WELCOME TO THE VALLEY Visitors bureau making area a getaway destination

WELCOME TO THE VALLEY

Visitors bureau making area a getaway destination

Story and photos by Cindy O. Herman

Andrew Miller would love to know there are two people in the D.C. area discussing plans for the weekend. One says, “We’re going to the Susquehanna River Valley,” and the other replies, “Oh, we love going there. There’s so much to do.”

Having grown up in Danville, then living 16 years in Washington, D.C., Miller, now the executive director of the Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau (SRVVB), knows what he’s talking about.

In D.C., he experienced the client’s side of working with a visitors bureau when he managed conferences and programs for prominent business associations. When he returned home, he had a new appreciation for what the Susquehanna River Valley offers.

“I felt the best thing I brought to the job was looking at the area through fresh eyes,” he said. “I saw all the amenities of Snyder, Union and Northumberland counties and was just blown away. I just fell in love with Pennsylvania all over again.”

With an outsider’s perspective he gained new respect for familiar places, like the Joseph Priestley House, in Northumberland. Visiting there as an adult actually gave him chills.

“I can imagine Joseph Priestley walking out of his house and having the Susquehanna River there right in front of him,” Miller said. “It made me proud, and I wanted to share that experience.”

THE SUSQUEHANNA RIVER VALLEY VISITORS BUREAU, IN LEWISBURG.

At the Susquehanna River Valley Visitors Bureau, Miller oversees a team of six full-time and two part-time members.

“We all share the same goal, which is to connect the consumer to our members (in Snyder, Union and Northumberland counties), and that drives us every day,” he said. “We’re marketing the area, driving the consumer to everyone else’s front door.”

Visitors spent $405 million in the tri-county area in 2019. The SRVVB markets to a crescent-shaped area spanning Canada, New England, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Northern Virginia.

Miller pointed to tourism’s impact on local residents. Knoebels Amusement Resort, in Elysburg, for example, is the park where thousands of people scream on the Phoenix, splash in the Crystal Pool and enjoy live entertainment on the Bandshell.

But it’s also a place where numerous food vendors, landscapers, students and tradespeople are employed while local gas, food and lodging businesses also benefit from park visitors, and the SRVVB plays a part in encouraging tourists to give places like Knoebels a try.

“Just think if we went away,” Miller said. “There would be a hole if the tourist assets went away.”

Before working at the SRVVB, Miller was executive director of the Columbia-Montour Visitors Bureau, where he worked with business owners like Marty Walzer, who owned the Pine Barn Inn, in Danville.

“He was very effective at the job. I thought very highly of him,” Walzer said of Miller. “He was a real straight shooter and a really nice guy.”

‘YOU CAN’T OPERATE IN A BUBBLE’

Because he’s constantly searching for ways to expand the SRVVB’s partnerships, Miller is establishing satellite offices in places like Bamse Coffee and Roaster, in Shamokin, The Improved Milton Experience (T.I.M.E.) and Susquehanna University’s upcoming new bookstore in Selinsgrove.

Don’t ask if he has more plans for the area. He does. Many.

He’s working with agencies to have the tri-county area designated as an International Biking Destination. Recognizing that outdoor recreation in our area has taken off, he keeps places like the Selinsgrove Disc Golf venue, the Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area, R.B. Winter State Park and the Shikellamy Marina in mind for possible events.

At a recent meeting with local and state leaders, Miller paused to notice representatives from agencies like SEDACOG working with local businesses like Gilson Snow, in New Berlin.

“I just sat back. I was so happy,” he said. “There were so many people in one room connecting people and businesses together for the good of the community. You can’t operate in a bubble.”

“He’s the right person for the job,” Walzer said. “I think he’s done remarkably well. The counties that have him are fortunate to have him.”

Like with other river valley destinations, Miller sees visitors returning to the Susquehanna River Valley because they find more things they want to do.

“They want to explore all the colors of the quilt,” he said.

And that’s what, he hopes, will make Central Pennsylvania a destination for visitors north and south of the area.

“It’s more about telling a story or creating an experience that will draw people here,” he said, then added, “Or they’re already here and we want to give them experiences and surprise the living daylights out of them.”

For more information, visit www.VisitCentralPA.org

PA

SUE KRATZER, VISITOR INFORMATION SPECIALIST WITH THE SUSQUEHANNA RIVER VALLEY VISITORS BUREAU, WELCOMES GUESTS TO THEIR LEWISBURG OFFICE.

PRESIDENTIAL PUZZLE

MetroCreative Library

ACROSS

1. President #16 was born in a ___ cabin. 2. President #1 knew ___ Franklin personally. 6. “Be __ Valentine,” said the president to the first lady. 7. Only men _____ for these two presidents. 10. A grand space like Fords Theater is a public _____. 11. Short for Abraham. 12. When traveling, these presidents would have stayed overnight at an ___. 13. One of the colors of the U.S. flag. 14. A kind of beer. 17. How #16 died. 20. President #1 never got to live at the _____________________. 23. The first name of the 1st president. 25. When #1 was at Valley Forge for the winter, it was really, really _____. 26. #16 wore a stovepipe ___. 29. President #16’s wife’s first name. 30. __ the people ... 31. Our 16th President. 33. #1 and #16 are _____ among the presidents.

DOWN

1. A U.S. president is the _______ of the people. 2. “Of the people, __ the people ... “ 3. Has a woman ever been U.S. president? 4. Presidents #1 and #16 identified as __. 5. President #1’s military title. 6. The 1st First Lady’s first name. 7. The home on the Potomac owned by the 1st president: Mt. ________. 8. First Ladies have ___ parties. 9. President #1 _____ at his home. 11. The first Vice President. 15. The 1st president. 16. State where the 16th president was born. 18. During a war, suppliers were often issued an ____ or a “promise to pay.” 19. Our 1st president could compute the ____ of a field. 21. A president has to have a strong sense of self or ___. 22. President #16 delivered the Gettysburg ___________. 24. Another name for a smile. 27. The Civil ____. 28. Women can vote _____. 32. President #16’s home state when he was elected.