By ELANA LAING
Happy Valley Adventure Bureau
Happy Valley attracts more than 5 million visitors primarily from a 250-mile radius. But this past May, one local resident and Penn State University student became a tourist in her own hometown. It wasn’t until Elana Laing started working as the public relations intern for The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau that she learned how much more there was to experience in her “charming, picturesque, and increasingly popular hometown.”
Elana Laing’s PR internship supported the Happy Valley Agventures initiative, which highlights and promotes the county’s agricultural tourism destinations and agribusinesses.
“Many of my videos and articles featured places that had been hiding right under my nose, even now as a college student at Penn State,” she said.
From beautiful flower farms to farm-to-fork dining, Laing began to write, film, and learn about how many memorable experiences there were within a 30-minute drive from State College. She covered many in this Fresh from the Field column.
Laing’s agventures began when she was tasked with creating promotional videos for the Dairy Delight Trail. They were featured as ads on the jumbotron at a State College Spikes baseball game during Agriculture Appreciation Night and posted on the @HappyValleyAgventures Instagram account too.
“As a local, I was only aware of Meyer Dairy and Penn State Berkey Creamery,” she said. “But I found that Happy Valley is actually home to four other shops that sell dairy products made from locally sourced ingredients.”
For the first time, on camera, she tasted a hand-dipped teaberry ice cream cone from Kinfork Cafe, a peanut butter fluff ice cream, waffle-bowl sundae from Wasson Farm’s ice cream stand, and a decadent, five-layer, three-scoop, banana split from Nittany Valley Creamery. From the Amish-owned Goot Essa, she sampled local cave-aged cow, sheep and goat milk cheese.
“I had only wished, one, I didn’t try everything all in one day, and two, that I had known about these delicious dairy delights sooner,” Laing said.
When she was asked to recall a favorite Agventures memory, Laing said she remembers helping to promote Centre Markets’ Centre of the Table initiative.
“This local business is a one-stop shop for locally sourced food products and produce. A memorable pilot project they hosted to support Happy Valley chefs and farmers was the Centre of the Table dining experience,” Laing explained.
“The Centre Markets operators wanted to highlight more of Happy Valley’s farm-fresh produce, local chefs, and bring the community together with signature dishes using local produce,” she continued. “This event highlighted the freshest and most unique dishes as a table-at-farm dinner right on Sinking Creek Meats farmland. The owners flipped the barn where they stored hay and feed into a rustic-chic dining room, covered with sunflowers and fairy lights for a whimsical touch.”
Laing said strangers, friends, and family from all parts of Happy Valley gathered.
“They found themselves clinking their monogrammed Laurel Spring Cidery tasting glasses, full of flavorful, floral and local sparkling apple cider wine,” Laing said. “And they loved the fresh vibrant flavors of the roasted beet hummus served with the crispiest and refreshing cucumbers, all while coming together to celebrate and enjoy the beloved Happy Valley community.”
The agventures didn’t stop at field-to fork dining; one of Laing’s assignments brought her to downtown State College where she helped Happy Valley locals and visitors become agriculture tourists amidst the shopping and entertainment.
Laing highlighted Tait Farm Foods products, including seasonal shrub drink mixers, available at Kitchen Kaboodle and Way Fruit Farm’s downtown store, among other locations.
Laing said she was beyond grateful to have had the opportunity to share all the new experiences she gained through the Fresh from the Field column. Whether she was out and about exploring and promoting Happy Valley destinations or reliving the agventures from behind her desk, writing column articles and editing reels, Laing hopes family, friends, and readers will also plan to experience these treasured destinations she greatly enjoyed discovering.
To learn more about local agritourism destinations this winter, visit www.happyvalleyagventures.com.
Elana Laing is a senior in the Bellisario College of Communications at Penn State University, and the public relations intern for The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau.
