Our Staff

Bethany Iverson

Director of Operations/ Senior Event Coordinator

According to Bethany, "In a military family, it really doesn't matter where you were born". So from Davenport, Iowa, Bethany moved every year of her life taking her all across the United States as well as overseas where she experienced an abundance of cultures and cuisines. She also learned at a very young age how to adapt to new surroundings and relate to a broad spectrum of people. While her father was a Logistics man in the Army, Bethany chose to follow a more creative route by pursuing a degree in Photography, which she earned from UGA in 1999. Bethany took her creative eye and travel experience into a career with Burton and Burton where, as an International Purchasing agent of Home Decor, she travelled to South East Asia frequently.

In 2004, both regulars at "5&10" restaurant in Athens, Hallie and Bethany met. Bethany started picking up shifts at HJC only to find that she really enjoyed catering and longed to have more of a hand in the actual planning of the events. In June of 2005, Bethany decided to switch careers to fulfill her dream of being an Event Coordinator at HJC.

Since joining the HJC team, Bethany is responsible for spearheading the systems that make HJC as organized and successful as it is today. From purchasing software, building the website, forcing Hallie to assign standard pricing to every menu and service, and joining networking groups, Bethany is the driving force behind HJC's growth. For that reason and the fact that she has done every job in the company, she became the Director of Operations in the fall of 2008. She has served as the Co-chair for the Athens Wedding Professional Bridal Show for three years. She and her husband, Todd, and their 2 dogs live in Athens, GA.

Gorete Silva

Kitchen Manager

Gorete was born in Sao Paolo, Brazil and came to America when she was 24 years old. With a degree in Nutrition from a University in Brazil, Gorete understands a great deal about food. She has been in the HJC kitchen since 2003, making her the longest term employee at HJC. With over 10 years of kitchen experience, Gorete's stamina, attention to detail, and commitment to consistency has made her an invaluable asset to the HJC team. Her steadfast loyalty and incredible work ethic guarantees the highest quality food preparation is sent to every catered event. She is responsible for daily and monthly inventory, ordering, meeting health code requirements, and training and scheduling kitchen staff.

I can’t tell you how many comments I had from people over the wonderful food – it truly was a highlight!

Mary Easton
Mother of the Bride