Save the Date for 87th Forest Festival
September 27 – October 5, 2025

Mountain State Forest Festival

8 hours ago

Announcing Woodly the Elf Makenna Grace Sfameni! 🍁

Director General Lisa Shaffer, Queen’s Department Director Megan Casto, and Citizens Bank of West Virginia have announced Makenna Grace Sfameni as Woodly the Elf, the official mascot of the Mountain State Forest Festival.

Each year, a Randolph County student, from public, private or homeschooled students, is chosen to serve as Woodly the Elf through a poster contest. Woodly the Elf is sponsored by Citizens Bank of West Virginia.

Makenna is the daughter of Michael and Ashley Sfameni of Elkins. She is the granddaughter of Brian and April Sfameni of Franklin, Tennessee and Joyce Henline and Brad Henline of Elkins.

In the fall, Makenna will be a fifth grade student at Midland Elementary where she is an “A” honor roll student. She will be attending Center Stage Dance Studio in the fall and has plans to play soccer and softball. Makenna enjoys playing outdoors with her animals, drawing, swimming, and Roblox. When she grows up, Makenna wants to go to school for Cosmetology.

In addition to Sfameni, four runners-up were selected in the Woodly the Elf Poster Contest. This year, the runners-up are Ayla Cunningham from Midland Elementary, Pierslyn Farley from Third Ward Elementary, Avery Hedrick from Jennings Randolph Elementary, and Brynlee Simmons from Beverly Elementary.

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Mountain State Forest Festival

1 week ago

On Sunday, Maid Silvia LXXXVII Sterling Anne Kump, visited Elkins and the beautiful campus of Davis & Elkins College for a reception held in her honor. Sterling and her Maids of Honor Macie Romero and Ellyse Goddard were welcomed by the MSFF Board of Directors, Assistant Directors, Queen's Department, and their families.

Thank you to Graceland Inn & Restaurant and D&E Dining Services for their sponsorship and hospitality of the event.

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Mountain State Forest Festival

2 weeks ago

Announcing Maid Silvia LXXXVII Sterling Anne Kump! 🍁

Moorefield resident Miss Sterling Anne Kump has been selected as Maid Silvia for the 87th Mountain State Forest Festival by Director General Lisa Shaffer. The selection of Maid Silvia has been kept confidential for months. Miss Kump will visit Elkins on Sunday to attend a private reception in her honor, sponsored by Graceland Inn and Davis & Elkins College Dining Services.

“From the moment I met Sterling, I knew that she was the young lady that I wanted to fulfill the role of Maid Silvia LXXXVII,” Shaffer said. “I saw in her the heart, poise, and spirit of a Maid Silvia. She carries herself with a quiet confidence and a sincere love for the Festival and community—qualities that instantly stood out and captured everything I was hoping to find. I have no doubt that she will represent the Mountain State Forest Festival with grace, gratitude, and genuine pride in this long-standing tradition.”

Kump, 19, is the daughter of Will and Amy Kump of Moorefield, WV. She is the granddaughter of Kerr and Susie Kump of Elkins and Dennis and Tonie Peterson of Marshfield, Wisconsin. She is the great-great-granddaughter of former Governor Herman Guy Kump, 19th Governor of West Virginia, 1933 to 1937. She is also the great-granddaughter of Cyrus S. Kump, former Director General of the Mountain State Forest Festival in 1933, 1950, and 1951, and one of three organizers of the West Virginia Highlanders. Sterling has two brothers, Cyrus and Reid, and one sister, Caroline.

The future Queen Silvia is a 2023 graduate of Moorefield High School, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude, was a member of the National Honor Society, and a student council representative. Sterling was a recipient of the Hardy County Community Foundation 2023 Bob & Betty Wilson Family Scholarship, 2023 Moorefield High School Scholarship, and 2023 Promise Scholarship. She was selected as the 2023 Moorefield High School Outstanding Athlete of the Year receiving the M.A. Bean Award for leadership in academics and athletics. Her other honors and awards include the 2023 Moorefield High School Outstanding Senior Female Athlete, Moorefield High School Outstanding Senior Volleyball, Basketball and Softball Athlete, 2022-2023 Team Captain in Varsity Volleyball, Basketball and Softball, 2022 Potomac Valley Conference Volleyball Player of the Year, 2022-2023 Senior Representative for the Chick-Fil-A Athletic/Academic Conference, 2022 Class A 1st Team All State Volleyball Team and All-Tournament Team and the 2023 Potomac Valley Conference 1st Team Basketball and Softball. Sterling was also a letter winner in varsity volleyball, basketball, and softball, and volunteered in several capacities for various Moorefield Youth Sports.

In the fall, Sterling will be a junior at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, KY, where she is a member of the University of Kentucky Beta Chi Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority, the UK Christian Student Fellowship, UK Invests, the Pre-Medical Women’s Society, and the MediKids service organization for pre-healthcare students. Sterling was a participant in the UK DanceBlue 24-hour dance marathon, a student organization that fundraises year-round for the Golden Matrix Fund, which supports children and families in the pediatric hematology/oncology clinic at UK’s hospital. Last year, DanceBlue raised over $2.12 million for the kids.

Maid Silvia Sterling’s future plans are to attend graduate school and pursue a career as a healthcare professional. She is the first Maid Silvia to represent Hardy County and the beautiful town of Moorefield. Maid Silvia Sterling’s mother, Amy Peterson Kump, was a Flower Girl in 1984, her aunt, Ann Kump Lewis, was a Flower Girl in 1985 and a Princess in 1997, and her aunt, Elizabeth Kump Conlan, was a Maid of Honor in 1998 and her grandmother, Susie Kump, was Director of the Queen’s Department in 1990 and 1991, and Co-Founder and President of the Maple Leaf Society.

In her spare time, Sterling likes spending time with family and friends, and going to the beach and lake. In Lexington, she enjoys attending SEC sporting events, community service activities with her sorority sisters, going to the horse races at Keeneland Racetrack, participating in exercise and fitness classes, and shopping.

Kump will be crowned as Queen of the 87th Mountain State Forest Festival during the Royal Coronation at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, October 3, 2025, at the Citizens Bank of WV Outdoor Amphitheatre located on the campus of Davis & Elkins College. Attended by forty Princesses from around the state, two Maids of Honor, and a Minor Court, she will receive her crown in an elaborate outdoor ceremony.

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