Meet Our Team
Nature lovers, idealists, world travellers, and furniture aficionados are just a few words that describe the team at Vermont Woods Studios. We are passionate about furniture and the forests that it comes from.
While some of us are Vermonters by birth and others are transplants or commuters, we are all proud to represent Vermont's reputation for hard work, friendly people, and quality craftsmanship. We work tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure that every customer gets the best value and experience possible, and we enjoy helping our customers bring a little piece of our home into theirs.
Peggy Farabaugh, President and Founder
More than the mind behind Vermont Woods Studios, Peggy is the heart and soul of Stonehurst. It may seem effortless the way she manages day to day operations, team motivation and outreach, while developing and pushing our mission, all between 9AM and 5PM, but if you read the time mark on her emails, you’d know she’s actually at work around the clock. A visitor to Stonehurst (during business hours), shouldn’t be surprised to come across Peggy high-fiving a team member, tending to a Monarch chrysalis, hammering away on her laptop or bringing minds from various departments together to brainstorm for our next big project. When not at Stonehurst, you may well find Peggy volunteering for our friends at Forests for Monarchs, in the role of Vice President. Read more about Peggy.
Ken Farabaugh, Vice President
An engineer and a craftsman, there's no part of Vermont Woods Studios that Ken doesn't touch. From the financials and strategic planning to HR and building custom orders, he has his hands and heart in all aspects of the supply chain. Ken also keeps the team on their toes, crossing all the T’s and dotting all the I’s but as often as he demands perfection, he twice as often commends, congratulates and applauds the effort each team member gives. His mantra: "You will never get today back so make it productive, help someone out, teach somebody something, and live it to the fullest."
Dennis Shanoff, General Manager
Though you may consider Dennis someone who enjoys the simple life, hiking or riding his motorcycle around New England, he leaves his leisure at the door when arriving at Stonehurst. One of the original Vermont Woods Studios employees, Dennis now leads our Front Line team through their day to day activities as they work with our valued customers. Dennis’ love of simple, traditional craftsmanship and interest in nature and woodworking have made him right at home at VWS.
Sean Henry, Sales Consultant
Born and raised in Brattleboro, Vermont, Sean has always enjoyed the small town life."There is nothing better then being out and about and running into friends, family, co-workers & acquaintances." He attended the University of Vermont to study Business Administration and then went on to run his family's restaurant here in southern Vermont. Looking for a new adventure and a change of pace, Sean found his way to us here at Vermont Woods Studios. "I want to make sure customers enjoy their experience with Vermont Woods Studios as much as I do."
Katrina Moore, Sales & Customer Service Consultant
Talk about using both sides of your brain… Katrina comes to us after recently graduating from Middlebury College with a major in Studio Arts and a minor in Computer Science. Her versatility comes in handy as she’s just as likely to be troubleshooting software as advising customers on furniture to complement the architecture in their homes. In previous lives, Katrina has assisted in fashioning surfboards out of wood and making bespoke furniture from some of Vermont’s oldest and largest naturally felled trees. When not in an art studio of one kind or another, she enjoys camping, organic gardening and playing the cello.
Alexandra Chisholm, Sales Consultant
When you pick up the phone and give us a call you may have the delight of speaking with Alex. A Vernon, Vermont native, Alex is well versed at answering any questions you may have about our furniture, our mission, and if you’re lucky you may also be privy to a few of her childhood stories of sledding down the old ski slopes of Stonehurst (formerly Pine Top Ski Area). With a love for locally made ice cream, spending warm summer days hiking Vemont’s green mountain playground, and a deep-rooted appreciation for Vermont craftsmanship, Alex is sure to provide you with a personalized shopping experience only found here in Vermont.
Michelle Rooks, Order Processor
Michelle graduated with a BS in Journalism and an undeclared minor in Animal Science from South Dakota State University and worked in the publishing industry for many years prior to coming to Vermont Woods Studios. She loves the fact that no two days are the same in her new career. Processing orders, talking with customers, writing blogs and socializing with coworkers keeps things interesting. Michelle’s family enjoys performing in community theater together and are active in their local church. She wins the prize for shortest commute, living less than a quarter mile from beautiful Stonehurst.
Brian Doherty, Customer Service
Originally hailing from Ireland, Brian joined the VWS team in 2020. Brian is a member of the Customer Service team but also lends a hand to the Sales, Order Processing and Shipping departments. A career history of customer service, project management, and team management experience across multiple countries made this role an ideal fit for Brian. In his spare time he loves to watch soccer (or football as he would say!), play video games and create content for his YouTube channel.
Neville Kerr, Website Developer
While Neville currently calls North Carolina his home, he is a native of Australia. His background includes extensive service in the Royal Australian Air Force, e-commerce consulting and many interesting experiences in between. A true nomad at heart, he loves to travel, having visited many countries across the globe including some of Peggy's favorite rainforest countries. Whenever it doesn't interfere with playing golf, backgammon or traveling the world, Neville can be found working behind the scenes to improve the functionality and usability of our website.
Martin Corbin, Webmaster
Raised in a creative household, Martin has been been drawing, painting and playing music since childhood. He received his first computer from a family friend when he was ten years old. Using an introduction to computer programming book, Martin began to teach himself how to write computer programs. Also a self-taught musician, Martin plays guitar, keyboard and mandolin. Martin enjoys working with websites because it utilizes both the left-brain logic of computer code and the right-brain creative thinking of design.
Nina Markiw, Creative Director
Nina Markiw is a Brattleboro native with a passion for the fine arts world. She graduated from Johnson State College with her bachelors degree in Studio Arts and has put her skills to use as our professional photographer and product manager. You can thank Nina for the plethora of beautiful images and descriptions of our furniture. She loves spending time outdoors, so when she isn't busy behind the camera or on Photoshop, you'll find her gardening, landscaping, or playing disc golf!
Greg Augustine, Logistics Manager
Greg joined the team early in 2019 to fill a position managing the Stonehurst property, helping with shipping, logistics, and warehousing. Greg soon took on the larger role of Logistics Manager. Overseeing vendor pick-ups, customer deliveries and managing our shipping depot are only a few of the responsibilities that Greg oversees here at Vermont Woods Studios. When he’s not working, you’ll find him shredding down a mountain on a Burton snowboard or kayaking down a river with his wife.
Jake Chicani, Facilities & Shipping
Jake's role at VWS is seasonally dependent and as varied as our mixed hardwood forests. In addition to keeping everyone warm in the winter and making sure Stonehurst looks her best, Jake also heads our delivery and furniture transport team. He is our poster child for sustainable living-- a person who truly walks the talk. A graduate of Keene State College, Jake holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism as well as several advanced degrees from the Ken Farabaugh School of Hard Knocks.
Riley Farabaugh, SEO/SEM Consultant
Riley was just 10 years old when his parents founded Vermont Woods Studios in a tiny space adjoining his bedroom. Pre-occupied by a basketball hoop in the driveway, Riley took little notice of the company in its formative years. Now well into his twenty-somethings, Riley has acquired specialized expertise in the area of digital marketing. He keeps on top of the complex and changing world of e-commerce to enable our small company to compete successfully with giants like Wayfair & Amazon.