Six years ago, Don and Jan Tardy and their adult children, Colt and Bree Perrin, acquired the former Whispering Pines RV & Cabin Resort, began investing in improvements. They joined the Jellystone Park franchise network in 2013.
Half a dozen years later, the Tardy family’s Jellystone Park at Whispering Pines has not only enjoyed significant year-over-year gains in revenue and occupancy, but they’ve won Camp Resort of the Year Award, the highest award in the Jellystone Park franchise network. The award is presented by
Leisure Systems, Inc., the Milford, Ohio-based company that franchises more than 80 Jellystone Park Camp Resort across the United States and Canada.
The award recognizes the Camp-Resort whose facilities and operations exceed all the Jellystone Park standards. Recipients must be Pinnacle Club members, meaning they rate 95 percent or higher on the annual LSI assessment of their facilities and operations. Award recipients also must have achieved strong growth in business, implemented sustained improvements, and be leaders in the industry.
The Tardys also won the Western Region Camp-Resort of the Year Award and LSI’s Facility of the Year Award, for parks less than 225 sites, which is presented to the Camp-Resorts that have shown sustained improvements to their facilities. In addition, the Tardys received 100 Percent Club Award, which is presented to Camp-Resorts that score 100 percent on annual inspections of their facilities and operations by the LSI assessors. They also received an award for the quality of their comfort stations and an outstanding customer service award for scoring 88 percent or higher on annual guest satisfaction surveys.
“All of this was really unexpected,” said Don Tardy. “We’re very humbled and so appreciative of all of this recognition for our efforts. We are grateful for all our guests who made this possible.”
The Tardys take it a step further by adding their own unique events, including a 5K Fun Run/Walk on New Year’s Morning. “The 5K Fun Run/Walk is open to the public so you don’t have to be camping with us over New Year’s Eve to participate,” Tardy said, noting that signup information is available online.
For more information, visit www.jellystoneatwhisperingpines.com.
