Elk Toss Date Set, and Subsequently Cancelled (Tentatively)

The 75th Annual Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival has been scheduled for Saturday, February 21, 2015. Then we saw this:




With the forecast of snow this week, we are tentatively cancelling the Elk Toss until we have more information. Check back soon for the latest Elk Toss news, including driveway conditions updates.

Van and Mike in Lancaster - August 12

We recently sent out the following email to DGS members, and wanted to post it on our blog for anyone who does not receive our emails. If you do want to receive our emails, contact us.

On Tuesday, August 12 at 7:00 pm, Van Wagner and Mike McMonagle will be performing acoustic music at Tellus 360 in Lancaster. We wanted to pass this on to Danville German Society members for several reasons:

1. The show is just about 6 months before the 75th Annual Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival (ETCAWF). It will serve as an official meeting of the DGS Lancaster Chapter, and a reminder that the Elk Toss is only 6 months away. More details about the Elk Toss will come later this fall.

2. Van and Mike have been DGS members since birth.

3. The show is free, although cash donations benefiting CWS-Lancaster will be accepted.

More information about the show can be found here: 

And more information about CWS-Lancaster can be found here.

 Thanks,

Karl

DGS Co-President

Franz the Artist

When I was very young, we went to the Scranton Museum of Art. There, I saw a woman standing in front of a painting, and she was actually crying. I don’t recall it being a sad painting. My mother leaned down to me and whispered, “See, the painting is so beautiful, it breaks her heart and makes her cry.”

This made absolutely no sense to me whatsoever.

But then, I had not yet seen Franz Klingermann toss an elk.

Bears and Elk

The 75th elk toss is currently postponed due to bear sighting. We CAN NOT afford another "black bear at the beer keg" situation like we had in 1996:

Rick and Franz

Rick Victor still owns the house where he grew up outside of Scranton. The floor is dirt and you see bits of the sky as you look through the roof and the walls are as thin and brittle as graham crackers. But it still stands and Rick Victor comes by every so often to see it and to remember. His life is a miracle. That’s the thing he wants to remember. There was so little hope in that poor little suburb. Life inescapably led to the coal mines. Only his life did not…because of music.

The day he showed us the house there was a woman living there, and she is still there … she is a family friend and lives there for free. There is only one thing Rick Victor asks. She must not change things. This house must remain as it was because this house is what connects Rick Victor to a past he must remember. He was a chart-topping musician. He was a groundbreaking artist. He fathered 17 children (at last count). He is a hero to his people. He cannot accomplish all that he must do if he does not remember his past.

But even in this, the woman does not have to keep everything exactly the same. It is her home now.

“Right there,” Victor said as he pointed at a photo on the wall, “there used to be a picture of Jesus.”

The picture is now of Franz Klingermann.

Driveway Update - March 31

From the Wagner Farm:

"We got some snow yesterday. shamokin like half a foot. eagles mere 10-12". cancel elk toss?"

Fundraising Results

For the 2014 Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival (75th Year), we raised a total of $2000 and have donated that money to the following organizations:

The Gate House, Danville - $800
The Hope Fund of Penns Valley (Centre County) - $500
Lancaster County Conservancy Urban Greening program - $500
ClearWater Conservancy(Centre County) - $200

We also collected about two grocery carts full of non perishable food that was donated to the Danville-Riverside Food bank.

In addition to the money and food, 550 diapers were collected and donated to the Danville Area Diaper Bank.

More Elk Toss Photos

Check out the link to some more photos courtesy of Scott Staley via Fred Iobst.

Additional Donations Requested

We understand that many of you were unable to attend the Elk Toss this year because of the weather, and you were unable to contribute money to the great organizations that we are supporting.

If you are interesting in making a donation, you can make an internet donation to Van through his PayPal account. To do this, go to the PayPal send money site, and enter Van's email address - vanwags (at) yahoo (dot) com. You will need to log in to your PayPal account.

For a PayPal donation, make sure that you include Elk Toss or some other identifying information in the email subject or message to Van when you make the donation. Also know that the donation will be subject to a 2.9% + $0.30 fee.

If you don't have a PayPal account or do not want to create one, you can also make a donation by sending a check to Karl. Email him to get details on where to send it.

2014 Elk Toss Thanks

The 75th Annual Elk Toss, Charity Auction, and Winter Festival would not have been a success without the help and generosity of so many people. Hopefully this list is complete - please email us if we forgot someone.

Many thanks goes out to...

Our guest German Societies and Chapters:
The Shikellamy German Society (in their 74th year)
The Shamokin German Society (in their 60th year)
The DGS State College Chapter
The DGS Lancaster Chapter

Aaron and Karen Jensen for auction assistance, money collection, and more.

Franz Klingermann for not showing up to win the Elk Toss again.

Michael Espinosa for auctioneering and for serving as the puppet show director.

Francy Moyer for faithfully serving as our Faculty Advisor.

Everyone...
...for bringing auction items and buying auction items and taking those items with them when they left
...for bringing pot luck food
...for traveling to Danville in February to spend most of the day outside
...for having a good time

Voelckers Beer Distributor for sponsoring the event and arranging for donations from Elk Creek Cafe and Aleworks and the Old Forge Brewing Company.

Otto's Pub and Brewery for providing a donation.

Pam Shellenberger for organizing events, collecting money, and more.

Kevin Briggs and Van Wagner for performing at the Pub II.

Fred Iobst for performing his magic at the Pub II.

Heeter's Drive-In for hosting the ScrappleFest.

And most importantly.... the Wagner family for hosting the Elk Toss, plowing the driveway, providing supplies and an outhouse, and plowing the driveway (was that already mentioned).