By Stephen Smoot
While Springfest saw its inaugural offering this year, one of the vendors had been selling on this site for much longer.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2102’s auxiliary deployed under the large pavilion at the edge of the grounds hosting Wardensville’s first ever Springfest. They laid out on hundreds of feet of covered picnic tables a broad spectrum of items for sale. These included household appliances, food, and a number of other items.
While the rain and chilly temperatures may have reduced somewhat the number of expected attendees, it helped to provide a boost to the effort nonetheless.
“What’s important to us is the Potomac Highlands Wounded Warriors Outreach,” said Cindy Dolly, President of the VFW Post’s auxiliary.
The story of that organization commences in Sugar Grove, Pendleton County. Two Vietnam Veterans and long-time members, Bill and George Armstrong had seen too many support groups take up donations, then use them to pay for organizational growth and salaries rather than help veterans.
As its website states “their vision was simple: create an organization where local people can come together to directly support West Virginia veterans through meaningful outdoor experiences.” Dolly explained that “this is specific to West Virginia” and that funds went to support five or six outdoor oriented outings for veterans every year.
These outings all involve outdoor recreation and include spring wild turkey hunts, May and June fly fishing trips, deer hunts, and black bear hunts. As Dolly explains, the program “provides transport, housing, food, whatever veterans need.”
Between six and 10 go on the trips, allowing the organization to serve between 30 to 40 veterans per year. Trips take veterans to hunting grounds and rivers for fishing all over the Potomac Highlands.
Denise Dove, auxiliary treasurer, shared that the yearly yard sale “brings in between $1,800 and $2,000 in sales. All of that goes directly to the program.
The outreach does more than bring veterans along on enjoyable excursions. Organizers note that the trips “use hunting and fishing experiences as therapeutic opportunities for veterans living with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder” and “showcase the sportsman’s paradise of Pendleton County.”
