About

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Therefore, we value and remain committed to:

• Telling a variety of stories
• Providing a welcoming, supportive environment for anyone who wants to join us and support our mission–regardless of race, religion, national origin, or other protected status
• Welcoming and accommodating individuals with disabilities
• Listening to our community and working to build an even stronger foundation of openness, love, and support in our theater.

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Holly Leadership, 2024

Board of Directors

David Robertson is the current owner and Financial Consultant of the retail Charles Schwab office in Dawsonville.   David has been in the retail investment/brokerage business since 1989 and a manger or owner in the industry since 1993 as well as being part of or running focus groups for previous companies.David was raised in Michigan and has two degrees from Mount Vernon Nazarene University in Ohio. David has been part of, and on the board of the Dahlonega Sunrise Rotary, graduated from the Leadership Lumpkin class, on the board of Dahlonega Healing Herds, member of the Dahlonega and Dawsonville Chambers of Commerce, and a volunteer with the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame in Dawsonville.David and his wife Nancy have lived in Dahlonega since 2015 and soon discovered the Holly after moving here. David looks forward to helping to keep the Holly as the leading Theatre in North Georgia as well as preserving the Holly’s Financial Stability both now and for the future.

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Glenn Whitehead has volunteered at the Holly Theater for more than 15 years. He maintains the sound system and trains current and upcoming sound designers. Glenn has previously been on the Holly Theater Board of Directors. He served as Vice Chairman of the board, Chairman of the Technical Committee, as well as other committees as needed. Glenn started running sound for theater productions in high school.

After a long hiatus, he started doing theater again at the Cumming Theater. He served as the Technical Director for several shows.  This included designing/running sound, lighting, sets, playbills, and anything else the producer required.  He has been the sound designer and operator for many productions for the Holly Theater. Glenn spent most of his career in Information Technology management. He has an in-depth knowledge of business operations. He is married with two children and five grandchildren.

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Greg Stipe

Treasurer

Greg Stipe and his wife Debra, moved to the Dahlonega area in 2015.  Greg is a graduate of Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota with degrees in Business Administration and Economics.  After a 14 year career as a currency trader, Greg founded ChannelForce, a technology services company here in Atlanta which was sold in 2007 to the Allegis Group.  In 2010, Greg and Debra formed Renovare of Georgia, a real estate investment company which ultimately led to the formation of StayDahlonega, a short term rental company.  Greg went through the Leadership Lumpkin County program in 2019, and was the Chair of that program in 2021.  He currently serves on the Dahlonega Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce board, as well as the board of Lumpkin County Family Connection.  Greg and his wife are passionate about theater and film, and see the Holly theater as a vital part of our community.  In his spare time he enjoys reading, and sometimes enjoys the game of golf.

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Sawyer Henderson has been involved with the Holly Theatre for almost 10 years in various capacities. His most recent production roles were as Director for The Sound of Music and as the Assistant Director for Bright Star. Sawyer also enjoys acting on-stage at The Holly; a few of his favorite roles include Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast, The Knight of Ni in Spamalot, and Caleb in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. He also enjoys certain technical aspects of theater, having served as light and soundboard operator for several productions.

By day, Sawyer is currently an English teacher and English Department Chair at Woodstock High School and is the former Assistant Director of the drama program, a position he worked in for three years. He has also been a trained adjudicator for the Georgia One-Act Play Competition for high schools.Sawyer holds a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, a Bachelor of Arts in English w/Teaching Certifications, and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology. He has spoken at and presented at several conferences, including the conference for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the South Atlantic Modern Language Association (SAMLA). Sawyer has experience working with and leading diverse groups of people, developing standard operating procedures, leading research projects, managing budgets, and streamlining practices to make them more efficient. If given an opportunity to serve on the Holly Board, Sawyer hopes to serve as a voice for the artistic side of the theatre, while also helping to streamline operational practices to support the training and retention of future production staff, actors, and volunteers. Lastly, Sawyer hopes his experience in education can be used to help further the mission of the Holly by providing more educational components and programming to community members.​

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Taylor is proud to call the Holly Theatre her home away from home. She attended the Gainesville Theater Alliance at Brenau University after graduating from Lumpkin County High School in 2011, and she has volunteered as an actor, choreographer, director, stage manager, and acting coach here at the Holly since 2013, though she has been performing since being bitten by the theatre bug in high school. Taylor is heavily involved in the Holly’s children’s theatre program, the Holly Performance Academy. She truly believes that children are the future and that we must continue to nurture and encourage them as they grow. Taylor lives in Gainesville with her husband, Adam, who is also no stranger to the Holly Theatre’s stage.  Early in 2022 they added their first-born son Graham to the ever growing Holly family. Taylor is proud to serve in many capacities and would like to thank the Dahlonega community for continuing to encourage, support, and enrich the arts in our small town.

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Libby Kirby

Libby J Kirby Colon has loved theatre since she took her first role at the age of 13 in a high school production of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Some of Libby’s job descriptions include Marketing, Sales, Customer service and relations. She is a quick learner and loves talking with people.On the theater side, Libby has been in multiple shows in many jobs. Acting, directing, stage managing, writing are just a few examples as well as directing a show at the Holly as one of the experiences. She loves theater with a passion and would bring a lot of skills to the Marketing position.

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Carla McWhorter is a Georgia native who has been volunteering at the Holly Theater since 2009. While she can primarily be found on the stage, she has also spent a fair share of time directing, assistant directing, set building, and serving on the Holly Theater Artistic Committee. Carla has a BA in Theatre from Georgia Southern University and has been in the theatre world for almost 30 years. She has volunteered with several other theaters in the area but has always felt that the Holly was her ‘Home Theater’ and is proud to serve on the board.
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By day, Carla works as a Senior Technical Account Manager for Yardi Systems. She lives in Gainesville with her husband Jesse, whom she met while they were both performing in a Holly production, and their 2 dogs, Belle and Luna. 

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Marlin Nelson is a global sales executive, international business expansion consultant and entrepreneur with more than 30 years of Management, Sales and Marketing experience in the technology field.  Before returning to the USA in 1996 Marlin and his family lived in Europe for 15 years. Marlin has made Dahlonega his part-time home in 2002 and a full-time residence since 2019.  In 2020, he founded NG-Benefits LLC, helping to provide 65+ Seniors, the Disabled and Veterans life and health care insurance products.  Married to Vernice Velez, a public-school teacher of French and Spanish, their combined family has 6 children and 8 grandchildren. 
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Marlin is an avid lover of the theatre since high school and he has been volunteering at the Holly Theatre, including his recent role of Admiral Schreiber in “The Sound of Music.”  He is interested in the technical aspects of theatre and pleased to offer his time and experience to serving on the Board of Directors.

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Bill and his wife Barbara moved part-time to Dahlonega in 2012 and retired full-time in 2019. Bill has a BS Engineering from USMA, a JD from UGA and an MBA from GSU. He practiced corporate and tax law specializing in international business for 47 years and has been an active member of the Georgia Bar for 50+ years. He was an adjunct professor for many years at UGA, Emory and GSU law schools. Since arriving here he has been very active in the Dahlonega community as President and a member of the Board at R Ranch, Secretary and member of the Board of the U.S. Mountain Ranger Association, Service Project Director and Member of the Board of Dahlonega Sunrise Rotary Club, Chairman of the Lumpkin County Veterans Affairs Committee, Chairman of the Lumpkin County, County Manager Selection Committee, member of Lumpkin Leadership Class of 2023 and pro bono legal counsel, member of the Board, and Treasurer of The Holly Theatre.

Bill’s favorite volunteer activities are supporting The Holly Theatre as a Front of House volunteer and assisting with legal and financial issues. He is constantly amazed and humbled by the many talented volunteers at The Holly, on stage (acting, singing and dancing), directing, making sets, operating lights and sound, booking concerts, teaching and coaching children and helping The Holly raise money to allow its wonderful contribution to the Dahlonega/Lumpkin County Community. It will be a privilege, pleasure, and honor to be able to serve again on the Board of The Holly.

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An entrepreneur, corporate executive, and a former eight-term state senator, Bud recently moved to Dahlonega with his wife, Tania. He wants to help the Holly Theatre thrive. Bud’s interest in working for the Holly is motivated by two primary things:

1) The theatre is a terrific way to enhance the skills, courage, and even the personality of children and adults in our community. Very few things are more noble than helping people step up and step out!  As he and Tania saw in the many performances they attended while building their house here, the Holly does that extremely well.

2) The Holly adds fun in the lives of people in its community. There are many opportunities to frown in the sometimes stressful world in which we live. The programs at the Holly decrease frowns by providing smiles. He wants to ensure the Holly continues to do that long into the future.

Bud is responding to the need for directors with fundraising, marketing and management experience. He helps the theater secure a stable future as a dynamic communicator of the Holly’s attributes both one-on-one and as an accomplished public speaker before small and large groups. He also has a lot of experience fundraising for the university on whose board he serves as well as for the Epilepsy Foundation and political campaigns. He will be happy to ask others to give to the Holly just as he will be doing. ​

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Bruce is the Principal of True North Regulatory Services, LLC. He provides regulatory consulting to a consortium of 12 major consumer products companies. He graduated with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Texas Tech University and enjoyed a 36-year career in regulatory and legislative affairs. He served outside of his job duties as President of the Arkansas Water Pollution Control Association, the Board of Directors of the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois, and in leadership positions with multiple trade associations. Bruce and his wife Rebecca moved to Dahlonega in 2021 and are blessed to call this beautiful city home. Bruce serves as volunteer tour guide at the 1884 Jail, and he is a Board Member and Secretary of the Dahlonega Sunrise Rotary Club. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Church, and they both volunteer frequently at the Holly Theater.

Even though his head has remained firmly anchored in science and business, Bruce’s heart is in the arts. He was bitten by the acting bug in a third-grade production of Over the Garden Wall, playing Little Boy Blue. He received rave reviews from his mom and her friends. He continued acting through Junior High and High School and even in college until the demands of his major took over his time. He was able to pick it up again during his 27 years in Chicagoland, where he performed in many plays with seven different theatre companies in Chicagoland and SE Wisconsin. Bruce was privileged to appear as “Leonato” in Much Ado About Nothing at the Holly. In addition to acting, Bruce has played violin for over 50 years, and spent 28 of those years playing with symphony orchestras.Bruce believes that the Holly Theater is an absolute gem, and he looks forward to serving this theater for years to come.

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Hal’s family roots run to the original settling families in the 1828 gold rush. Dahlonega has been home to Hal and his wife Carol since the mid 1960’s. As students at NGC they began their married life here and raised their children and grandchildren here. They retired here in 2008, after owning several successful businesses, working for the Chamber of Commerce and the US Army.
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As a member of the original Holly Theater Board, Hal has enjoyed over 25 years of experience both on stage and as a board member at the theater.  Since 1948 the Holly has been the cultural center for Dahlonega and proudly continues as a leading performing and education center for Georgia. Hal is honored to continue to be associated with this exemplary theater community.

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Ivana joined the Holly Theatre as a volunteer immediately upon establishing her and her husband’s home in Dahlonega in 2010.  Her roles on and off stage included 9 years as a board member, the last 5 of which she served as chairman.  Ivana and the leadership team oversaw the Holly Theatre’s growth both in the quality of shows and financial security.  Her repeated success in securing grants made possible the preservation of the historic building and many physical and technical improvements.  Ivana is proud of the Holly Theatre’s board of directors achieving long-term stability during her tenure. Ivana retired from a career as non-profit executive that included positions as vice president of leading private colleges and senior consultant with an international consulting company.  She has been active as a volunteer with several local organizations, graduated from Leadership Lumpkin County 2018, and serves on the city’s Historic Preservation Commission.

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General Manager

Sarah Christopher

Sarah Christopher brings over 20 years of event operations management experience to her role as a General Manager at the Holly Theatre. Holding a degree from Mid American University, Sarah is the proud wife of an army veteran and mother of four children. After her husband’s military retirement, the family chose Dahlonega as their permanent home.
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Sarah is drawn to the Holly Theatre’s dedication to providing the community with the enriching experiences of live theater. She is sincerely in awe of the volunteer staff that has made The Holly such an incredible asset to the community. Sarah sees the Holly Theatre as an integral part of Dahlonega’s cultural landscape and is determined to contribute to its ongoing success.