ABOUT GEORGIA HERITAGE RESPONDERS (GHR)
The Georgia Heritage Responders (GHR) is a voluntary affiliation of institutions and professionals within the state of Georgia that strengthens disaster mitigation, response, and recovery capabilities to ensure the preservation of natural, cultural and historic (NCH) heritage resources held in the public trust.
The purpose of GHR is to prepare and train individuals, professionals, and institutions, for disaster mitigation, response, and recovery.
GHR'S Strategies & Initiatives
-
Disaster Response & Recovery: Fosters the development of single or multi-county collaborations with emergency management professionals for disaster preparedness, communication, response, and recovery (onsite or virtual); and anticipates the impacts and changing landscapes due to climate change;
-
Communication: Participates in coordination calls, sends out emergency awareness alerts and situation reports, maintains outreach channels including listserv, website, and social media;
-
Coordination: In partnership with the Digital Library of Georgia, maintains the publicly editable directory of Georgia’s Natural, Cultural and Historic Organizations (GaNCH), which includes but is not limited to galleries, libraries, archives, museums, zoos, gardens, and historic sites;
-
Education: Facilitates training and professional development workshops; provides informal consultations, and conducts general disaster preparedness outreach;
-
Inclusion & Diversity: Promotes principles of equity, justice, transparency, and accountability in all aspects of emergency management, with an emphasis on the role of climate change;
-
Networking: Supports professional networking; partners with state and local emergency responders, and connects institutions with industry, non-profit, local, state, and federal resources.
GEORGIA HERITAGE RESPONDERS
LEADERSHIP TEAM
Get to Know Us
GHR was formed in 2023 from the merger of Heritage Emergency Response Atlanta (HERA) and Savannah Heritage Emergency Response (SHER.) HERA was founded in 2007 and SHER in 2009, and over the course of their work, they both saw a need for a more expansive, state-wise, emergency training and response effort.
TINA SEETOO
Chair
Tina Mason Seetoo is the Preservation Manager at the Delta Flight Museum where she is responsible for the preservation of analog and digital collections. She lectures and consults on a wide range of preservation topics and serves as an emergency response trainer for the Foundation for Advancement in Conservation. She was a founder of the Heritage Emergency Response Alliance (HERA) and led the planning committee to form the GHR. She has been a member of the National Heritage Responders since 2007. Tina holds an MLIS and a Certificate of Advanced Study in Book and Paper Conservation from the University of Texas at Austin.
CHRISTINE WISEMAN
Vice Chair & Treasurer
Christine Wiseman is Assistant Director for Digital Services at the Atlanta University Center’s Robert W. Woodruff Library where she works collaboratively with library staff, the Archives Research Center, and faculties to deliver digital services in support of teaching, learning, and research. Christine is chair of the Board of the Georgia Archives Institute and she was the 2011 president of the Society of Georgia Archivists. Christine has over a decade of experience in cultural heritage disaster planning; she is a National Heritage Responder, founding member of the Heritage Emergency Response Alliance (HERA) and a co-PI on the Mapping Georgia’s Natural Cultural and Historic Organizations for Disaster Response (GaNCH) project. Currently she serves as an emergency response trainer for the Foundation for Advancement of Conservation and is co-chair and founding member of the Georgia Heritage Responders (GHR). Christine holds a MLIS and a Certificate of Advanced Study in Preservation Administration from The University of Texas at Austin.
ALEX MCGEE
Secretary
Alex McGee is the University Archivist at Georgia Tech. She holds an M.A. in history and certificate in public history from Georgia State University and a B.A. in history and women’s studies from the University of Georgia. She is a certified archivist and earned her Digital Archives Specialist certificate in 2020. McGee helps facilitate the documentation of Institute history with the goal to collect, preserve and make accessible the diverse experiences of faculty, staff and students.
Committee Chairs
Without volunteer-led committees, educational programming, outreach, and ongoing training programs would not happen. If you are interested in volunteering, please reach out to the committee chair.
Nominations & Membership Chair
Kirsten Wehner
Kirsten Wehner is an Assistant Book and Paper Conservator for the Emory University Libraries. She has decades of experience in disaster response and was an early member of HERA. She has served on the HERA steering committee in various roles including Secretary, and Membership Coordinator. Kirsten is now the chair of the Membership and Nomination Committee for GHR.
Training & Education Chair
Sigourney Stanford
Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Sigourney Stanford has been the Conservator for the Georgia Archives since February 2019, specializing in book and paper, with an MA in Conservation from Northumbria University, UK. She has 10 years of experience giving presentations on conservation and teaching workshops on book and paper conservation, preservation, and disaster preparedness and response, including in her current role at the Archives. Additionally, as part of her duties for the Archives, she is an EFS 11 coordinator for the State of Georgia.
Regional Coordination Co-Chair
Laura Seifert
Laura Seifert has been involved in cultural disaster planning and response since the formation of Savannah Heritage Emergency Response in 2009. She is currently fighting the effects of human-caused climate change at Fort Pulaski National Monument as the Chief of Resources Management.
Regional Coordination Co-Chair
Karin Dalton
Karin Dalton is currently the Museum Registrar and Collection and Exhibitions Manager at the Georgia Capitol Museum in Atlanta where she is responsible for the objects on display and in storage at the University of Georgia in Athens. In 2022 she attended the Georgia Heritage Responders training in Savannah. In addition to being a founding member of the Georgia Heritage Responders, she is a board member and past president of the Friends of Georgia Archives and board member of the Georgia Association of Museums.
Karin holds a MA in Museum Studies from the Georgia Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Communications Chair
Erica Hague
Erica Hague is the Collections Manager at the Atlanta History Center. She is a 2019 graduate of the HEART program which is supported through HENTF, SCRI, and FEMA. Erica has additional training in Paper Conservation through the Georgia Archives Training Program and Textile Conservation through Beloit College's Center for Conservation Care. The Communications Committee is responsible for communicating upcoming weather concerns, following up after a disaster, and manage the GHR social media.