Our Team

Rebecca Hart

Executive Director

Rebecca Anne Hart has been the Executive Director at Hart Square Village since 2014. She studied under her grandparents, founders Dr. Bob and Becky Hart for a few years before embarking on a $3.5 million capital campaign for the Sigmon Family Education Center, completed in October of 2021. When Rebecca began, Hart Square was open to the public one day a year and had one employee. Now, Hart Square is open to the public for living history events, traditional craft classes, membership, and other programs on an annual basis. 

Rebecca considers her greatest accomplishment to be establishing the k-12 field trip programming that has grown to serve 3,000 local students. Hart Square's k-12 field trip programming focuses on three key areas: traditional arts and trades, science and agriculture, and history immersion.  Rebecca serves on the Board of Advisors for the Luke Garrison Foundation and as the Vice President of the Catawba County Arts Council. She was recognized as one of Hickory’s “Top 10 under 40” in 2017 and has her Certified Fund Raising Executive International certification. She and her husband, Nate Moody, live in Hickory and enjoy playing bluegrass music and mountain climbing on the weekends.

Lorissa Vines

Development Director

Lorissa Vines is a Catawba County native with great pride in our community. She has worked in the nonprofit sector for 20 years.  Lorissa joined our team in June 2022 and came to us from Carolina Caring, where she served as Director of Development for eight years.

Lorissa discovered her passion for Hart Square through Leadership Catawba.  Since joining the Hart Square team, Lorissa shares and preserves Hart Square Village through community outreach and philanthropy.  Lorissa is honored to help preserve the 200 to 300-year-old cabins entrusted to our care and to preserve endangered traditional arts and trades.  Lorissa is a Catawba Valley Pottery enthusiast, so it is fitting that her first fundraising initiative for historic preservation was the restoration of Hart Square’s groundhog kiln.

 Lorissa Graduated from the Leadership Catawba program in March 2020 and served as an Advisory Board Member from 2020 to 2023. Lorissa was recognized as one of our area's "Top 10 Under 40" in 2019 and completed her Teleios University Leadership Certification in 2021. When she isn't working, Lorissa enjoys hiking, cooking & entertaining friends, and traveling the world with her husband, David.

Mya Banner

Education Manager

Mya has been with Hart Square for the past five years. She started as a tour guide and field trip demonstrator, where she served children and adults by teaching the history of the collection and local trades. Mya began working full-time for Hart Square as Membership and Education Manager in 2020. She oversaw the launch of our Hart Square Membership Program in July 2021 and launched the Hart Square Craft School in March 2022. Mya now manages field trip programming, craft classes, Hart Square's social media platforms, and webpage. 

Mya and her husband, Neal, are residents of Lincolnton, where they enjoy going to the gym, and spending time with friends and cats, Squid and Parkour. Mya is passionate about preserving endangered arts and ensuring the torch of traditional craft is passed to the next generation.

Nicole Haney

Museum Assitant

Nicole Haney is a California native and moved to North Carolina in 2019 after serving with Mercy Ships, an international healthcare non-profit in Africa. She has a passion for administration, history, and learning. She joined our team as the Museum Assistant in February of 2023 and brings a skill set in many fields, specifically, bookkeeping, non-profit administration, and purchasing. 

In her free time Nicole enjoys hiking with her husband, Alex, and dogs Penny and Fiona. She loves to travel and explore new places. Currently, Nicole is spending her free time learning to become a beekeeper. Nicole looks forward to playing an active role in the new children’s garden and expanding her historic gardening knowledge. 

Brett Weatherman

Senior Historic Site Manager

Brett is from the town of Catawba. He has a background in heavy equipment repair and industrial work. He is also employed at a local utilities company in addition to Hart Square Foundation and has been a volunteer for the past eight years. Brett trained under Dr. Bob Hart for the last six years of his life. He disassembled 3 of the historic structures for Hart Square Village and has built a cabin of his own on his property. In his free time, Brett enjoys spending time with his wife and daughters and riding backcountry ATV trails. Brett has stepped in to help fill the gap after Dr. Bob's passing in a major way.

Terry Ratts

Historic Site Worker

Terry is originally from Forsyth County but moved to Catawba County in 1999. He is happily married to his wife Stephanie. Together they have a daughter named Allie and two dogs. He graduated from Bandys High School in 2005. After graduation, Terry went to work in furniture manufacturing. He has also worked in the paper/packaging industry. Terry is currently a career firefighter with the City of Lincolnton and a volunteer firefighter with Propst Crossroads Volunteer Fire Department. He is eager to learn all that he can. He enjoys being with his family, playing golf, and hunting.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” -Teddy Roosevelt