Happy Fastnacht Day!

 Happy Fastnacht Day to all Danville Germans (and everyone else too).

2023 Elk Toss Results

Once again, the 75th Annual Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival was a success. We raised a total of $2200 which has been split between the following organizations. 

• Gate House: $1700
  
• Jana Marie Foundation, State College: $500
  

We also collected about a shopping cart full of food for the Danville-Riverside Food Bank.

If you have photos or videos that you would like to share, feel free to email them to us at danvillegerman@yahoo.com or share them on our facebook page. If you have any updates to hometowns, names, etc., let us know.

Men's Elk Toss

1st - Theo Parsing Danville - 49'4""

2nd - Michael Espinosa, Lewisburg - 46'3"

3rd - Rich Armpriester, Berks County - 45'6"

4th - Micah Willy, State College - 42'11"

5th - Ryan Zerbe, Maryland - 42'10"

Women's Elk Toss

1st - Tamara Wagner, Danville - 27'8"

2nd - Jill Roth, Berks County - 27'6"

3rd - Amy - 26'3""

Children's Elk Toss

1st - Cameron, Danville

2nd - Levi

3rd - Logan Shellenberger, State College

Boys Hog Toss (12-17 Years Old)

1st - Calvin Wagner, Danville

2nd - Nolan

3rd - Jaxson

 

Girls Hog Toss (12-17 Years Old)

1st - Alexis

2nd -Brooke Shellenberger, State College

3rd - Ella

Elk Bugling Competition

1st - Ryan Zerbe, Maryland

2nd - Karl Shellenberger, State College

***First ever Riverdance tiebreaker competition

Salad Toss

1st - Mark Temple and Jamie Garrett

Beard Competition

1st - Jeff Meitrott

2nd - Karl Shellenberger

Scrap Iron Toss

1st - Micah Willy, State College

Daily Item Article

The Daily Item (Sunbury) published an article about the Elk Toss.

Elk Toss raises money for charity 

By Justin Strawser

MOORESBURG — A convention of elk tossers gathered on Saturday for festivities and raising money for charity.

After being canceled for the past two years because of COVID, the Annual Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival — perpetually in its 75th year — was hosted by the Danville German Society at the farm of co-founder Van Wagner. All funds raised on Saturday benefited the nonprofit homeless shelter Gate House in Danville and the Jana Marie Foundation in State College.

“This is something we’ve done for many years,” said Wagner. “The Danville German Society is really just a fun group of people who want to have a lot of fun for a good case. Over the years, we’ve really gotten involved with the Gatehouse. That’s the charity that gets the most passing from our group. They really appreciate what it’s all about, helping families who need housing. That’s what we all rally around. Once you have a cause, you have a good group of people, the rest of it comes together.”

Opening ceremonies started at 11:30 a.m. at the farm just off Route 45. The events and auction followed at 12 noon. Activities included Elk Bugling, Scrap Iron Toss, Salad Toss, Block Shoot, Beard Contest, Puppet Show, and Skateboard/Scooter Competition. A charity auction was held between events.

The activities culminated with the 4 p.m. Elk Toss. The event ended at the Old Forge Brewing Company with live entertainment.

Husband and wife Paul Dennehy and Franny Geller, of Danville, attended the event for the first time.

“It is everything I had hoped for,” said Dennehy, who wore a motorcycle helmet with antlers.

“Me, too,” said Geller, wearing sausage suspenders. “I am very grateful for the chance to dress up weirdly and hang out with people who have idiosyncratic tastes.”

Dennehy and Geller judged the Elk Bugling contest. Both used their careers in biology to assess the contestants.

“We clearly had opposite strategies,” Dennehy said.

“We did,” said Geller. “He chose the very aggressive, dominant call, and I chose the slightly less intimidating one.”

“I’m just literal,” said Dennehy. “He said ‘I’m an elk,’ and I said, ‘That’s an elk.’”

To break the tie, Wagner consulted the rule book, which dictated that a “double elk bugle criss-cross” must result in a competition of river dance.

Cindy Powers, the program director at the Gatehouse, said it was her first year at the Elk Toss.

“It’s a beautiful day to be outside,” she said. “What a neat gathering. I love it. It’s fun and it’s something to break up the winter. It feels good to be outside and it’s for a good cause.”

Powers said the community is supportive of the homeless shelter.

“The community is why we’re there,” she said. “It’s a community effort. When we have a need, we let it be known, and it’s there. It’s hard sometimes because we’re helping people who are in dire straights. On the flip side, I get to see the generosity of the community. Why not have fun while we’re doing it?”

Mike Espinosa, of Lewisburg, helped Wagner auction off the items.

“This is a great event for community causes,” said Espinosa. “This is a real grassroots way for people to make a difference in their community. It’s a great way to get people together and bring out efforts and finances together to make that difference.”

 

Online Donations

Although it is difficult for us to understand how anyone could have other plans more important than the Elk Toss, we have been informed that some people are unable to attend this year. If you are not going to attend but are still interested in supporting these wonderful organizations, you can make an online donation using the links below.

The Gate House - "The Gate House is a non-profit organization founded in 1997 to provide safe shelter to homeless families within the Montour and Columbia County region of Pennsylvania. Our mission is to keep families in crisis together. We provide shelter and a stable environment to homeless men and women, along with their children. The Gate House offers seven rooms, five dedicated to families and two for individuals, along with services that help residents to transition back into the community."

Jana Marie Foundation - "Since our incorporation in February 2012, Jana Marie Foundation has devoted its energy to opening minds and saving lives through educational programming and community mobilization to empower young people in the Centre County region."

Gate House Donations

 From the Gate House Facebook page:

We are in DESPERATE need of the following:

Gently used full and twin sheets/sets, pillows, 13 gallon and 30-gallon garbage bags, cleaning supplies, dish detergent, toilet paper and paper towels.

If you or an organization, you know could help out it would be greatly appreciated.

 If you bring any of these items to the Elk Toss, we'll find a way to get them to the Gate House.

Barn Phone

 Wagner Barn Update....

We have recently installed a payphone in the barn for the Elk Toss. We know telecommunications are very important in the modern world and we wanted people to realize we are keeping up with the times. People may use the telephone between the hours of 7 and 8 PM on the first Tuesday of every month, except October of course.

Driveway Update - February 12

 ***BREAKING NEWS***

 The driveway is currently blocked with pianos. We need explosives to clear the way.

Elk Toss Reminders

Recycled and revised information from old blog posts with a few reminders for people planning to attend the 75th Annual Elk Toss...

1. Bring items to donate to the auction.
2. Bring non-perishable food to donate to the Danville-Riverside Food Bank. 
3. Bring Pot-Luck Food to share at the Wagner Farm.
4. Bring cash or checks (or bitcoin?) for the auction and event entry fees.
5. Bring a Drinking Vessel and your own beverages. The DGS was not able to get donations from local breweries like previous years, so we are requesting that this year be BYOB.
6. Wear Lederhosen or a Dirndl, or wear warm clothes and boots since we will be outside much of the day.
7. Please do not bring your dog to the Elk Toss.
8. Organize a carpool and drive an AWD/4WD vehicle. The Wagner Farm driveway and parking area could be snowy, icy, muddy, wet, hard, soft, rocky, grassy, or moist. Driveway updates will be provided as necessary.
9. Reserve a room if you want to spend the night in Danville.
10. Prepare to have fun while supporting some great organizations.
11. If you have a trophy from last year, please bring them back with you so that we can present it to this year's winner in that event.
12. Check this blog often for updates on driveway conditions, weather, entertainment, etc. 
13. More information about the Elk Toss can be found on the blog, especially here.

Driveway Update - February 8

 ***Breaking Dispatch from the Wagner Farm***

Driveway Conditions:

"similar to the emoji movie: horrible."

23 Days Until Elk Toss

With only a little over three weeks until the Elk Toss, you are probably wondering about the driveway. Don't worry, we will definitely provide updates before February 18.

2023 Elk Toss Information

After being cancelled for the past two years because of COVID, we are pleased to announce that the 75th Annual Danville German Society Elk Toss, Winter Festival, and Charity Auction will be held at the Wagner Farm in Danville on February 18th, 2023.

The general schedule of events can be found here. Events will begin at about noon and continue throughout the afternoon. Exact event times will vary depending on weather, attendance, driveway conditions, etc.

This year's events will benefit the Gate House shelter in Danville and the Jana Marie Foundation in State College.

We request again that you to bring cans and other non-perishable food items to donate to the
Danville-Riverside Food Bank. 

Also, please bring pot-luck food to share with others at the Wagner Farm. The Elk Toss will once again be BYOB as we have not been able to secure donations from local breweries.

Please bring items to donate to this year's charity auction, and make sure you bring money to buy stuff in the auction. Please bring auction items that you think that someone would actually want.  Please do not use our auction as a way to take out your trash.   

 

Feel free to dress up in your best German or Pennsylvania Dutch outfit. This is not a requirement, but be prepared to be ridiculed if you don't look German.  

To reduce the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease, please refrain from bringing your own elk or other cervids.

After the Elk Toss, we have arranged for entertainment at the Old Forge Brewing Company starting at 7pm. Music will be provided by Van Wagner and Ethan Weader and magic will be provided by Fred Iobst.

The Danville German Society recommends anyone who has enjoyed fermented and/or distilled beverages to book a room at the Pine Barn Inn (800-627-2276 or 570-275-2071). Information about other hotels (not within walking distance of downtown Danville) can be found here.

Elk Toss Preparation

This DGS Blog has not been used much since COVID-19 came along, but we hope to return to frequent blogging like we're back in 2007. For now, you need to know that the 75th Annual Elk Toss will occur on February 18, 2023 at the Wagner Farm. 

Here are a few videos to help with your preparation.

Tree Fort

Driveway Tips