Welcome from the 2023 BOARD

Welcome to the 2023 Mason County Forest Festival. The theme of this year's Forest Festival "Tall Timbers" celebrates the 79th anniversary of this event. Mason County Forest Festival Association is a volunteer organization, incorporated in 1947 as a non-profit.

Thank you to all of local sponsors of this event – including the business and organizations featured in this program – Without their support the Forest Festival legacy would not be alive still after nearly eight decades. Consider these businesses and organizations when shopping in our community.

Timber Legacy Begins

The first known saw mill in the area was built in 1853 just south of Shelton, by Michael T. Simmons. This was the beginning of the timber harvest of Mason County. Imagine, when Forest Festival began, they had been actively logged for more than 90 years! Several others would join in including Sol Simpson who incorporated Simpson Logging Co. in 1895.

Only you Can

Along with celebrating the rich history of Mason County's timber heritage, Forest Festival was started to promote forest fire prevention. Whether started by lightning or human, fire was and is something that forest managers despise for the loss of timber, property and, most of all – lives! By the early 1940s there had been so many wildfires that in 1944 the Smokey Bear Wildfire Prevention campaign began.

Smokey's original slogan was "Smokey Says - Care Will Prevent 9 out of 10 Forest Fires" in 1947, the slogan changed to "Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires." Forest Festival was an member of the local chapter of the Keep Washington Green Committee. For many years there were parade floats themed around forest fire prevention and logging history.

Thank you VOLUNTEERS

Darrel Andrews, Amy Cooper, Central Mason Fire & EMS, City of Shelton Public Works & Parks, David Dalzatto, Tanya & Mark Frazier, Martha Reed Foundation, Steve Galka, John, Rachel, Zach & Charlotte Hansen, Denis Leverich, Anna Liljas, Erica Marbet, Kim McElliott, Genie McFarland, Amanda Peralta, Robin Redman, Grace Renecker, Lislie Sayers, Bri Sheetz, Linda Shrum, Jeff Slakey, Jamey Taylor, Diane Zoren, and the Royalty Court families for decorating and driving the Forest Festival float to parades.

Continued next page!

If we missed anyone, accept our deepest apologies.