Our People
Emily Balcken
Executive Director, Children & Family Resource Center
Brandon Baird
President & CEO, Community Foundation of Henderson County
Ruth Birge
Executive Director, United Way of Henderson County
Brenda Blackburn
Dean of Business & Service Careers, Blue Ridge Community College
Abigail Buxton
Lead for North Carolina Fellow, AmeriCorps
Kat Carlton
Executive Director, United Way of Henderson County
Linda Carter
Children's Services Director, WNC Source
Samantha Cole
Child Care Business Liaison, N.C. Department of Commerce
Shelah Combs
Teacher Preparation & Early Childhood Education Instructor, Blue Ridge Community College
Alice Dunbar
Child Care Director, Alice’s Playground Center
Heather Erwin
Early Care & Education Director, Children & Family Resource Center
Mark Garrett
Superintendent, Henderson County Public Schools
Sonia Gironda
Executive Director, Smart Start Partnership for Children
Kim Guice
Early Childhood Workforce Development Coord., Children & Family Resource Center
Kendal Heck
Kindergarten Transition Coord., Smart Start Partnership for Children
Amy Lynn Holt
Chairperson, Henderson County Board of Public Education
Shannon Kiggen
Behavior Support Specialist, Children & Family Resource Center
Mary Ellen Kustin
Director of Community Impact, United Way of Henderson County
Ashley Lamb
Program Coordinator, Smart Start of Henderson County
Stephanie Lee
Director of Human Resources, Carolina Village
Shelly Ledford
Child Care Coord., Southwestern Childcare Development Commission
Rebecca McCall
Commissioner, Henderson County Board of Commissioners
Molly McGowan Gorsuch
Director, Henderson County Early Childhood Taskforce
Kris Merritt
Senior Program Officer, Community Foundation of Henderson County
Hannah Robinson Michael
Community Engagement Manager for Western Region, NC Child
Cindy Moody
Child Care Coord., Southwestern Childcare Development Commission
Stacy Nash
Community Health Director, Henderson County Department of Public Health
Margit Nelson
Children's Services Operations & Procurement Mgr., WNC Source
Sara Schmidt
Director of Industry Relations, Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development
Summer Stipe
Board Chair, Smart Start Partnership for Children
Isabel Taylor
Founder, Bell’s School for People Under 6
David White
Chief Executive Officer, WNC Source
Melissa Wiedeman
Senior Vice President of Community Services, YMCA of WNC
Jamie Wiener
Executive Director, Blue Ridge Community College Educational Foundation
Melanie Wilkins
Early Childhood Education Faculty, Blue Ridge Community College