Nancy spent most of her career working with advertising agencies around the country. She and her husband, Joe, were living in Birmingham when they first discovered the beauty of Western North Carolina. During a New Years Eve trip to Saluda in 1995, they hiked Looking Glass Rock and instantly knew they had to make their way to this region. They finally moved to Brevard in 2001, where they launched and operated Poppies Market until their retirement in 2011. Nancy graduated from Elizabethtown College with a degree in business. She has also been an active volunteer in the community including with TPC, with the Transylvania County Animal Shelter, with the U.S. Forest Service at the Pisgah Ranger Station/Visitor Center, and as a board member with the Friends of Ecusta Trail.
“I love that, because I live in Brevard, I can be IN Pisgah within 10 minutes from my driveway. Maybe that day is just to get some exercise on one of the closest trails right off of Highway 276. I have walked some of them hundreds of times and yet they always look different; be it by the season, the weather or my direction of travel. Or maybe it’s a longer day of exploration in the Wilderness. Sometimes alone and often with my hiking group. These old mountains welcome me and invite me to keep exploring and to feel their strength and resilience.”
