The Cumberland Valley takes center stage this April as a highlighted premiere destination in US Airways Magazine.

The April edition of the magazine, which is available to travelers on all US Airways flights, will be read by some 3.1 million fliers, according to the Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau.

The idea for the section on Cumberland Valley in the magazine came from Michael Garland, the media specialist for Carlisle Events, which organizes some of the nation’s largest collector car, truck and motorcycle events.

“I was flying between Washington, D.C. and Dallas, Texas, just after Christmas and found myself reading the airline’s magazine,” Garland said. “In taking notice to its content, my thought was, ‘what can I do to have a feature written about Carlisle Events and the Carlisle area?’”

“At that point, I reached out to US Airways and, after our initial discussions, we found that focusing on the Cumberland Valley as a whole and all that the region has to offer would make for a great spread,” he added.

US Airways Magazine staff then met with representatives from Carlisle Events, the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center, Cumberland County Economic Development and CVVB in January to talk about doing a story on the Cumberland Valley.

The resulting article, titled “Hidden Splendor: Discover Pennsylvania’s Cumberland Valley,” addresses everything from local educational institutions to art to agriculture. The article also includes a brief “events calendar” that highlights some of the local shows and festivals taking place in Shippensburg, Carlisle, Mechanicsburg and Boiling Springs.

US Airways Magazine also offered discounted advertising rates for Cumberland Valley companies in the April edition, so ads for such local organizations as the Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet as well as Rillo’s Restaurant in Carlisle can be seen in the many pages of the section.

“It’s great to be featured, especially since the audience is about 3.1 million for the April issue,” Kristen Oakley, the PR coordinator for the Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau, said.

According to Oakley, after the January meeting of airline and local representatives, a few area travel writers, including JoAnn Greco who authored much of the section in the magazine, were hired. Local photography was even included with the articles.

“We were really happy with it,” Oakley said of the final article, which will be available not only on US Airways flights in April but also on www.usairwaysmag.com in the near future. “I really think it definitely had our flavor.”

PJ Heyman, the owner of Village Artisans Gallery in Boiling Springs, was also featured in the magazine’s section on Cumberland Valley. She was very happy with the outcome.

“It was terrific,” Heyman said of JoAnn Greco’s writing. “She did such a nice job. (It was a) very enjoyable read.”

“I was just so pleased with the way the whole thing was written,” she added. “(It) puts Cumberland Valley in a wonderful light.”

Garland agreed.

“It’s exciting to see the coverage not only for us but for all the attractions that are in the Cumberland Valley,” he said. “I thought it turned out great. All entities that were pitched in the initial meeting were fairly covered. (The Cumberland Valley) is a hot spot and probably even a hidden gem to some extent.”

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