TodayKeller resigns as county tourism director
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Article RatingKathleen Keller has resigned as the tourism director for the Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau.
Appointed by the Cumberland Area Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors in November 2007, Keller submitted her letter of resignation about three weeks ago, said Cumberland County Commissioner Rick Rovegno.
Thursday was her last official day on the job, he said.
“She wasn’t looking to leave and we weren’t looking to have her leave,” the Democratic commissioner said Friday, explaining that she was offered a job with the Whitaker Center in Harrisburg and took it.
“It’s a significant loss to Cumberland County,” Commissioner Barb Cross said. “She brought with her a great deal of experience and expertise in areas of tourism.”
Keller came to CVVB with more than 15 years of experience in strategic marketing and sales, including seven years as marketing and sales manager, and later as director of marketing for Hershey Entertainment and Resorts Company.
Her duties as tourism director included direct oversight of the tourism staff as well as the composition and execution of the bureau’s marketing strategy.
A big part of that strategy was to hire a research firm to help define the county’s assets and create that strong brand name it has been lacking.
Keller called the county “a destination point” back in June at a tourism conference, noting a lot of outdoor opportunities, ranging from state park activities to famous fishing spots along the Yellow Breeches Creek.
She also pointed to the quaint and well-established towns, such as Shippensburg and Carlisle, as being rich historical draws with attractions like Carlisle Barracks, once the site of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School where Jim Thorpe played, and the Old Courthouse, pockmarked when J.E.B. Stuart and Fitzhugh Lee shelled Carlisle during the Confederate advance on Gettysburg in 1863.
Work in progress
The bureau has also been working to develop a new Web site and conducting research to begin developing an advertising campaign for implementation next year.
“We are going to continue to work on those initiatives that are underway right now,” Rovegno said.
In the short-term, Omar Shute, executive director of Cumberland County Economic Development, will oversee those initiatives, he explained.
Shute did not return phone calls seeking comment.
“In the long-term, we need to assess what additional initiatives we want to get underway,” Rovegno added.
Once that is completed, the county plans to search for Keller’s replacement.
“I think the area has a great deal to offer,” Cross said. “I would certainly hope the board would be exploring opportunities to advertise and hire someone to serve as tourism director for the county.”
