HOB Announces New Executive Director

A NEW YEAR, A NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR HEART OF BREVARD 

Heart of Brevard (HOB) Board of Directors has announced that Nicole Bentley will begin work as its new executive director on January 6, 2020. A search committee, comprised of both board and community members assembled earlier this year when HOB’s former executive director, Heath Seymour, left the organization to pursue an opportunity in Louisville, KY.

Bentley brings 15 years of not-for-profit experience in cultivating stakeholder relationships, community fundraising, marketing, and downtown association administration and planning, most recently as Director of Membership and Sponsorship with the Asheville Downtown Association (Asheville, NC) and previously in various leadership positions with the Kanuga Conference Center, Inc. (Hendersonville, NC.) Bentley holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hollins University, in Roanoke, VA.

Jimmy Perkins, HOB Board President, said “We are pleased to have someone with Nicole’s talent to lead our organization as we move to enhance our downtown development efforts through strategic partnerships and revenue growth. Nicole is an excellent communicator with vibrant leadership capabilities. She has previously lived in Brevard, and has an excellent understanding of, and appreciation for, our community.”

Bentley added, “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to serve as Executive Director for the Heart of Brevard. I am looking forward to working closely with the board, community leaders, property owners, businesses and all stakeholders to guide the development of this vital organization and to enhance and promote the unique qualities of this vibrant downtown. Brevard was the first city in which I lived in North Carolina; the natural beauty and sense of community were major influences in my decision to call Western North Carolina home.”

HOB, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, works to strengthen and promote its historic downtown, cradled by the Pisgah National Forest, as the vibrant, pedestrian/cycle friendly safe center of its community, lined with diverse independent businesses, and serving as the crossroads to exceptional outdoor recreation and as a thriving hub for the arts.