KARTHAUS — It’s that time of year again for yard sale lovers far and wide to descend upon this rural community and its surrounding villages to gather their spare change and dollar bills and scour 100 miles of yard sales for bargains.
One man’s trash is another’s treasure in the Quehanna area.
Members of Quehanna Industrial Development Corporation has been hard at work on this year’s 100 Mile Yard Sale planned for July 20 and July 21.
The sale encompasses more than 100 miles starting in Shawville on Route 879 and continuing to Medix Run throughout Clearfield, Elk, Centre and Cameron counties.
Participating communities include Shawville, Lecontes Mills, Frenchville, Keewaydin, Karthaus, Sinnemahoning, Driftwood, Pine Glen, Benezette, Medix Run and more.
Visit Clearfield County is 100 Mile Yard Sale’s main sponsor again this year.
According to Clearfield County Recreation and Tourism Authority Executive Director Josiah Jones, CCRTA took a much larger role in this event once QIDC founder Raymond “Sap” Savel passed away earlier this year. “We were asked to help organize and structure the event because the QIDC was unable to find certain records to help them with support in running the event,” Jones said. “The CCRTA helped the QIDC develop committees to help support the yearly events that the QIDC holds on an annual basis.”
Jones said Genon (Shawville Powerplant) also played a vital role in making sure that this event not only occurs, but also to make sure that it will be as successful as in past years.
“They were very instrumental in making sure that the directory was developed and also helping to develop a system to help the QIDC keep records of who participates on a yearly basis,” Jones said.
He added that the Clearfield County GIS director, John Kaskan, also helped by creating a map within the directory that will help every visitor find the items they want or need.
QIDC has many of its own volunteers that help with organizing and running this event.
“QIDC Secretary Chris Williams has done an amazing job trying to keep this organization running because she volunteers most of her time by supporting all of their events, organizing QIDC information and keeping everyone on the same page,” Jones said.
He said CCRTA has taken a more active role in QIDC events as well as others in the county to make sure community organizations and leaders are given the support they need to be successful.
“More visitors are coming to our area because these events are advertised more than ever before with the help of the CCRTA Sponsorship Program,” Jones said. “QIDC offers many events that bring visitors from all over the state and country. CCRTA saw an opportunity to help an organization that was in need of assistance.”
Jones said the 100 Mile Yard sale is important for the small businesses in the northern part of the county since it began more than 20 years ago.
“Our community members, fire halls, parks and small businesses get a financial boost and more visibility when the visitors come to our area for this two-day event,” Jones said. “We also love that it gives our visitors an opportunity to experience the plethora of wildlife that we have available in our beautiful scenic forest area.”
The 100 Mile Yard Sale directories have been printed and they are available for a cost of $2 per directory. Participation posters are also available at these locations for people hosting yard sales who have paid in advance or need to pay to participate.
Additionally, there is a detailed map offering each yard sale location for those who are listed in the directory. The locations where the directories are available are:
- Shawville Power Plant (Guard house), Shawville
- Visit Clearfield County Tourism Office, Clearfield
- Goshen Township, Shawville
- Girard Township, Lecontes Mills
- Karthaus Park, Karthaus
- Benezette Store, Benezette (Elk County)
Directories can also be downloaded and printed from the QIDC website at www.visitquehannaarea.com.
Additionally, commemorative 100 Mile Yard Sale T-shirts are available again this year and will be available at the following locations:
- Shawville Power Plant Guard Station
- QIDC Stand at Big M’s garage in Karthaus
- Benezette Store in Benezette
They can also be purchased before the 100 Mile Yard Sale and picked up at the Shawville Power Plant Guard Station as well as the Benezette Store. The cost for the T-shirts will be $15 for each, and they range in size from small to 4XL in adult sizes.
This year’s T-shirt has the famous cow truck displayed on it to honor Fawn Sensenig who helped organize and run the 100 Mile Yard Sale for years. And in memory of QIDC Founder Raymond “Sap” Savel who passed away unexpectedly earlier this year, QIDC has added a train and caricature of Savel to the T-shirt.
