By Breanna Francis, The Journal
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — As preparations are kicked into high gear ahead of the Miss West Virginia and Miss West Virginia Teen pageants, to be held in Martinsburg at the end of the month, pageant officials accepted the first seed grant offered by the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Convention and Visitors Bureau to help offset some of the program costs.
Longtime Miss West Virginia volunteer and producer Candy Reid said the Miss West Virginia organization was awarded the grant, which was presented by CVB President Todd Funkhouser to Miss West Virginia Executive State Director Shelley Nichols-Franklin.
“We are thrilled with the opportunities this provides us to grow our program” she said. “This is an amazing opportunity for our organization and for the new Miss West Virginia, who will represent us in the 100th anniversary edition of the Miss America competition later this year.”
According to a release from the MWVO, the Martinsburg-Berkeley County CVB’s seed grant is awarded to an organization or an event with the potential to increase tourism in Berkeley County and was created in hopes of helping to take these projects to the “next level,” offering funds over the course of three years to maximize opportunities for growth…