Gaston County Tourism Development Hires Partnership Manager

BELMONT, N.C. – On April 4t, Gaston County Tourism Development hired Gastonia resident Eric Johnson as its new Partnership Manager.

Johnson has served Gaston County since the early 2000s, most recently in Gaston County’s Human Resources Department as Employee Engagement Coordinator.

During his time with Gaston County, Johnson has provided administrative support for three County Managers and worked in the Records Unit at the Gaston County Police. He also chaired the Employee Recognition Committee for Gaston County for 15 years and was Gaston County Employees’ United Way Campaign Coordinator for 15 years winning both campaign of the year (>500 employees) and Campaign Coordinator of the Year in 2011.

A resident of Gastonia, Johnson is a graduate of East Carolina University and has completed the Leadership Gaston program.

“We’re thrilled to bring on a person as talented as Eric,” Director of Tourism Development Michael Applegate said. “We look forward to having him engage with our local partners and continue to help them grow their share of tourism spending and make Gaston County an even better place to visit and do business.”

Johnson fills a new position created in Tourism Development designed to assist tourism partners in maximizing destination marketing promotional offerings and to take advantage of print and digital media platforms.