The City of Troy was showcased at the annual Winterfest Expo at Fort Walton and nearly 3,000 people, many of them snowbirds, now know more about what Troy has to offer visitors as well as its citizens.

Shelia Jackson, Troy’s director of tourism, said the tourism department takes advantage of every opportunity to put the city before the public.

“Troy is a wonderful place to live, work and play,” Jackson said. “It’s in an ideal location and has all of the advantages of small town living but is near big cities, the beaches, the mountains and recreational lakes. Troy can boast of being the home to Troy University, a Division 1 university, with many educational opportunities and arts entertainment and sporting events.”

Catherine Jordan, assistant director of tourism, said snowbirds who “migrate” South to escape the winter weather of the North and Midwest are always looking for places to go and something to do.

“Highway 231 is a main artery through the state to the beaches along the Florida Panhandle,” Jordan said. “So many of the snowbirds are already familiar Troy just by passing through. We want to show them reasons why they should stop or reasons to come back when they reached their destinations.”

Jordan said the Troy Tourism Department provided information about the Johnson Center for the Arts, the Pioneer Museum of Alabama, the city’s historic residential and downtown areas and Troy University.”

Jordan also promoted Pike County’s annual festivals that celebrate food, arts and music.

“The Peanut Butter Festival in Brundidge, TroyFest that is a juried arts and crafts show, the Pike Piddlers Storytelling Festival and the Henderson Bluegrass Festivals attract thousands to Pike County each year and provided entertainment for our citizens,” Jordan said.

“We also took advantage of the Alabama Tourism Department’s ‘Year of Alabama Food’ promotion. We are fortunate to have five restaurants in Pike County included in the tourism department’s ‘100 places to eat before you die’ brochure – Mossy Grove, Sisters and Crowe’s in Troy, The Old Barn Restaurant in Goshen and Sit ’n Sip in Brundidge – are among the listings. We had a tour group of about 60 that had lunch at Sisters last week. They wanted to try the sisters’ banana pudding that is featured in the state publication.”

Jordan said the WinterFest Expo was also an opportunity to court retirees who might be looking for a place to relocate.

“Pike County is a prime place for hunting, fishing and enjoying other outdoor activities almost year round,” Jordan said. “So, add that to the other things Troy and Pike County have to offer and people take notice.”

Jordan said the snowbirds and others that attended WinterFest, now know more about Troy and that it’s a good stopover place while traveling.

“We have many good places for dining, for overnight lodging and for gassing up,” Jordan said.

“Troy is a great city and a progressive one and we like to sing its praises every chance we get.”