The compact silver and glass dome in front of Gateway Center is stuffed with Pittsburgh paraphernalia—colorful photos, pamphlets, guidebooks. And the person inside manning the booth radiates energy. Whether she’s reaching for her trusty map or telling a story with her hands or breaking into a huge grin when remembering a special visitor, she’s in constant motion. With an enthusiasm that is contagious, she projects a deep love of her city.
Meet Pittsburgh’s most ardent ambassador, Nancy Reynolds-Daniels, a 13-year veteran of
Visit Pittsburgh (formerly the Greater Pittsburgh Convention and Visitors Bureau.)
“We call it ‘the bubble,’” Reynolds-Daniels says of the compact Welcome Center outside Gateway 4. Locals tell her they’ve always wondered what was in the building. She suggests you stop in and see for yourself. You'll be warmly welcomed.
On a busy day, 130 people will pass through her door, including visitors from Russia, Madagascar, South Africa and Brazil. Of the many stand-outs, she mentions one woman from
Turkey. Reynolds-Daniels mapped out a step-by-step tour for her—the Point, the inclines,
the Cultural District and the museums.
“She had an itinerary for the whole day,” she says.
And it must have been good. The woman was so impressed with what she saw that she came back to thank her and inviteReynolds-Daniels to visit her in Turkey.
Although she has yet to make the trip, Reynolds-Daniels, who is sometimes referred to as "the brochure lady," loves nothing better than acquainting visitors with Pittsburgh. “I just can’t hand people maps,” she says with a twinkle in her eye. "I ask them what they like and then offer suggestions tailored to their interests."
If they’re history buffs, she sends them to the
Allegheny County Courthouse and the
Fort Pitt Museum; if they like views, it’s off to the Monongahela Incline and the Gateway Clipper; if they’re foodies, she directs them to The Strip. And if she had just one suggestion for someone?
“
The Nationality Rooms at the University of Pittsburgh,” she says emphatically, “That’s Pittsburgh."
Or maybe it would be the
Duquesne Incline for that stunning view. "To see the beauty of it all.
“The city’s just so doggone easy to sell,” she says. "Everyone is surprised it’s so beautiful."
Reynolds-Daniels remembers one man storming into the welcome
center, frustrated after “driving around for an hour” trying to get into
Point State Park.“I told him, park your car right there and take a walk," she says as she smiles.
“I encourage people not to drive. It’s a city you see on foot—it’s a strolling town.”
The easy-going and genuine Reynolds-Daniels has a reputation for going the extra mile to help visitors. Once she was working at the airport location (there are also visitors centers on the PA Turnpike and at the History Center) and a young girl from Norway approached her looking for a youth hostel.
At the time, the closest one was in Ohiopyle, and transportation couldn’t be arranged until the next day. Reynolds-Daniels looked at the young girl, alone in a strange country, and made a snap decision. She took her home for the night.
“If you’re not afraid of me, I’m not afraid of you," she told her.
"I’m a mother and a grandmother; she adds earnestly. "I couldn’t just leave her at the airport."
When the girl returned to Pittsburgh two years later, where did she go? To the Welcome Center looking for Reynolds-Daniels.
Photographs copyright Brian Cohen