Rogers leaving Heart of Danville after four years
Published 10:57 am Wednesday, September 21, 2016
- Heart of Danville being awarded the Kentucky Main Street award with Bethany Rogers in the middle.
The Heart of Danville is preparing to say farewell to Executive Director Bethany Rogers after four years of working with her.
“It’s a bittersweet moment for the Heart of Danville with (Rogers) leaving,” Heart of Danville Vice President Tom Poland said.
“This job has been the greatest learning experience of my life, the most rewarding and the most challenging all rolled up in one,” Rogers said. “It’s been really special to be able to reconnect with my hometown.”
Rogers is leaving Danville to move to Macon, Georgia, where she will serve as the Director of Real Estate with NewTown Macon.
“In my new role, I will gain experience with preservation development and investment, spheres that I believe will teach me how to truly effect positive and sustainable community change,” she said.
Macon is known for Capricorn Records, a label that has worked with several big-name bands and musicians, such as the Allman Brothers Band, the Outlaws, James Montgomery and more.
Rogers said she is excited for one of the first big projects she will be working on, as NewTown Macon just bought the Capricorn Records building to bring back a recording, performance and practice space for the students at Mercer University.
“I will have the opportunity to work on projects that involve reviving Macon’s soul-music heritage and some academic-public-private initiatives, which are projects that touch on several passions of mine,” she said.
Rogers said leaving the Heart of Danville and the local community is not easy.
“Many of our accomplishments at the HOD in the last few years have been some of the most gratifying projects I’ve been a part of and in the cases where our efforts have come up short or I’ve simply made mistakes, those have been very important personal and professional lessons,” she said.
Looking back on the four years she’s been working for HOD, she said it has been a meaningful experience for her in being able to reconnect with her hometown and gaining a better understanding of what makes Danville special.
“I feel like Danville has really impacted my evolution as a community leader and advocate, both growing up here and coming back as a professional, and I’m grateful for that — what I see as a very positive influence in my life — and for the opportunity to serve as the Heart of Danville’s director these last few years,” she said.
“I won’t be that far away. It’s really nice to get to say ‘I’ll be seeing ya,’ even if it’s home for the holidays.”
