About the Author

Mandy Gibson started as executive director of Historic Johnson Farm in the spring of 2018. Since then, she has revitalized the farm's tours, events, and field trips. As a historian and educator, her favorite moments are bringing history to life, especially for school children. When she isn't at the farm, she enjoys exploring western North Carolina with her husband, daughter, and Winston! Mandy and her husband adopted Winston from the Blue Ridge Humane Society in March 2019. Winston was immediately attached to them, but when they brought him home, they discovered that he was terrified of new people. Mandy started bringing him to the farm many days, and he started to meet the many farm volunteers. It took almost a whole year, but Winston started to recognize volunteers and even allowed some to pet him! Johnson Farm is now Winston's second home. His favorite days are Mondays when all the grounds volunteers are working and Tuesdays when the fiber artists meet for lunch and feed him under the table. Sarah Gaitskill attends East Henderson High School (class of 2023). She plans to attend Savannah College of Art and Design to study Illustration with the career goal of becoming a concept artist. When Sarah is not working on her art, she can be found playing her viola or electric bass, and she can also be seen on the stage at East Henderson High School in the spring musicals and class productions. Outside of school, Sarah enjoys traveling with her family to Disney and likes to be in the company of her favorite baguette pillow, lovingly named Marquis de Large Baguette.