Our Staff

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. 

Eli Coburn

Site Manager

Eli is a North Carolina native who grew up on a farm in Eastern North Carolina. Even at an early age, he found a passion in early American culture. He has been in a historical setting for the past six years before joining our team as Site Manager in January of 2024. Eli has a multitude of skills, including traditional woodworking, historic preservation, and a vast agricultural knowledge. 

In his free time, Eli enjoys spending time with his family, as well as going archery hunting, and fishing. Eli looks forward to continuing the preservation of the historic log structures housed here at Hart Square Village, as well as the history of Catawba Valley.

Our Board

Dr. Eric Hart - Chairman
Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Health Stat, Inc.
Family Physician at Hart Family Practice
Hickory, NC

Thomas Beatty
Senior Engineer of Duke Energy Corporation
Denver, NC

Katie Pritchard  - Treasurer
Senior Vice President, Finance at Valdese Weavers
Hickory, NC

Ian Bumgarner
Catawba County Budget & Management Analyst
Hickory, NC

John Orgain
Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Alex Lee, MDI, Lowe’s Foods
Hickory, NC 

Keith Hart
Retired VP of Sales and Marketing of King Hickory Furniture
Charlotte, NC