Hello
I moved here when I was 12 and have never lived anywhere else since. I get asked often if I’m ever going to leave or why I haven’t yet, and my answer is always that this is my home, this is my community, and I truly can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather live.
Growing up in Hendersonville
When I turned 14 and I wanted some extra money, my dad dropped me off on Main Street- he said that was the best place for me to find work at my age- and told me to call him when I found something. That first job was housekeeping and serving breakfast at the Waverly inn under Diane, John, and Darla. As I grew up, I found places to live close to town. I roomed with some friends on Willow Rd, and 15 years ago, rent was $300/mo. I walked to my day job at Mikes on Main, back home to get changed, and then to my afternoon shift at Black Bear.
Education
I got my GED and went back to school at Blue Ridge Community College for Early Childhood Education, taking the Apple Country bus to my classes, and once I got my early ed credentials, I started teaching preschool. I realized that the classroom pay would not be enough, so I went back again, this time to UNC Greensboro, online, so I could keep my job here. I graduated with my Bachelor’s in Human Development and Family Studies in 2021. I immediately applied for my dream job, Children and Family Resource Center, who I had seen do so much good in the early education field and in our community in general, and started working there that July, just about a month after I got married.
Investing in Hendersonville
During my time at UNCG, we bought a house about two blocks from the first house I ever rented, and we got in just under the wire for the housing boom that was coming. We just knew we couldn’t keep paying rent as we watched it skyrocket, so we got a first time home buyers’ loan and closed on our house just a month before COVID hit. Throughout my whole life here in Hendersonville I have been so supported by our amazing community, and we have all been through a lot together, and now I feel that it is my time to give back through a role of public service.