Bigger, better Business Expo highlights Thurmont    

By James Rada, Jr.
Thurmont News Editor

THURMONT, Md. – Between 1,400 and 1,600 people attended the second annual Thurmont Business Expo at Catoctin High on Friday, March 31. The three-hour event was created by Thurmont’s Economic Development Commission to highlight the area’s businesses and services.

Last year, 74 exhibitors hosted about 650 visitors at the first expo. This year, 95 exhibitors filled both gyms at the high school and the hallway between them.

One of the exhibitors was Diana Stull, owner of The Beauty Parlor of Thurmont. Her area was elaborately decorated for the expo’s Mardi Gras theme. She and her employees also dressed for the theme and handed out beauty samples and chocolate hair dryers to visitors.

“I wanted to participate and be a part of Thurmont just for the fun of it,” Stull said.

Rebuilders, Inc., a local landscaping and lawn care company, probably spent the most time assembling its booth. The owners spent two hours building a stone patio and walls.

“We wanted to let people see more of what we can do,” said owner Michael McKeel.

And the crowd not only saw what they could do but also enjoyed seeing what other businesses had to offer.

Jody Stinson and her family have lived in Thurmont for about a year. Though she likes living in the town, she really didn’t know what Thurmont had to offer.

She came to the expo because, “I wanted to learn more about the town so I don’t have to travel to other towns for things.” She said she enjoyed the family friendly atmosphere of the expo and will be using a lot of the businesses she saw there.

Josh Knoll came from Waynesboro to attend the event with a couple of his friends, Amanda and Brittney Wright. They left the expo laughing and said it had been “cool,” “fun,” and “awesome.”

A number of non-profit organizations also participated. Erin Dingle, branch manager of the Thurmont Library used the expo to officially kick-off the new Friends of the Thurmont Library.

“We had a lot of people stop by interested in joining and some even paid their dues,” Dingle said.

Seven area businesses offered food to attendees, including crab dip from the Shamrock Restaurant and sno-cones from Gateway.

Maggie Doll with Gateway said she brought 500 cups for sno-cones and had to get more before the evening ended. She also brought 300 chocolate-covered frozen bananas, which all quickly disappeared.

Barbara Lewis of Thurmont said, “The food was good and the decorations were wonderful.”