Brianna Rolfs was born and raised in Pelham, N.H, just like her father. And when she and her husband were looking to buy a home, they bought the 1760s house she grew up in. And when in 2016 it came time to start a business, she followed in her father’s footsteps once again, reopening Hammar’s Art Studio & Cultural Center, which her father and grandfather had operated together for decades under the name Hammar & Sons Inc., making signs, selling art supplies, and framing pictures, and where she had worked as a teenager. Now she runs the thriving business, with her dad as a partner, hosting children’s art classes, birthday parties, workshops, and special events along the lines of family paint nights and a popular series called “PJs, Pizza & Picasso.’’ Her goal? To unite the community and inspire a new generation of artists.
What drew Rolfs back to town after moving away for college and working for many years in Boston’s corporate world? “It is everywhere and nowhere,’’ she said. It doesn’t take long to get to Interstates 93 and 495 and Route 3, and the town borders Dracut, Methuen, and Tyngsborough, making it commuter friendly. Yet it has remained relatively affordable (the median listing price for homes is just under $382,000, according to Realtor.com) and a bit of a hidden gem.
“We hold strong to our roots,’’ Rolfs said. Pelham, with just over 13,000 residents, is all about community, she said. “I needed the community to build this business.’’ It answered her call. Rolfs is paying it forward as chairwoman of the Pelham Economic Development Committee. (It should come as no surprise that her father, Rick Hammar, affectionately described as a “major old townie’’ by his daughter, was one of the committee’s founders.)
The mother of four also touts the town’s Parks and Recreation Department. “We are small but mighty when it comes to sports,’’ she said. “Pelham is the epitome of live, work, and play.’’ As for playing, there are plenty of options: A big draw for people from surrounding communities is Chunky’s Cinema and Pub, where movie-goers can dine and sip adult beverages in incredibly comfortable seats while watching films. An Altitude Trampoline Park is set to open next door to Chunky’s very soon. And there are several parks, including Muldoon, which has walking paths, ballfields, and a disc golf course. Look for free concerts on the village green in the summer — and, of course, the next opportunity to paint in your PJs.
Chris Morris, the Globe’s Travel and Food editor, can be reached at christine.morris@globe.com.
