In the Spotlight Conemaugh Valley grad named to Guinness Book of World Records twice
Feb. 12—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — When Scott Anthony graduated from Conemaugh Valley High School in 1981, he never thought he would end up rolling out pizza dough.
"I was voted most likely to succeed," he said.
"I never thought it would be with pizza."
Anthony accomplished what few others have.
His name is stamped in the Guinness Book of World Records twice.
Anthony, owner of award-winning Punxsy Pizza in Punxsutawney, Jefferson County, traveled to Oklahoma with members of World Pizza Champions Inc. to set a world record for holding the "World's Largest Pizza Party."
The University of Tulsa hosted the charity event on Jan. 21.
World Pizza Champions is a U.S.-based nonprofit group of industry leaders.
"It's kind of cool," Anthony said.
The record-breaking party gathered 3,357 pizza lovers. They were given 15 minutes to tear open sealed packages and eat two slices each of a 10-inch pizza. More than 1,000 pizzas were made.
The pizza bash shattered the previous record of 1,046 pizza party participants, set in Rome, Italy, in 2019.
Pennsylvania is more than 1,200 miles from Oklahoma. Anthony is happy he made the trip.
"We got a lot of exposure in the Tulsa area," said Anthony, treasurer of World Pizza Champions Inc.
The event raised $42,090 for Make-A-Wish Oklahoma.
"We are so thankful the World Pizza Champions stepped up to this enormous challenge," said Jane Rohweder, senior director of development for Make-A-Wish Oklahoma.
There are 300 kids on a Make-A-Wish waiting list in Oklahoma alone, she said.
Many people were needed to coordinate the pizza party, Anthony said.
"Logistically, it was a challenge, the planning and coordination," he said.
"It took dozens if not hundreds of people to pull it off. It's exciting to help people and the community."
This is not Anthony's first time in the record books.
He was among more than 100 pizza makers who in 2017 served up a Guinness World Records title of "Longest Pizza" in Fortuna, California. The pizza measured 6,333 feet, 3.6 inches, with 20,000 pounds of dough, 3,000 pounds of sauce and 5,000 pounds of cheese.
Anthony's wife Andrea is a 1983 graduate of what is now called Greater Johns-town Career & Technology Center in Richland Township.
The couple hasn't wandered far from their Johnstown roots.
Anthony took the circuitous road to the $40 billion pizza industry.
He was a math major in college and owned a successful janitorial service.
One day in 1994, he took over a friend's failing pizza business. With hard work and sound business principles, Anthony said, he was able to turn things around.
The two jobs "overlapped" until he opened Punxsy Pizza in February 1994.
"It was a hard learning curve going from one business to the other," he said.
"I didn't know too much. A lot of hours go into running a restaurant."
The hard work paid off.
Anthony, an author, speaker, consultant and marketing guru, will be on the road again next month.
He will participate in the 39th International Pizza Expo at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Anthony is thrilled to be a part of the pizza industry.
"In the end, I've paid my dues," he said.
"It has opened up a lot of opportunities."
