Wyoming County, Pennsylvania is an ideal blend of country living and metropolitan opportunity. “Our county has the best of both worlds,” says Gina Severcool Suydam, President of the Wyoming Chamber of Commerce. “We’re situated in the Endless Mountains, so we’re very rural, but we are also included in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Metro Market so that you can get to a bigger city, a bigger area, pretty quickly.” And, if you travel a little farther afield, Philadelphia and New York City are both just two and a half hours away.
Residents have access to all that the greater metro area has to offer, while enjoying nature in their own backyards. “Quality of life right now for employees is so important—being able to access recreational opportunities and to get outside and enjoy the outdoors, but also to live in a community where not everything feels hurried,” Suydam says. “We still have the great advantage of knowing our neighbors; we talk to our neighbors. You go to the grocery store, and you run into people you know. And I think that for businesses, that’s important in that you are building relationships outside of just your initial clients. You’re continuing to see the people you’re doing business with [and] you’re growing those relationships because it is a small-town feel.”
This small-town camaraderie can be seen in the spirit of cooperation that permeates the county. “In our community, we really are collaborative,” Suydam says. “We work really closely with many different partners.” The Chamber’s relationships include those within the business world as well as with the United Way, the district attorney, the school system, and government agencies. “We get the right people at the right table to make big things happen,” says Suydam.
This collaboration extends throughout Pennsylvania and beyond. “We’re always able to help connect to resources that a business might need at a state or federal level,” she says. “We’re always [ready] to explore those opportunities and what that might look like.”
The Youth Opportunities Uncovered (YOU) leadership program is a prime example of a collaborative initiative making a positive impact throughout the county. In partnership with the school system, the Wyoming County Chamber of Commerce program identifies students who have “amazing leadership qualities, but they’re not going to be the first one to raise their hand or speak up,” says Suydam. “And what I love about this program is it gives teachers the opportunity to say, ‘this student is showing some real positive qualities as a leader, and I know that they will thrive if given additional opportunity, but that student is never going to self-select.’”
The five-session program teaches leadership and goal setting and offers mentoring opportunities and hands-on learning, including a tour of the Procter & Gamble facilities, Wyoming County’s largest employer.
YOU encourages students to utilize the opportunities gained from the program to support the community in the future. “It really is about showing them the opportunity here in Wyoming County,” Suydam says. “Sometimes kids think they have to leave rural communities to be successful. Many of the adults they talk to in the program are very successful people who live and work right here in Wyoming County. So part of the program’s mission is really making sure they understand you don’t have to leave.”
The Wyoming County Heart & Soul community study is another successful collaborative effort. “That is a community action plan initiated through storytelling,” Suydam tells us. “We went out and surveyed over a thousand people in our county and talked to them about what their aspirations are, what they love about living here, and what their hopes are for our county.”
The findings revealed that, “regardless of where you were in the county or who you were talking to,” the area’s natural resources were highly valued. Local leaders have been quick to respond. “We continue to nurture and find opportunities to build our nature assets here in Wyoming County,” Suydam says. “We want our community to stay rural. We care about our agricultural roots and that we have a lot of green space and open areas.”
To be sure, this paradise offers a wealth of recreational opportunities. Fishing, kayaking, and canoeing on the Susquehanna River are popular pastimes. Hiking trails are abundant throughout the county. And there is a new state park to enjoy, thanks to the commitment of locals to preserve the land.
“Wyoming County did not have a state park, but a small group of community leaders started really taking care of a preserved area and knew that, long-term, they couldn’t always do it and that it really needed state funding,” Suydam says. “So, they advocated and eventually got that land designated as a state park.” Nestled along the banks of the Susquehanna River, Vosburg Neck State Park is an ideal spot for hiking, picnicking, boating, and wildlife watching. Wyoming County’s Miller Mountain, which boasts stunning views and opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, birdwatching, fishing, and hunting, was recently designated as part of Pinchot State Forest.
In another collaborative effort, the community has brought a much-needed healthcare facility to Wyoming County. “We’re constantly advocating for each other,” Suydam says, “and I think that was shown in our community coming together to fund and build the Wyoming County Healthcare Center.”
When the local hospital closed its doors after decades of being “a staple in the community,” locals were left without access to much-needed healthcare. “Our nearest hospital is 45 minutes away from our county seat,” Suydam explains. “45 minutes may not sound like much if you’re going for a routine test, but if you are in a car accident and in critical condition and need to travel by ambulance to the nearest hospital and that’s 45 minutes away, that’s a long ride. The Wyoming County Healthcare Center was born out of that crisis,” she says.
“The building was purchased by a private businessman in our area who worked with his family foundation and founded the center, and it has grown to what we like to call a medical mall.” Now, locals have access to a variety of services, from occupational healthcare to dialysis. “And all of these different organizations are independent organizations; they hadn’t normally collaborated. So, what this businessman was able to do is to say, ‘hey, we have this building, we’ve covered your long-term risk of needing to replace the roof and remodel, update the building. We need you to come in and provide your services.’ He’s been able to rent out the building to many different service providers as opposed to one hospital system taking on all of that burden.”
Wyoming County Chamber of Commerce’s above-and-beyond efforts recently earned it Pennsylvania’s Small Chamber of the Year award. Not content to rest on their laurels, the team is already planning the next project to keep the community strong. “We are working on a really exciting workforce development initiative,” Suydam shares. “It takes individuals who are unemployed or underemployed and helps them to identify their barriers in the workplace and then upskills them by working with an educational partner… There’s a gap in skill level sometimes, in rural communities. We can help identifying what those barriers have been for them and helping them to connect with a workforce agency that will assist with those barriers.”
This support includes training in life skills “outside of the job, things like financial planning,” she adds. The program specifically focuses on high-demand careers that are currently hiring in Wyoming County.
As the Chamber works to support the community and lay the groundwork for the future, the team is committed to preserving what makes Wyoming County a great place to live and work. “We care about our small-town feel for our communities,” Suydam says. With local leaders dedicated to preserving that close-knit and collaborative local culture, Wyoming County’s old hometown spirit, while welcoming new opportunities, is here to stay.
