GERMANIA – On any given morning, you can walk into the White Pine Cafe, Store & Lodge in this Potter County, Pennsylvania village and find comfort in the constancy it offers. Whether it’s picking up necessities for your home or camp, joining a lively conversation with town elders solving the world’s problems over coffee, or receiving a warm greeting from Kim Manchego, the owner of the century-old general store, the place feels like home.”
Manchego, who purchased the iconic store just over a year ago, says she sees her position in the community as one of an ambassador to the region: “In many ways whether you are local, coming here for the first time, or someone who comes here to hunt, fish or use your ATV’s along the trails, how people are welcomed here marks the beginning of their experience.”
Nestled in the rolling mountains of Potter County just off State Route 144, the tan building is adorned with a forest green awning, a neon OPEN sign, an American flag blowing in the wind, and chairs along the front porch that beckon the traveler or local to sit for a while. It’s the kind of place you’d be unlikely to find unless, like me, you set your maps to avoid highways.
It is also a place that offers an important resource for locals and visitors, and that resource is fuel — a vital convenience that nearly disappeared and could have brought economic devastation to the area.
Manchego explains that when she and her daughter began fixing up the little country store, they quickly discovered that one of the most vital parts of their operation, providing fuel, would require replacing the property’s storage tank.
“When I came here, I knew that the gas was in trouble, that these pumps should have been replaced years ago, however my due diligence wasn’t as good as it should have been in that I didn’t realize that the price since COVID tripled from the quotes that was originally given to replace the tanks,” she explained.
Manchego said it really wasn’t possible for them at that time to make that kind of a business investment. “Gas is not a money maker. Pennies from every gallon if that, you have to get special licenses, you have to pay to keep the tanks in the ground, you have to pay insurance prices. So it is just not a money maker,” she said.
In short, she would need to take out a loan or a mortgage to fund the upgrade, and the weight of the financial burden, on top of all the repairs she was tackling to start a new business, was overwhelming.
The family had many discussions around the kitchen table about what to do, whether to remove the fuel pump, which was the only fuel source for miles in either direction. It served not only the ATV riders, snowmobilers, fishermen, and bear hunters who relied on it, but also the local community.
In the end, the latter moved her to find the resources for the tanks.
“I’ve got a gentleman up the road, he’s an older gentleman and he rides, he mows his lawn three times a week, and he would ride his mower here and he would fill it up with gas. And he made the comment one day, “I really appreciate that you have gas. It’s hard for me to go to town,” she explained.
It was at that moment that she knew what she needed to do.
“And right there was kind of the light switch. Alright, we’re going to support our sportsmen, we’re going to support our neighbors. But also, this last storm that we had come through knocked out the power in town. The gas stations don’t have generators down there. People were calling me for gas to run their generators. If I had a gas pump, I’d have a generator. We can pump gas in these emergencies. So it’s kind of threefold. One being the tourism, the ATVs, and things like that. Others being our neighbors,” she said.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, in an interview with the Washington Examiner, said he found out about their plight when Manchego’s efforts came across his desk because a local newspaper covered her persistence in contacting local elected officials and making a plea to the Department of Community and Economic Development to get some help with the tanks.
“My morning routine is to read as much as I can of stuff that has nothing to do with me or my work or the state government or the federal government,” said Shapiro in an interview with the Washington Examiner.
“I like to dig into the news, not necessarily on the front page, but what’s behind that, and I read about this woman who I later learned was Kim, who moved from Wyoming with her daughter to start a new life for them and buy this century-old general store,” he explained.
“So this central old general store, which is, if you think about small towns in Pennsylvania, there’s a bunch of places like this. You could buy the local necessities, and then there’s always a table or two where the old guys in town come together for their coffee every morning,” he said.
“We need people to do that in Pennsylvania. And then how would they know that when they got there, this fuel pump that was the critical fuel pump along this 600-mile ATV trail, that this underground tank had cracked or was compromised? And here she is trying to do the right thing for Pennsylvania, and she needed a little bit of help. And if we could offer her that help, we could really save this town and save these A TV riders and preserve our outdoor economy, which is so important,” he said.
Shapiro reached out to his chief of staff and, in short order, got his team from DCNR and PennDOT to examine the facility. The state issued a grant to get the tank fixed, get the pump working again, and have this life-sustaining stop along this ATV route continue on, God willing, for another hundred years.
Outdoor tourism is the lifeblood of Potter County. And you can understand why if you take the time to find your way up here and soak in the air, the rich, dense forests, and the people who make up this tight-knit community. You will also understand why it is aptly named “God’s Country.”
The money generated from visitors who use the ATV trail system has had an economic impact of over $13 million in the last year, up three million from the year before. These revenues support the local tax base and the rural school districts and keep the lights on in the small towns that make up this county.
There is also robust hunting and fishing tourism in the Appalachian Mountains. The bear hunting in this region is as old as time and is legendary for attracting generations of families.
For several days every year, hardcore bear hunters from all around the state lace up and hike the mountains in pursuit of black bears. The traditional statewide firearms bear season contributed the most to the harvest, with 823 animals. Archery season added $756, the extended season — $425, the muzzleloader and special firearms season — $634, and there were four harvests in the early archery season, according to the state game commission.
Chad and Melanie Shoemaker, whose Appalachian Arms gun store is located just down the road from the general store, said the grant given to keep the fuel tanks pumping really saved the community.
An avid bear hunter, Chad, who has called this tiny village home nearly all of his life, after his service in the Marine Corps, said it’s important for hunters and fishermen that fuel availability be preserved.
“Because where that location is, they’ve got to drive another 20 to 30 miles to just get fuel. And it’s very beneficial for the Commonwealth because that gas station is, in my opinion, the center hub of the whole state, and it is also even more than a necessity. It’s also a community gathering place,” he said.
“The community really relies on the riders and the hunters and the fishermen, where people like to come and relax and enjoy their weekends and enjoy outdoor recreation and get away from the busy life and the everyday hassles,” he said, adding, “This is God’s Country and we need to preserve that.”
TRUMP BULLISH ON GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA AT PITTSBURGH SUMMIT
There is something magical and uniquely American about our desire to preserve the fabric of our communities, particularly in small towns here and across the country. Potter County is a place of front porches but also remote hideaways, each with a unique respect for having each other’s backs.
There is evidence that the exceptionalism that Alexis de Tocqueville wrote about Americans and their ways of life after his tour of our country two hundred years ago is still alive and well in places all over the country, in particular in places like the General Store located in the middle of Potter County.