Published: July 05, 2009 11:20 pm      

Persons of the Week: Couple play hosts for Laurel Hill campground

For most people, staying at a campground is a nice getaway.

But for Orran and Ruth Kelley, camp is home, and both make sure their temporary neighbors feel at home also.

For the past 13 years, the Kelleys have been the campground hosts at Laurel Hill State Park, located near Trent in Somerset County.

On June 20, the Kelleys were honored by the Bureau of State Parks as the Volunteers of the Year during a surprise gathering of family members and staff of Laurel Hill. The event was held at Laurel Hill.

The Westmoreland County couple has logged more than 100,000 volunteer hours as campground hosts over the 13 years. They also are active members of the Friends of Laurel Hill, a volunteer group that works to support the park.

“We love it up here,” said Ruth Kelley. “We just don’t sit around and talk to people. We work here.”

Mike Mumau, park manager, said the pair has taken responsibility at the park and the result is an excellent camping experience for visitors.

He said the couple’s duties include posting and pulling permits for 264 campsites, eight camping cottages and one walled tent; troubleshooting electrical problems at campsites; pumping air into flat tires on visitors’ bicycles; and taking care of the coin-operated laundries at Laurel Hill and nearby Kooser State Park.

Ruth Kelley said she and her husband, who will celebrate their 63rd wedding anniversary July 29, fell in love with Laurel Hill during their first camping trip there in 1987.

“The people (park staff and visitors) are very nice,” Ruth Kelley said. “It’s a pretty nice campground. The scenery is beautiful.

“We drive around and wave to everybody,” she said. “A lot of the little children expect us to wave to them.”

Orran Kelley said he and his wife enjoy people.

“It keeps us young,” he said about serving as campground hosts each year from early April to mid-October.

“We like it because it’s up in the mountains and it’s away from home.

“I have worked at many places over the years and these guys (park staff) can’t be beat,” he said. “They make sure all the campers have a good time.”

Ruth Kelley said it was an honor to be recognized for their volunteer efforts.

The Kelleys take a day off each week to travel to their Smithton home to make sure everything is all right.

For their efforts, the Kelleys are the Persons are the Week.

Mumau said the Kelleys are an integral part of the park.

“They are on call 24 hours a day and often meet the needs of visitors during the middle of the night,” he said. “They are truly selfless and their love of Laurel Hill and the visitors who come here is obvious and infectious.”

Joe Zimmerman, president of the Friends of Laurel Hill, said the Kelleys are the volunteer hosts because they enjoy camping and helping people.

“If this world had more people like Orran and Ruth, the world would be a better place,” he said.

The Kelleys are among the 100 volunteers with the Friends of Laurel Hill who help the park with projects such as planting trees and maintaining trails, he said.

The Kelleys have five children, 12 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.