MEET OUR TEAM
HANNAH DORREL
AUGUSTA HEALTH FARM MANAGER
Hannah's love of food and farming started at an early age as she baked in her grandmother’s kitchen and planted gardens with her parents. Hannah graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she majored in Global Studies and Economics and served as a Satellite Garden Manager for Edible Campus. After six months of training as a Farm Fellow, Hannah became an AMI 2021 Community Fellow, serving as the Farm and Fellowship Coordinator at the Allegheny Farm. When she's not farming, Hannah enjoys experimenting in the kitchen, reading, and hiking.
RICK GATLIN
Administrative Assistant
and Bookkeeper
Rick comes to AMI with over 30 years of accounting and business management experience. He worked with grants, capital budgets, and accounting software implementation at the University of Virginia. He also put in many years of corporate accounting at the former Rocco, Inc, poultry company in Harrisonburg. A graduate of James Madison University, Rick originally hails from Tidewater, Virginia, but has developed deep roots here in the Shenandoah Valley. When not trying to get on the golf course, his other passion is training, showing, and loving his herd of English Springer Spaniels.
PAXTON GRANT
ALLEGHENY FARM FACILITY CARETAKER
Paxton grew up in Waynesboro and then received his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Resource Management at Virginia Tech before serving as an officer in the Army for over 20 years. In 1999, Paxton moved to Highland County, where he has worked with his grandparents and cousin on the 225-acre family farm in Hightown. He has also been a Communications Officer & Communications Supervisor at the Highland County Sheriff’s Office and an Extension Technician with the Virginia Cooperative Extension.
Sarah fitzgerald
outreach manager
Sarah manages Allegheny Mountain Institute's online presence, from updating the website to responding to social media inquiries. She has experience in administrative work, technology and social media presence, and a million other unrelated things. When she's not working, she enjoys reading a book while cuddling with her two cats, spending time with friends and family, and attending live music with her husband, Cameron.
