Please join the National Road Heritage Corridor (NRHC) Board of Directors in welcoming Sarah Collier as the organization’s new Executive Director upon the retirement of Donna Holdorf, who served the NRHC for 20 years.
Sarah joins the NRHC after several years as the Main Street Manager for the Washington Business District Authority in Washington, PA. Prior to that role, she served as the Program Director for Public Allies Pittsburgh. She holds an English degree from Goucher College and has experience in the education and human services sectors. She possesses a deep love of the region and a commitment to asset-based community development, as well as a passion for connecting people and place.
“I’m excited to continue the work in community revitalization and historic preservation,” said Sarah. “Our region has such a robust history. For more than 250 years, the National Road has been a link for our corridor’s strong towns and cities, each a place with fascinating history, beautiful architecture and vistas, and unique opportunities. I look forward to working with our partners to tell the story of the Road and the region and to preserve our heritage assets.”
Sarah succeeds Donna Holdorf who has been the NRHC executive director since 2001. Under her leadership, the NRHC delivered over $18 million to local and regional projects which included the development of several accessible boat launches and docks in small riverfront communities, initial funding for a riverfront park in Charleroi and improved connections between the historic and riverfront district in Monongahela, a riverfront park and dock expansion in Fredericktown as well as a number of public art projects, and improved signage and amenities along the length of the corridor.
In addition to her successful service at the helm of the NRHC, Donna was tapped as interim director of the region’s tourism bureau. She led the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau for several months as that board searched for a new Executive Director. During her tenure with the LHVB, the annual budget was developed, a refocused strategic plan and new branding campaign were launched. In recognition of her work in the communities she serves, Donna was named as the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau, Trailblazer of the Year. Donna also has served on several statewide boards and commissions including the National Road Alliance and National Scenic Byways Organization, the Heritage PA Executive Committee, the Southwest PA Sign Trust, and the Pennsylvania Travel and Tourism Board.
The Board is eternally grateful for all of the work Donna has done for the region and for the state. She has been a visionary, a tireless advocate, and a savvy and successful community development leader and her impact will be lasting. We are delighted that she will now be able to spend more time with her family as well as pursue her other broad interests.
We are excited to enter this new phase with Sarah at the helm and look forward to working with her as we continue to strengthen the region.
Sincerely,
Cathy McCollom
Chair, National Road Heritage Corridor Board of Directors
About the National Road Heritage Corridor
Cutting across the southwest corner of Pennsylvania, the National Road Heritage Corridor is the site of arguably the most important revolutionary events in U.S. history. As the birthplace of the French & Indian War – the conflict that ignited America’s fight for independence; the Whiskey Rebellion, where the federal authority of the United States was first tested; and the site where the U.S. Constitution faced its first challenge, the National Road is America’s Road to Revolution. The 90-mile corridor has not only hosted America’s most important political revolutions, but has been the stage for many of the country’s most influential social, industrial and cultural revolutions, as well. Travel the National Road and discover the route that helped give life to a country and transform a nation.