Interview by North Hall High senior and Abernathy Cochran Group intern Tori Skinkle
Meet Emma Johnson! Emma is an Assistant Clubhouse Manager at the Chattahoochee Country Club. Originally from a farm town in Nebraska, Emma moved to Georgia for college and started at the country club two and a half years ago. Emma is hard-working and high-achieving. She excels at anything she sets her mind to.
We want to thank Emma for spending time with us recently and telling us more about her life and love of Hall County.
Question: What inspired you or led you to your current career?
Answer: “I wasn’t really looking for a career. I was just looking for a job to get me through college. And I needed out of the job I was in, I was working at Panera Bread, and it was just not fun. So, I applied at a bunch of jobs and CCC was the first one that reached out to me. And I had a good feeling, interviewed, and got the food runner position…they kind of fast-tracked me on the banquet side. I came in as a banquet captain. Then after six months became the food and beverage manager, and then after a year the assistant clubhouse manager. I wasn’t really looking for a career, I just had a job and I kind of fell into a career.”
Q: What is your favorite restaurant in Hall County, and what do you love there?
A: “Oh, Moonies Texas Barbeque in Flowery Branch is my favorite. When I first moved to Georgia, I hated it here. I hated everything about it. And I couldn’t find anything I liked. So I was doing this thing where I like tried out a new restaurant every week just to like get myself out of the house and see more places. And I went to Moonies and I just kind of fell in love with the vibe. It was the first place I really liked in Georgia, and so it stuck in my mind. My favorite thing to get there is the brisket sandwich and the fries, and the jalapeno mac and cheese is very good.”
Q: How long have you lived or worked in Hall County?
A: “I have lived in Hall County since 2019, so four years.”
Q: Who is the most interesting person you’ve met in Hall County and why?
A: “I think the most interesting is probably Vaughan Smith. He’s been a huge mentor to me, kind of like a second dad almost, taught me everything I know about the club and his career, and taken me under his wing. He’s just always happy and I think that’s very interesting because there’s a lot of people that aren’t always happy. But yeah, he’s someone I look up to.”
Q: What is your favorite childhood memory
A: “I think one of my favorite memories back home, I used to ride horses and I would compete in rodeos. And I remember the first time I went to Blue Ribbon, I was really proud of it. My horse was a bit crazy. We tried out the traditional trail riding where you have to memorize a pattern and go around a trail and open gates and stuff like that. He was not good at that, he was not very good at a lot of things. But he was fast. And so I was like, let’s try barrel racing or pole bending. So I tried both and won a blue ribbon in barrel racing. So I was very proud of that.”
Q: If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, where would it be and why?
A: “I’ve always wanted to go to Spain, like somewhere in southern Europe. I really like warm weather, I’d love to see the beaches, and I’m trying to learn Spanish so that would be fun to kind of try it out.”
Q: What is the first movie you remember seeing in a theater?
A: “I have a really bad memory, the first thing that came to mind was ‘Frozen’ but that wasn’t that long ago. I know the first one I saw in theaters was ‘Finding Nemo’ but that’s because my mom has told me about it.”
Q: What advice would you give a crowd of people?
A: “Be your full truly authentic self. No matter how weird and goofy you are, just be yourself. Because I’m a little weird, I’m a little goofy, but I am so much happier just being myself and accepting I’m a little weird than trying to fit into a box. Be weird and don’t care what other people think because it doesn’t really matter.”
Q: What is something on your bucket list
A: “I really want to see the Northern Lights.”
Q: What is your favorite music/three bands you would like to see (dead or alive)
A: “Taylor Swift, Taylor Swift, and Taylor Swift. I would see her three times.”
Q: Choosing anyone (past or present and a non-relative), with whom would you love to have lunch? And where locally would you have this lunch?
A: “I would pick Taylor Swift and I would take her to my favorite steakhouse which is Barebones Steakhouse. Because I know she loves an Old Fashioned and they make a good Old Fashioned.”
Q: What is your favorite thing about Hall County?
A: “The community and how everything is kind of interconnected. I love working here and getting to partner with other businesses, getting to meet band vendors, getting to work with people like Christopher from the dress shop on the square, and just kind of see how everybody knows everybody.”
Q: Where do you see yourself in five or 10 years?
A: “I’ll probably be in a similar role that I am now, I don’t plan on leaving Gainesville any time soon, but if I did I’d probably stay in the Atlanta area. So, definitely still at a club, maybe a couple more cats, but still in hospitality.”
Q: What is something interesting that most people don’t know about you?
A: “I have an extra rib, and I have a deviated symptom so my nostrils are two different sizes.”
Q: What three words mean “home” to you?
A: “Safety, warmth, and peace. I think home is somewhere you can feel comfortable and be at peace with your mind, just very comfy and warm, and ultimately where you feel most safe.”
Q: If you were cast in a major motion picture and had your choice of anyone to be your costar, who would you choose?
A: “Taylor Swift.”
Q: If you had a full-time staff member that was fully paid for, who would you choose?
A: “I would pick a maid or housekeeper. Because I hate cleaning, I hate doing laundry, and I hate dusting. I hate dusting most of all, if I could hire someone just to dust my room that’s what I would do.”
