Ann Toney Heard, a career educator, is a Rowan County retired School Counselor having also worked as the Director of Student Activities at Appalachian State University and Dean of Students at Catawba College.

Ann graduated from Marion High. Her undergraduate degree is in English and her Masters in Student Affairs and Counseling both from Appalachian.

She has done volunteer work for the American Red Cross, Rowan County Board of Elections, Rowan Helping Ministries, Salisbury Historical Society, Hospice, Mission Hospital McDowell, and the McDowell Board of Elections.

Ann is a Partner of The Historic Carson House and served as a volunteer before becoming part of the staff. Ann's late husband was a Baptist Minister, and she served as either the pianist or organist at each church they served. She also taught private piano lessons for 18 years in her home.

Always a lover of history, many family vacations were centered around visiting historic sites and National Parks. She and her husband were avid antique collectors and loved exploring their histories. Ann has continued their love for traveling and has visited all 50 states and 7 foreign countries. Being a docent at The Carson House and working on its projects and events are both an honor and a pleasure to Ann.

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Shelba Murray is a retired educator who has a fondness for teaching people of all ages about the history of the Carson family and life in the area in the 1800s. Raised on a farm, she understands the work it took for early pioneers to plant, harvest, and preserve food for large families. She also understands the joy and appreciation that hard work brings, and she is delighted to share that understanding with folks who tour the Carson House.

The parents of a daughter and two sons, she and her husband, Terry, worked hard to build their home on Old Linville Road in the North Cove/Ashford community. While their children attended North Cove Elementary, Shelba attended first McDowell Tech and then Appalachian State where she earned a BS in Elementary Education. After teaching a couple years at the elementary level, she began teaching GED, ESL, and other classes for adults at McDowell Tech. She earned an MA Degree in Higher Education from ASU and taught English and Mathematics at McDowell Tech before becoming Director of Adult Basic Education in 2000.

Retiring twelve years later, Shelba traveled within the US and the Caribbean, and then built a home in the Pleasant Gardens area near her children and five grandchildren, and one great-grandson. She currently enjoys volunteering at the Chamber of Commerce and giving tours at the Historic Carson House.