A daughter of James and Ellen Walbridge, she was on high honor roll all four years of high school, was a four-year member of the Nature Club, a three-year member of the National Honor Society and the German Honor Society, Class of 2016 president for three years, and a two-year member of the cross country team and the Rotary Interact Club. She entered math competitions at Lock Haven University for three years and at Bloomsburg University for two years, placing third in her senior year. A 4-H member for eight years, Miss Walbridge was named a 4-H master showman of sheep at the Clinton County Fair and at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. She has volunteered at her local food bank, a nursing home, the More Than Bread program, Relay For Life and the Great Island Race Series Triathlon. Miss Walbridge has run in half marathons and Clinton County’s Megatransect. This fall, she will attend the United States Air Force Academy and plans to major in both aeronautical engineering and business management. Then she plans to attend graduate school to earn a master’s in business administration.
While in Wellsboro, the 28 queen candidates will enjoy a full weekend of activities. At noon Friday, June 17, they will gather at the fountain on The Green for the official welcome. The young ladies will go to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon for a picnic lunch and tour. Following the introduction of the queen candidates at the free Queen’s Preview and Concert at 5 p.m. Friday on the outdoor stage at the Deane Center, the Zydeco Trail Riders from the Finger Lakes Region of New York will perform upbeat, danceable zydeco, Creole and Cajun music. Bring lawn chairs.
Saturday afternoon, June 18, the young ladies will ride on floats in the 2 p.m. Laurel Festival Parade. That evening at 6:30 p.m., the coronation of the 2016 Pennsylvania State Laurel Queen will be at the Deane Center’s Coolidge Theatre.
The Laurel Festival begins Saturday, June 11 with Family Day on The Green in downtown Wellsboro and continues during the week with a pet parade, seven free concerts and the June 17 and 18 arts and crafts fair and International Street of Foods with over 125 vendors. The Laurel Parade at 2 p.m. Saturday, June 18 will feature the Pennsylvania Bucktails, drum and bugle corps, bagpipers, high school bands, vintage cars, floats and more. The festival concludes Sunday morning, June 19 with the 10 a.m. Union Church service on The Green and a free 2 p.m. concert on the Deane Center’s outdoor stage featuring Jim Gaudet and the Railroad Boys playing country music with a rockabilly edge.
Tickets for the coronation ceremony are available at the Wellsboro Area Chamber of Commerce at 114 Main Street in Wellsboro or at the door. Admission is $8 for adults, $5 for senior citizens and students and free for children 12 and under.
For more information about Laurel Festival activities, call the chamber at 570-724-1926 or email info@wellsboropa.com
