PA’s Entrepreneur of the Year - Judy Pletcher

June 14th, 2010

By BRIAN SCHROCK
Daily American

The irony of Judy Pletcher winning a state tourism award is not lost on the Rockwood resident.

When Pletcher first began renovating a vacant feed store along Main Street 10 years ago, her intention was to create a business for borough residents.

It was about creating “someplace for Rockwood people to go so we didn’t have to get everything in Somerset,” she said.

Today, tourists, and more specifically Great Allegheny Passage trail users, make up the bulk of the customer base at the Rockwood Mill Shoppes & Opera House. The business’ guest book has been signed by people from at least 48 states and 18 countries.

On Friday Pletcher was honored at the governor’s residence in Harrisburg with the Keystone Society for Tourism Entrepreneur Award. The award is presented to “those who have served as a catalyst for economic development by making sound investments, combining creativity with strategy, and possessing a spirit of adventure while managing the bottom line,” according to a letter from Gov. Ed Rendell.

Pletcher was also inducted into the society — the highest honor the state can confer on someone in the tourism industry.

Ann Nemanic, the acting director of membership development for the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau and a trail concierge, wrote a letter in support of Pletcher’s nomination. She said the award was well-deserved.

“I think Judy really embodies the true spirit of being an entrepreneur,” she said. “She sees a need and looks to see whether or not there’s something she can do to fulfill that need in her community or the region as a whole.”

Prior to opening the business in 2000, Pletcher and her daughter, Patti Jo Lambert, sent 1,700 letters to Rockwood residents, asking them what they would like to see in the century-old feed store along Main Street. Seven-hundred replied. The top pick: a bakery.

In the months that followed the Pletcher family and a cadre of contractors added the Opera House, a coffee shop, an ice cream shop and a pizza parlor. The business also includes specialty shops, a fitness center and a tanning salon.

A year ago Pletcher expanded on the facilities by opening The Hostel on Main, which offers dormitory-style accommodations for bikers, hikers and skiers.

“Judy does a great deal of research before she takes on a new endeavor,” Nemanic said. “She makes sure it’s not only a good fit for her, but for her community.”

As an award winner, Pletcher received a medallion, a letter from the governor and a personalized piece of artwork created by PA Artisan Trails potter JoAnne Arnone. The 26 honorees will also have their names inscribed on a plaque on permanent display in the offices of the Department of Community and Economic Development.

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