02 June 2014

At Heidi's insistence, I wrote the following letter to be read during afternoon announcements to express my gratitude to the Uniontown students who participated in this weekend’s literary festival, held at the Uniontown Mall:

I would like to thank the writers and sponsors of the UHS Tomahawk Talk for their support of the inaugural Pennsylvania Literary Festival—the first of its kind to be held in the entire state of Pennsylvania. The event brought in writers, publishers, artists, and readers from all over the United States, and Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett sent state librarian Stacey Aldrich as his personal representative. Ms. Aldrich was so impressed by the festival that she offered the state library in Harrisburg as a possible location to host next year’s event.

I would especially like to thank the Uniontown High School students and alumni who visited, bought books, talked to authors and publishers, and participated in workshops. Your presence at this event is what made it special. I was very lucky to be part of a team that consisted of three Uniontown graduates—Matthew Dowling, Dave Slusarick, and my wife, Heidi Ruby Miller. One of our primary goals for creating this festival was to showcase Uniontown and its people and you did not disappoint!

When an author or publisher asked about the kids they saw participating in the workshops I was very happy to be able to say that you were Uniontown students. It takes a lot of courage to be able sit through a class with professional writers—some of whom were more than four or five times your age. But taking that huge step in pursuit of something you love shows that you have the guts and desire to succeed, no matter what you chose to do after you leave UHS.

Many, many thanks,
Jason Jack Miller