History Reborn in Bedford, Pennsylvania

I had visited this resort in 1988 just before it closed for almost two decades. It was a grand place, but on a steep decline and now it's back and I hope it is a success.
A few things that struck me that did not make the story were the fact that the staff did not know there was a listing about the resort on Wikipedia; it was a first stop for me just to get a little information. Another thing, for a project that used a lot of public money to create jobs in a depressed area, I saw about a dozen Mexicans hard at work on the golf course. What was that about? Lots of pick-up trucks with license plates from Texas and Florida, not Pennsylvania. That said, what a place to stay, it would be worth the trip. This is a recent story from June, 2007.


By ALAN FOSTER
Daily American

There are ghosts in the halls. Not the scary kind, but those channeled spirits you might want to spend some time with while you are there. This is a place that has been around for 200 years and has high hopes for 200 more. That place is the Bedford Springs Resort just south of Bedford, Pa in the mountains of western Pennsylvania. Formerly known as the Bedford Springs Hotel the massive 2,200 acre property has seen a $126 million makeover that was true to the design of the original owners. Its new slogan is “History Reborn.”

George Washington strolled the woods nearby. Aaron Burr and his grandson were among the first guests. Maybe that was him on a rocking chair on the second level porch. Maybe he was thinking he might have found a better way of working things out with Alexander Hamilton. The musty smell of the old hotel has been replaced by the newness of drywall and fresh paint, but the presence of history remains. Was that Andrew Jackson in the dining room? He was there. Imagine bumping into Zachary Taylor or Daniel Webster in the lobby. They were there too. What would you ask Dwight Eisenhower or Ronald Reagan if you saw them on the golf course? They were guests.

It is this presence that makes the resort kin to places such as Monticello to the south and Falling Water to the west. Or Independence Hall in Philadelphia to the east. The knowledge that history was made here. That leaders enjoyed the fresh air and the solitude of the mountains and contemplated what was going to happen in the United States and the world.

While there is hope that future presidents and leaders will visit the resort will be home to large meetings and conferences. “We want to attract senior level executives of Fortune 500 companies for meetings,” Todd Gillespie, resort sales and marketing director said.

In addition to meetings and conferences the restored facility has luxury spas, a wedding grotto, indoor and outdoor pools, world-class dining, tennis, and a redesigned golf course. The golf course is among the oldest in the United States and first opened in 1895. The spa facility alone would be the envy of ancient Rome. Off the dining room etched in the glass are the initials of couples who were married at the springs. The carvings were made by brides with their new rings and it is a tradition the resort will carry on.
Local real estate agent Lacy Fitch said property values are going up and that there is not enough property available for buyers these days. “We have been wanting it to happen. It (the resort) is the best kept secret in Pennsylvania. The golf course is amazing,” Fitch said.

Some amenities not available to nineteenth century visitors, but available today are wireless internet in every room, large flat-panel televisions mounted on the wall, double sinks, and imported water-fall showers.

The facility does not expect to compete with the yodeling, alpine theme park that is Seven Springs, but more with the upscale destinations such as Nemocolin Woodlands which is only about 60 miles away. Rooms will be $279 on weekends and $249 during the week with special rates for large groups.

“As to the impact on tourism, I’m glad it’s there because a lot of people are betting it will go. It’s super. We have already had lots of inquiries about staying there and dining there. I’m delighted they breathed new life into the place,” Dennis Tice, director of the Bedford County Visitor’s Bureau said.

The restoration has been a boom to the Bedford economy creating many new construction jobs, but many jobs went to out-of-state firms. The local economy will benefit initially from the hiring of 160 new workers in 2007 and that number will expand to 250 be the end of 2008.

According to Bedford County Commissioner Steve Howsare the payroll will be a major boost to the region. He also said the restoration will benefit farmers too. “I know the chef has met with area farmers to match his needs with what they can provide, “ Howsare said. He said he expects to see strong growth in the County’s hotel room tax. “Right now we collect $160,000 and after the facility is up and running we expect to collect over $300,000 per year.” He explained the project has been a dream of his, but said his predecessors in the commissioners office have been working on it for more than 20 years. “I’m very happy to see it come to fruition,” Howsare said.

He discussed the tangle of financing the huge project, saying most of the money, about $100 million was from private investors, while another $26 million came from the state moved along by former State Sen. Robert Jubilier. On the federal side Rep. Bill Shuster obtained $8 million for the road built behind the hotel which provided easier access. Howsare stressed the state money was not a grant , but a reimbursement that had to be reviewed and approved after completion.

The resort will open on June 27 and WQED the public television station in Pittsburgh is planning a special on the history of the facility due within the next year. For more information the web address is : BedfordSpringsResort.com.

Ron was dead, or at least he thought he was?

I've known this guy for a long time and decided to do a story about him for the Daily American in Somerset, Pa. I like these mystical stories. Researchers say the near-death experience is all a rush of chemicals as we struggle to keep a hold on life. Hey, don't tell Ron that.
Also, I made a nasty editing error on this story and what you see below is not exactly how it appeared in print. What did I do wrong?

By ALAN FOSTER
Daily American

Some people die and go to heaven. Ronald Nicodemus died and went back to work at PennDOT.

By his own account, and his doctor’s, the 57-year old maintenance manager was dead; only a fast-acting emergency medical team, and a jolt from a defibrillator brought him back.
At 9:00 p.m. on March 31 of this year he complained to his wife Hope of chest pain.
“I felt like I was being hit by a sledge hammer or there was an elephant sitting on my chest, “ he said during an interview in his Somerset office. “My wife wanted to drive me to the Bedford emergency room, but I told her to call 911 and they were at our house in just over ten minutes”
At the hospital emergency room, Nicodemus, who weighed 400 pounds, was being transferred between stretchers when his heart stopped. It was then that he saw the bright light.
“When I died I saw the bright light. It was calm, pleasant and strong coming toward me in soft angles. There was no tunnel, no throne room and I did not rise out of my body. It was very quiet. When I woke up I remember looking up at Dr. Fleming’s face, bald head and beard and he said, “Ron, you had a massive heart attack. You died and we brought you back.”

Dr. George Fleming explained that Nick was very lucky.
“When he coded (his heart stopped) and we used the defibrillator he had bitten his tongue and we could not give him a clot buster.” Fleming knew Nick needed a coronary care unit and contacted Altoona and Conemaugh who could not handle the case, but finally Allegheny General in Pittsburgh gave the go ahead to have him flown there by Life flight helicopter. As he left he said to his wife,”Hun, I’m not going to make it,” and she said, “I love you, you fight for me.”

In Pittsburgh Nick was operated on by Dr. Peter A. Sukas,32, a pioneer in the use of a “stint” technique as a supplement to angioplasty (use of a balloon to open a clogged artery) which is a standard procedure in these cases. A stint is a device, when properly used, which will act as a new liner of a damaged artery.

While angioplasty saves lives, many times it is only a temporary solution. The artery will reclog causing another attack or force the patient into bypass surgery. The stint is designed to be a more permanent solution to the blockage problem.
Nick had two blockages that were small, but had stopped the flow completely.
“When the road is closed, the road is closed,” the PennDOT worker said.
Fleming said a normal heart will squeeze 50-70 percent of blood that passes through it with each beat. An Olympic athlete may get to 80 percent. Most cardiologists will not do a bypass on a patient who has less that 20 percent heart function. Nick was at 15-20 percent. Less than 10 percent and the patient is a cardiac cripple. Someone who has difficulty breathing or walking even a few steps. Many of these patients die while awaiting a transplant.
Nick’s road to recovery has not been an easy one. He was weak and felt miserable. He said there were times he woke up at night in tears. Both Nick and his doctor feel his attitude contributed to his ability to regain 40-45 percent of his heart function.
Fleming said a person’s attitude will keep the immune system active and can change the outcome when fighting diseases. On the other side major depression makes us more susceptible to ailments.

Nick is optimistic about life.

“I credit God’s healing power, my instinct for survival and my Marine Corps training for my getting through this,” Nick said. He said he found out recently Rev. Russell Kessler of the Heritage Baptist church had been praying for him. Kessler is also the chaplain of the Marine Corps League. He is also thankful to physical therapists Frank Hammond and Roger Arnold for getting him into “the right mode” and teaching him how to breathe and exercise. “They were the best DI’s (drill instructors) I have ever had,” he said.
Also, exercise and watching his diet have become greater concerns. He has lost almost 100 pounds since that day in March.
“I finished my rehabilitation on November 10 and still walk a couple of miles a day. I use a treadmill, a home gym, a bike and follow the National Heart Association’s diet which calls for no more than 30 percent fat and 1,800 calories,” He said. In the six months since the close call he has doubled his endurance.

While he insists it is not the case his weight did have something to do with the event of March 31. Another contributing factor was the stress he felt from his work. He has been with PennDOT since 1978 and in charge of the Somerset district since 1985. Even while he was in rehabilitation he was thinking about his work.
“My staff and crews are so good, I have nothing but praise for them. Everything went through (during the summer) because we have a good team at Somerset County maintenance. he said. “I think I’m still here to help people and to do a good job. We are as good as any contractor and I think people should take a good look at us. We give good service.”
Ronald P. Nicodemus had no fear of death before this brush with the grim reaper and this experience has enhanced that attitude.

“It is even easier now. I don’t think about it (death). I know I’m okay,” he said. ”All days are good, but some days are better than others. Maybe there is still a little time, as the Masons say, to do good deeds for others.”

Coal Mine Museum Opens

I felt very close to this story because my father hauled house coal in the 60s and 70s and my grandfather was killed in a coal mine when he was only 39. He left a wife and four children, ages four to 14.

By ALAN FOSTER
Daily American

Not long ago coal was king. Men worked on their knees deep underground to bring it to the surface. The wages they made fed their families. The black diamonds powered a nation. Some of those men heard a timber crack and it was their last sound. They never came out. Mothers raised children alone. The dust got many with the black lung. But while the work was hard and the conditions difficult, at the end of the day they knew who they were what they had accomplished and went back in again the next day, proud to be called a coal miner.

There is a new place to see this story in Windber. On Saturday the Windber Coal Heritage Center was dedicated with politicians, speeches, flags and a high school band. The 2.2 million dollar facility boasts a large map of a Berwind-White mine, similar to the electric map at the Gettysburg battlefield, walls filled with memorabilia of 100 years of Windber area mining, and a gift shop. The lower-level has black walls and is reminiscent of going into a deep mine. "Notice the change in temperature as you go down to steps," Chris Barkley, site manager said. It is a little cooler, but not much different from the first floor. The most compelling feature of the mine level are videos of miners telling their story. With the touch of a button you see living history and anecdotes of life and work underground. The third floor houses community rooms.

"Coal and steel workers should feel good about this museum. We have had a real impact on the world because of our industrial might. The heart of the industrial revolution was right here," Congressman John Murtha said at the dedication. Murtha said tourism is the biggest business in the world these days and the new museum was part of several sites designed to bring tourists to southwestern Pennsylvania. "People who have never been in a coal mine can get a better understanding of what it is like. From here they can go to the Johnstown Flood Museum, Horseshoe Curve or the Saltzburg canal," Murtha said.

"Last week the Somerset Historical Center honored its first 100 years. The early farmers worked the glades and today we honor that second wave of immigrants who worked the mines," Somerset County commissioner David Mankamyer said.
The museum is part of a 13-site assembly of attractions that can be seen with a reduced rate "passport" which allows visitors two or four days to visit All of the sites.