Lodge General Manager Jeannette Petrolia with Eric Frantz, who succeeded her as GM in 2013.
Jeannette Petrolia (1943-2014) was the first general manager of The Lodge and Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake.
She was born Aug. 12, 1943, in Portsmouth, Va., and, as an infant, moved to Brooklyn, N.Y., with her family.
Her fondest childhood memories included spending time with her grandparents, Beatrice and Giuseppe Ingrassia and her aunts and uncles.
She graduated from Catherine McAuley High School. After her marriage to Joe Petrolia, they lived in Queens and moved to Long Island after their sons were born.
In 1974 the family relocated to Hampton, Va., and Jeannette went back to school. She graduated from the College of William and Mary in 1979. She worked at VIMS, on political campaigns and at the Virginia Air and Space Museum.
She was hired by Delaware North Corporation 1995 and was assigned to the Kennedy Space Center Visitors Complex. She developed education programs for high school students run by NASA Astronauts. She later became general manager of the Astronaut Hall of Fame.
She was named general manager for The Lodge prior to its opening in 1994. She retired from there after 10 years of service.
Jeannette battled cancer until her death at home, Oct. 31, 2014.
Survivors included her husband of 51 years, Joe; sons Charlie and Joe; and one granddaughter.
A memorial to Jeannette was placed in the front lawn of the Lodge and Conference Center.