Members of the administration can be reached by calling 864-472-2038 David Meeks – Executive Director Mary Lee Rollins – Assistant Director April Roper – Office Manager Linda M. Poole – Program Director Mark Rollins – Accounting Mandy Garvey and Marilyn Roper – Park / Operations Supervisor TEAM MEMBERS Though there are hundreds of four-legged mammals Hollywild visitors love to get to know, there are plenty of two-legged mammals around the Park too.  In fact, it’s our human Hollywild family members who make the park such a great place to visit.  Here are a few of the faces you’ll see out and about around the park as well as those behind the scenes who are working to keep the animals and our visitors happy. Brad Ferea Age: 26 Hometown: Pittsburgh, PA Where you’ll see Brad: All over the park.  He’s often in caring for the animals or driving the tractor around with feed. How did you find Hollywild? I worked in a mine in Pennsylvania that shut down. I followed a friend who moved south to work on a painting crew. That brought me to South Carolina. I went to the fair in Spartanburg last fall and met David Meeks. I talked with him there and told him I’d worked with horses before and he said I should apply for a job. I’ve been here 8 months now and can’t imagine doing anything else.   Behind the scenes tale: I was terrified when I first started working with Tank but now he’s my favorite.  He’s like a big pet. He loves attention. Richard Wheeler Age: 18 Hometown: Inman, SC Where you’ll see Richard: He’ll be in the walking park often carrying the baby bottles that visitors buy to feed the baby goats. Look for his hat and his big smile! How did you find Hollywild? I’d been to Hollywild many times since I live here, but got a seasonal job here last summer. I worked through the Holiday Lights Season and now this is my second summer.  I love helping to feed the animals, especially the baby goats. Behind the Scenes: It’s fun to see how people react when the emus come running up.   Jeff Donahue Age: 49 Hometown: Edison, NJ Where you’ll see Jeff: Everywhere!  Jeff finds himself working nearly every job in the Park, from Safari bus driver to habitat and park maintenance. How did you find Hollywild? I knew Joe and Marty who used to work here before they moved and Joe told me I should come out to apply to be a Safari driver.  He knew my personality and he was right.  I really enjoy it. No two rides are the same.  People may laugh but I see myself kind of like a waitress.  I need to deliver a good time (not food) and if you don’t have one, I’ve not done my job.  I love learning the audience and laughing with them.   Behind the Scenes: The craziest thing I’ve seen is a baby lamb nursing from Sassafras, a mother donkey. We all tried to get pictures of it but all I could get was a fuzzy one on my cell. (We wanted to let the news know about it but none of us could catch the proof to show them!) Christina Banks Age: 28 Hometown: Fingerville, SC Where you’ll see Christina: Behind the wheel of a Safari bus. How did she find Hollywild? Jeff Donahue is my dad and he works here. He said I’d love it here and he was right! Behind the Scenes: People are always dropping their cell phones while trying to take pictures on Safari. It’s funny because then there’s the question of who gets out to get the phone. Sometimes I ask for a volunteer, but most people don’t want to get any closer to the big animal than inside the bus, so I usually do it.  Sometimes we have to wait until the animals move away.   Melissa Lawson Age: 31 Hometown: Campobello, SC Where you’ll see Melissa: Behind the wheel of a Safari bus. How did you find Hollywild? I worked here during one Holiday Lights season to earn some extra money for Christmas and I got hooked.  I told Mandy (Mandy Garvey- Park Operations Manager) that I wanted a job and I kept calling her until she hired me on!  Christina (Banks) and I love working the buses.  Now I not only drive the buses, I’m also considered part of a rescue team because I’m often having to rescue peoples’ glasses since they often drop them off the bus while they are feeding the animals. Behind the Scenes: At one point, my bus had a cracked windshield. Everyone would ask what happened, envisioning lots of wild things happening on Safari, so I’d make lots of jokes about it. When one little boy asked, I just told him the bus was older than I am.  He looked at me and said, “Man, that’s OLD,” like it was some kind of travesty.  Kids are definitely the best! Nick Bowlds Age:  21 Hometown: Inman, SC Where you’ll see Nick: Selling animal food and rushing around to catch the baby goats. How did you find Hollywild? I followed my girlfriend Cheryl Murwin here. This is her fourth season at the park and my first.   Behind the Scenes: They now call me “Nick the Goat Herder” because we often have the goats getting out of their pens and I’m the one to catch them.  In the petting barn they keep coming to me and jump all over me like I’m a toy! Bryttani Maynor Age:  19 Hometown: Lyman, SC Moriah Nodine Age:  20 Hometown: Lyman, SC The Pony Team Where you’ll see the pony team: Entering the park, look to the right of the Zoovenir shop. When you see the ponies, you’re likely to see Bryttani and Moriah.   Who do they work with? The ponies are Cinnamon, Mary, and Spirit, each of which have their own personalities but all are great with kids. The pony team says that Cinnamon has a great ‘kid sense’ and they’ve seen her adjust her pace depending on the child’s comfort level without any direction from them. Mary, is loving and sweet and loves to lick everyone. Spirit is described as a bit of a loner who sometimes gets grumpy with them and at times seems to take delight in stepping on their toes. “He doesn’t just step, he steps then leans down hard, just to show us he knows what he’s doing.”    How did they find Hollywild? Bryttani’s grandfather, Kenny Maynor, worked here and he had his own farm. There Bryttani learned to work with animals and now she’s been hooked on using those skills here at Hollywild. She enjoys easing the parents’ minds when their children want to ride the ponies and seeing how the kids and ponies respond to each other. Moriah was raised around horses (her mom has a degree in equestrian science) and has been visiting Hollywild since she was a small child. Both Bryttani and Moriah have also worked the Holiday Lights season when pony rides are also offered. Behind the Scenes: A lot of kids want to pick the pony by its color or some feature they like, but really, the kids pick the pony by their own size, when Bryttani and Moriah match to the pony best suited to the size of the child. For children age 3 or younger, they ask parents to walk alongside which gives both the parent and the child a sense of security so they really enjoy the ride. Funny tale:  At Christmas time, kids will often come to the pony rides right after seeing Santa where they’ve been given a lollipop. The ponies like pops too and have often snatched them up to get a sweet treat too.