READY FOR OPEN HOUSE — The co-owners of Country Crafts from the Heart at the Fort Steuben Mall, from left, Debbie Juresko, Joan Zorbini and Pam Edgar are preparing for the store’s first holiday open house to be held in many years. The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 21.

STEUBENVILLE — Normally, the number 13 conjures up a bit of fear. We just came through a Friday the 13th. But in the case of the 13th year of Country Crafts from the Heart in the Fort Steuben Mall, the owners have decided to celebrate with the approaching holiday season by scheduling the first of its once-popular open houses to be held in about a decade. The open house will be Nov. 21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and will feature refreshments and door prizes. Country Crafts from the Heart is one of those businesses that embodies the spirit of entrepreneurism and it came together years before the current push for the establishment of more small businesses as a way to raise the economy back to health. “We are still here,” said co-owner Debbie Juresko. “And we have a lot of inexpensive Christmas gifts.” From candles to country home furnishing accessories, the store is stocked with the kind of items that”remind people of their grandmother’s house or their aunt’s,” Juresko said.