Many of the calls that have been coming into the newspaper’s office during the past several weeks have asked the same question:

“Where did my business or the company I work for finish in the annual Best of the Best Reader’s Choice voting?”

That’s a fair question, and it speaks to the interest the annual promotion attracts.

This year’s process began in June, when the nomination process opened. In July, readers were asked to vote and narrow all of those nominees to the top five in each category. That led to the final voting, which concluded on Sept. 22.

All that remains is for the top finishers in each of those categories to be revealed. That will happen Wednesday, when the annual awards gala is held at the St. Florian Event Center in Wintersville. It’s a fun evening, featuring plenty of food, drink and camaraderie among the men and women who own businesses throughout the region

They’ll find out which companies were tops in each category that night, and the rest of the community will be able to see the results for themselves on Thursday when a special section will be published with the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times.

The Best of the Best gala has become a much-anticipated event on the October calendar. That says a lot about the quality of the competition and the evening, and makes it a great addition to a month that traditionally has been crowded with lots to do.

For example, the final First Fridays on Fourth event of the season was held Oct. 3 in downtown Steubenville. This year’s schedule concluded with an Oktoberfest-themed evening, which included activities geared around the fall season — and the traditional beer festival. The once-a-month downtown street festival has been attracting residents to the city from across the region since it was first held in 2018.

The weekend of Oct. 3, 4 and 5 saw the Wellsburg Applefest return for its 46th season, and the weekend of Oct. 11 and 12 saw the return of Christmas in the Park to Follansbee.

Another important marker on the month’s calendar came on Oct. 8, when the United Way of Jefferson County held its 29th-annual Taste of Jefferson County event at St. Florian. The hundreds of area residents who attended had the opportunity to sample offerings from around 20 restaurants, caterers and bakeries, while helping the organization raise money that will help its 11 member agencies continue their important work.

“These restaurants and bakeries are a huge sponsorship just by being here with their food and helping us to make this event a success,” Marci Snyder-Crawford, the executive director of the United Way, said during the event. “When we all unite together, anything is possible.”

That these community activities have been able to stand the test of time is important. Longevity like that means the organizers behind them are doing something right. First, they are organizations and groups that people can trust — those who participate in them and the attendees know that the money raised through the events will go exactly where it was intended to go. Plus, they are quality events that offer interesting experiences — and, they are events that organizers have allowed to develop and evolve as the years have gone by.

And while being held for nearly 30 or 50 years is impressive, there are a few more events remaining on the October schedule that have been annual staples for a whole lot younger.

On Oct. 27, the Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District will hold its 81st-annual Meeting and Banquet at St. Florian. The evening will include the presentation of the conservation awards and recognition, and voting in the supervisor election and annual photo contest.

Tickets are $30 each and are available by contacting the JSWCD office at (740) 264-9790. The deadline to purchase a ticket is Monday.

It’s fitting that the month will come to an end with what is likely the region’s oldest recognition event. That will happen Oct. 29, when the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce holds its 117th-annual meeting and awards dinner.

Christ the Teacher Academic Hall on the campus of the Franciscan University of Steubenville will be the setting for the evening. Winners of this year’s Lifetime Achievement, Ambassador of the Year and Young Professional of the Year awards will be announced during the event.

This year’s guest speaker will be Rich Donnelly. The graduate of Catholic Central High School has had a long career in professional baseball, including a stint with the Pirates on the staff of Hall of Fame Manager Jim Leyland. Donnelly also was on Leyland’s staff in 1997, this time in Miami, when they directed the Florida Marlins to a World Series title.

That championship run helped to inspire Tom Friend’s 2018 book, “The Chicken Runs at Midnight.” Its subtitle, “A Daughter’s Message from Heaven That Changed a Father’s Heart and Won a World Series,” offers insight into the inspiration Donnelly took from his daughter Amy, who died of brain tumor in 1993.

The event will begin with a reception at 5 p.m., followed by the dinner at 6 p.m. For ticket information contact the chamber office at (740) 282-6226.

Each of those events, and several others held at churches and other locations, remind us, once again, that October is a very busy month.

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This is the final reminder: If you have been planning to write a letter to the editor that has anything to do with the Nov. 4 election, the deadline for submissions is noon Thursday. All of the letters received before the deadline will appear in next Sunday’s edition — or, depending on the volume, in Friday’s and Sunday’s editions.

With few exceptions, we publish our guidelines in each edition. Here’s a quick rundown: All submissions must be 500 words or less, include the name of the writer, the city he or she lives in and a telephone number where the writer can be reached during the day for conformation purposes or if there is a question that needs to be answered. The numbers are never shared with anyone.

Get involved — write a letter, let your opinion be heard and then get out and vote.

(Gallabrese, a resident of Steubenville, is executive editor of the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times.)