Each member of our team brings experiences from a variety of personal and professional backgrounds, education and training. Collectively, we’ve acquired and developed skills and interests across a broad spectrum. We’ve invested in our families and homes, we’re involved in our community and we’re passionate about keeping it local. We know what it takes to operate a small business and we know the satisfaction that comes from staying connected to the people and businesses that stay connected to us.
fran johnson, publisher
[fran@harfordsheart.com] • [harfordsheart@verizon.net]Fran’s political idealism in her teens translated into specifics of community service during the years that she raised her daughters, taking roles that ranged from girl scout leader, choir mom and PTA volunteer to local political office, all while sharing management of a family-owned design/manufacturing business. A native of Baltimore County, she had lived in Philadelphia’s Main Line and in London before relocating to Harford County, where she and her husband Wayne are renovating an 1890s shotgun house in Bel Air. Despite the enticements of gardening and handcrafts and visits to her daughters in San Francisco and NY, Fran remains committed to community involvement. She’s an active member of the Board of the Bel Air Alliance, volunteering at community events throughout the year. Her favorite event is the outdoor movie series in Bel Air – stop by and say hello when you buy your popcorn.
sandy kapinos, creative director
[sandy@harfordsheart.com]Sandy utilizes her natural talents and flair, along with her business and corporate communication degrees from the University of Baltimore. She has been in the design and marketing industry for over 18 years, initially for other firms and for the last 11 years as the owner of Sonipak Design & Marketing, providing design, advertising and marketing services for regional and national businesses. She currently balances her agency work with the welcome demands of motherhood and assisting her husband Kevin with the operations of Kapinos Builders, a home improvement company. In addition to volunteering at school, church and activities for her three children Garrett, Lars & Gwenivere, Sandy serves on the Board of the Rockfield Foundation and participates in coordinating fund-raising events for a number of local non-profit organizations. She’s a devoted friend and animal lover (with one crazy dog), passionate concert-goer, fascinated by medieval history and art, and an energetic gardener and cook.
maria knott, circulation & advertising sales
[knottmade@aol.com]After earning her MS in mathematics, Maria rediscovered her real passion in art. She took a few detours through teaching, property management, antique dealership and home renovation, as well as volunteering with community groups such as the Harford Artists Association, to establish herself as an award-winning portraitist and muralist. Her passion for artistic expression has its roots in her commitment to her community in northern Harford County. You can view Maria's artwork by visiting www.mariaknott.com. In following her own dream, Maria "gets it" about small business owners and about supporting local endeavors. Like most of the team, she’s a pet owner, with a menagerie of dogs, ducks and parrots.
jenipher knoerlein, advertising sales
[jenipher@harfordsheart.com]A fairly recent transplant to Harford County, Jenipher has worked in marketing and advertising at CBS radio, in pharmaceutical sales and in advertising sales with the Aegis and the Baltimore Examiner. She shares with other members of our team a commitment to small local businesses, consulting with a number of business owners on market development. Along with husband Mike, son Reid, and daughter Savannah, Jenipher loves traveling, playing games and visiting local parks and County amenities.
Heather Thorpe, advertising sales
[heather@harfordsheart.com]Transplanted to Bel Air 4 years ago with her husband Todd, Heather has pursued her passion for community-building by joining the Moms Club, becoming involved in school and sports activities for her sons Garrett, Parker and Spencer. Her enthusiasm led her to working part-time at Rockfield Manor as assistant to the Director, and founding Leading Ladies, a group of Harford County women focusing on assisting non-profit organizations with fundraising and events. Heather has recently been appointed to the Board of the Casey Cares Foundation, supporting that organization’s mission to provide ongoing programs for critically ill children. Amid all her activism, Heather still finds time for friends and family, and for quiet moments reading or recharging in summers on
Cape Cod.
Theresa Seiter, advertising sales
[theresa@harfordsheart.com]Theresa’s affection for Harford County is fueled by the friends she’s made in the 14 years she has lived here - in a 200-year-old house in the northern part of the county. With her degree in Business and Management, working as a manufacturer’s rep was a logical step, but one that required lots of driving throughout Maryland, Delaware, Eastern Pennsylvania and DC. More recently, she is Community Service Counselor for Gardens of Faith & Holly Hills Memorial Park – helping people with a difficult service. Theresa expresses her calling for helping the community by active participation in the Bel Air Rotary, the Harford County Chamber of Commerce and the NAIPC (National Aging in Place Counsel). Representing Harford’s Heart is another way she’s sharing her affection for all things Harford.
Vonnie Winslow Crist, staff writer
[wincrist@yahoo.com]Vonnie’s life-long interest in the arts encompasses both writing and illustration. She earned her BS in Art-Education from Towson University in 1974, returning 30 years later to earn her MS in Professional Writing. In addition to writing "The Writers Block" for Harford’s Heart, she is staff illustrator for "The Vegetarian Journal," editor of "The Gunpowder Review," and occasionally teaches creative writing for Harford Community College. She has lived in Jarrettsville for 37 years, drawing inspiration for her writing and art from gardening, animals and folklore. A Maryland State Arts Council AiE Poet for over a decade, Vonnie is author-illustrator of "Essential Fables," "River of Stars," and "Leprechaun Cake & Other Tales;" editor of the anthologies "Lower Than the Angels" and "Through a Glass Darkly." Her fiction and poems appear regularly in mainstream and speculative magazines.
tom o'connor, photographer
[twocamera@verizon.net]Tom has continued to maintain his local Harford County connections throughout his global career, which includes 29 years in film and broadcast television as a Lighting Cameraman, Lighting Director, Studio Cameraman, Video Editor and Still Photographer. He specializes in documentaries as well as corporate, industrial, news, sports and training videos. Some of his client base includes, Ted Turner Pictures, The Discovery Channel Networks, Reuters News, The BBC, Northrop Grumman, Department of Homeland Security, Black and Decker, JoS. A. Bank and many more. In 2004, he was awarded an Emmy by The National Capitol/Chesapeake Bay Chapter of The National Television Academy for Photography for his work "Taping the Mountain Sap" for Maryland Public Television’s, "Outdoors Maryland".