Our Team
strong
leadership to
guide the way


Our commitment to exceptional service moves us forward.
The expectation to lead is extended to every employee creating a culture of empowerment that allows each person to thrive. Our mission? Provide one another, our residents, and our partners the best experience possible. Every day. No exceptions.
We have true leaders in place and not bosses- leaders that inspire their teams to be their best selves and achieve the best results possible.
Founding Principal & President
executive leadership

Samantha Davenport
Founding Principal & President
When Sam and her partners founded Hawthorne in 2009, she was fueled by a passion for people, a belief that a little kindness makes a big impact, and a desire to leave people better than she found them. The simple philosophies that people matter most and home is a valuable and special place have led us to where we are today.
In addition to being a founding partner, Sam serves as President of Hawthorne Residential Partners. She has a rich history in property management and brings over 25 years of experience operating and managing apartment properties including a wide variety of asset types. Sam began her career in property management as a leasing consultant successfully taking on more responsibility.
Under Sam’s leadership, Hawthorne has experienced impressive, managed growth with homes located throughout the southeast, Texas and Louisiana, employing hundreds on-site and corporate employees. She is responsible for establishing and implementing the company’s strategic vision as well as oversight of corporate and property operations, value add projects, new construction, brand development, marketing, and training.
Sam drives the “Live It” culture that encourages and excites associates to embrace their entrepreneurial spirit and seize opportunities to improve the lives of those around them. Having fun is an important part of the “Live It” culture, which is why Sam can occasionally be found challenging others to a game of table tennis at the corporate office, competitively fostering opportunities to collide with team members in an active, healthy, and enjoyable work environment. Her enthusiasm for people and whole-hearted belief in the company’s “Live It” culture is contagious and reaches each employee and resident. Her dedication to people and her influence in the multifamily industry reaches beyond Hawthorne.
Sam is a former board member of the Triad Apartment Association and maintains the designations of Certified Property Manager, Accredited Residential Manager, and Certified Apartment Manager.

Founding Principal & President
Samantha
Davenport
Founding Principal & President

Ed Harrington
Founding Principal
Ed Harrington is a founding partner of Hawthorne Residential Partners. He brings over 38 years of experience in acquisition, development, financing, management and disposition of apartments, shopping centers, and senior living facilities. Ed is responsible for overseeing Hawthorne’s investment strategy and managing financial relationships. He is also involved in investment activities including acquisitions, dispositions, mortgage finance, and arranging funds for direct investments. Since founding Hawthorne, Ed has helped oversee the growth of the company’s management portfolio.
Ed is also a consistent and enthusiastic promoter of the Hawthorne “Live It” culture throughout the organization. His untiring message focuses on the long-term sustainability and profitability of the organization that is driven by customer loyalty – customer loyalty is driven by employee satisfaction – and employee satisfaction is driven by a commitment of putting employees first. Employee satisfaction is created when the company’s focus is on creating high “internal service quality” as embodied by the Hawthorne “Live It” mission. Ed stresses daily that Hawthorne is in the people business first, emphasizing turning the hierarchy/corporate chart upside down, focusing on our people at the site level, as they are the ones who make the company successful. Hawthorne’s mission is simple, we are about using our business to improve lives.
Ed holds a BS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a North Carolina licensed real estate broker, and a member of the National Multifamily Housing Council and the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

Founding Principal
Ed
Harrington
Founding Principal

Shoff Allison
Founding Principal
Shoff Allison is one of the founding Principals of Hawthorne Residential Partners and a 20+ year real estate veteran. Shoff is responsible for overseeing Hawthorne’s Investment Strategy, Institutional Investor Relationships and is a member of the Firm’s Investment Committee.
Prior to founding Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2009, Shoff founded Hawthorne Retail Partners in 2005, a real estate investment firm focused on revitalizing underperforming shopping centers. Prior to Hawthorne Retail, Shoff was a member of the investments team at Bell Partners.
Shoff earned a BA in Chemistry from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a member of the National Multifamily Housing Council.

Founding Principal
Shoff
Allison
Founding Principal

Phil Payonk
Chief Investment Officer, Principal
Phil Payonk joined the team at Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2012 following a decade in banking and commercial mortgage finance. As Chief Investment Officer and Principal, it is his responsibility to develop Hawthorne’s multifamily investment strategy as well as manage strategic capital relationships including banking, agency, and permanent mortgage providers as well as joint venture partners.
With nearly 20 years of real estate experience, Phil’s insight and leadership have played an integral role in Hawthorne’s consistent growth. Since joining Hawthorne in 2012, he has overseen the acquisition and capitalization of over 15,000 units throughout the Sunbelt, representing $2.75 billion in value. In addition to acquisitions, Hawthorne has an active development arm which has sourced and completed over 5,000 units of ground up development. Phil also assists with portfolio and asset management, and strategic operating initiatives.
Phil earned his BS in Agricultural Business from North Carolina State University and is a licensed real estate Broker and holds and unlimited GC license for NC, SC, and TN.

Chief Investment Officer, Principal
Phil
Payonk
Chief Investment Officer, Principal

Amy Small
Executive Vice President
Amy Small is one of the original members of Hawthorne since 2009 and has continued to play an integral part in Hawthorne’s history since the day of its founding. Amy currently serves as Hawthorne’s Executive Vice President and is responsible for overseeing Hawthorne’s corporate support platform including corporate, property and investment accounting, financial reporting, human resources, IT, and software support.
With over 25 years of experience in accounting, financial analysis, strategic planning, project implementation and leadership, she has guided Hawthorne’s accounting, human resources, and software support teams to a place of excellence.
Her primary focus as the Executive Vice President is on financial analysis, asset management, strategic planning, process refinement, and systems management and integration. Additionally, she is heavily involved with property acquisitions, disposition and cultivating investor and third-party owner relationships. From Hawthorne’s inception, Amy has been an exemplary ambassador for the “Live It” Culture and she continues to shape Hawthorne’s history by providing outstanding service, innovative and solution-based thinking as well as a vision for what tomorrow will bring.
Amy holds a BSBA in Business Administration with a major in Finance from Appalachian State University.

Executive Vice President
Amy
Small
Executive Vice President
senior leadership

Edward Harrington, Jr.
Managing Director, Development & Investments
Edward Harrington, Jr. joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2018 and serves as a Managing Director, Development & Investments. In this role, he oversees new ground-up developments, including land sourcing and acquisitions, contract negotiation, underwriting, due diligence, planning and permitting, construction financing, and works closely with design and construction partners. In addition to development, Edward focuses on property acquisitions, equity and debt financing, portfolio and asset management, as well as corporate and investment strategy.
Prior to joining Hawthorne, Edward spent 14 years working in real estate finance positions in the banking industry. Edward’s prior experience encompassed various real estate finance roles, representing multiple billions of dollars of assets, working with a broad spectrum of real estate professionals and companies, property types and geographies, and capital structures.
Edward holds a BS in Business Administration with distinction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Managing Director, Development & Investments
Edward
Harrington, Jr.
Managing Director, Development & Investments

Gary Triplett
Senior Vice President
Gary Triplett joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2021 and serves as a Senior Vice President, overseeing multiple departments including Resident Services, Strategic Initiatives, and Risk Management & Compliance. In his role, he is responsible for the firm’s risk management program, management of national vendor account relationships, and oversight of the Resident Services teams. Prior to his current role, Gary served as the Vice President of Corporate & Resident Services. Gary brings over 25 years of experience in multifamily property management. Earlier in his career, he held multiple leadership positions from on-site, to regional and director roles. Gary brings with him a wealth of knowledge and expertise that provides benefits at both the property and corporate level.
Gary earned a BA in Communications from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition, he is a Certified Property Manager (CPM) and holds a Real Estate Broker license for North Carolina. Gary is active in IREM (Institute of Real Estate Management) having served three terms as President of the Greater Raleigh-Durham Chapter, been recognized as CPM of the Year on two occasions and awarded the Jack Andrews Loyalty Award for contributions to the multifamily industry.

Senior Vice President
Gary
Triplett
Senior Vice President

Kayla Prestwood
Vice President of Asset Management
Kayla Prestwood joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2011 and serves as Vice President of Asset Management. She is responsible for overseeing the Asset Management department, monitoring financial and key performance indicators.
In her role, she spearheads asset management initiatives to optimize operational performance. Kayla brings over 14 years of experience in multifamily operations, marketing, and leadership positions. She has served in a variety of positions with Hawthorne. As a Regional Manager, Kayla managed the operations of a 2,200 unit portfolio of communities that spanned an array of specialities including value-add and renovation, student housing, lease-ups, and conventional multifamily. Kayla was later promoted to Vice President of Marketing and Strategic Initiatives, Vice President overseeing multiple support departments, which then led to her current role as Vice President of Asset Management. Kayla’s career in multifamily began as a Leasing Consultant in student housing where she took on successively greater responsibility on-site giving her the full scope of operational experience needed to maximize property performance. With experience at every level of the multifamily industry, her knowledge and understanding of the field cannot be overstated.
Kayla earned her BS in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Vice President of Asset Management
Kayla
Prestwood
Vice President of Asset Management

Matthew Day
Managing Director- Acquisitions
Matthew Day is a Managing Director – Acquisitions and oversees acquisitions for Hawthorne Residential. Matthew is a 20+ year multifamily industry veteran and has been involved in over $5 billion of multifamily transactions over the past 10 years. He is a member of Hawthorne’s investment committee.
Prior to joining Hawthorne Residential, Matthew held acquisition leadership roles with CWS Capital Partners, Fogelman Properties, and Steadfast Companies.
Matthew earned a BA degree from Southwest Texas State University and an MBA, with honors, from the New York Institute of Technology. He is a member of the National Association of Home Builders and the National Multifamily Housing Council. Matthew is involved in fundraising for Wonders & Worries.

Managing Director- Acquisitions
Matthew
Day
Managing Director- Acquisitions

Brian Smith
Director of Client Relations
Brian Smith joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2015 and serves as the Vice President of Client Relations. In this role, he is responsible for collaborating with Hawthorne’s leadership team and third-party clients to cultivate relationships and ensure smooth transitions of incoming properties for our clients. Furthermore, he aids Hawthorne teams to execute the vision outlined for those acquired properties once under management. Brian brings over 20 years of experience to the company and specializes in revenue growth, rehabilitation of distressed assets, leasing, marketing, budgeting, operations, training and mentoring, and staff development.
Brian earned his BS in Sociology and Anthropology from North Carolina State University.

Director of Client Relations
Brian
Smith
Director of Client Relations

Steve Hancock
SVP of Accounting and Reporting
Steve Hancock joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2020 and serves as the Senior Vice President of Accounting and Reporting. In this role he is responsible for the oversight and strategic direction of Hawthorne’s accounting and investor reporting programs as well as developing solutions for tax initiatives.
He has over 35 years of experience managing corporate accounting departments for public and private companies and is well-versed in 1031 exchange transactions, REIT and complex partnership structures, and other nuances specific to real estate investments. Prior to his career with Hawthorne, Steve had served as the Vice President of Corporate Accounting and Vice President of Compliance & Tax within the real estate industry for 14 years. His years of experience, expansive knowledge base and “Live It” spirit makes him an invaluable asset to the Hawthorne team.
Steve earned his BS in Accounting from High Point University and is a Certified Public Accountant in North Carolina.

SVP of Accounting and Reporting
Steve
Hancock
SVP of Accounting and Reporting

Carla Taylor
Corporate Controller
Carla Taylor joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2014 and serves as the Corporate Controller. In this role she is responsible for overseeing the treasury management and corporate accounting functions for Hawthorne Residential Partners.
Carla brings over 20 years of real estate and accounting experience in multifamily, commercial, development and retail assets. During her time with Hawthorne she has held the Accounting Team Leader and Accounting Manager positions where she experienced continued success and was quickly promoted to her current role as Corporate Controller. With a vast understanding of multifamily accounting and instinctive leadership skills, Carla has been an invaluable member of the Hawthorne team.
Carla earned her BS in Accounting from North Carolina State University.

Corporate Controller
Carla
Taylor
Corporate Controller

Kendall Einbinder
Senior Property Controller
Kendall Einbinder joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2012 and serves as the Senior Property Controller. In this role she is responsible for leading and supporting the Property Accounting teams, ensuring the accuracy of financials, and providing excellent customer service to site teams, investors and third-party clients. She began her career in property management as a property accountant and due to her continued success was quickly promoted to Team Leader and Accounting Manager before her current role as Property Controller. Kendall has over 15 years of accounting experience and her industry knowledge paired with leadership capabilities has been a tremendous asset to the Hawthorne team.
Kendall earned her BS in Finance and Banking from Appalachian State University and a MS in Accounting from Strayer University. She is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the North Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants.

Senior Property Controller
Kendall
Einbinder
Senior Property Controller

Kerri Shellman
Vice President of Human Resources
Kerri Shellman joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2011 and serves as the Vice President of Human Resources. In this role, she is responsible for managing the UltiPro HRIS platform, employee legal matters, HR compliance, and HR project management. Kerri has over 20 years of experience in human resources and brings an invaluable amount of expertise to the company. During her time with Hawthorne, she has built a strong HR department and successfully implemented a company-wide HRIS software. Previously, she has served as the Human Resources Manager and Senior Director of Human Resources.
Kerri earned her Professional in Human Resources certification from the HR Certification Institute and also holds a SHRM-CP certification. She is also an active member of HRMAG and SHRM.

Vice President of Human Resources
Kerri
Shellman
Vice President of Human Resources

Claire Michael
Senior Director of Talent & Employee Engagement
Claire Michael joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2022 and serves as the Senior Director of Talent and Employee Engagement. In her role, she is responsible for streamlining company-wide hiring efforts, identifying and implementing areas of opportunity for Employee Engagement, and launching and monitoring various platforms that allow for open communication and employee feedback on all levels. Claire brings over 20 years of experience in multifamily property management. Earlier in her career, she held multiple leadership positions on-site and in operations, including Vice President for Lantower Luxury Living, and Regional Vice President for Fairfield Residential. Claire is passionate about Property Management, ensuring that teams have the knowledge, support, and growth potential to maintain a positive and engaging work environment.
Claire graduated with a BA in Media Communications and English from the University of Gloucestershire in England. In addition, she holds her Certified Apartment Management Accreditation (CAM). She is an active member of the Apartment Association of North Carolina (AANC), as well as a former President, Vice President, and Board member of the Triangle Apartment Association (TAA).

Senior Director of Talent & Employee Engagement
Claire
Michael
Senior Director of Talent & Employee Engagement

Ashley Laster
Vice President of Brand & Innovation
Ashley Laster joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2010 and serves as the Vice President of Brand & innovation. In this role, she is responsible for creating, designing, and implementing creative brand strategies to elevate Hawthorne’s company and property brands as well as enhance the customer’s experience at every touchpoint. Previously in her time with Hawthorne, Ashley held a variety of on-site management and marketing positions. During this time, she has helped to shape Hawthorne’s marketing and branding initiatives by implementing innovative leasing tools, critically assessing optimization opportunities, and developing marketing strategies across the portfolio. Her well-rounded history of over 13 years in this industry allows her to better serve Hawthorne’s teams with a unique understanding of each level.

Vice President of Brand & Innovation
Ashley
Laster
Vice President of Brand & Innovation

Allison Weber
Vice President of Marketing
Allison Weber joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2020 and serves as the Vice President of Marketing. In her role, she is responsible for overseeing the company’s marketing strategy and creative vision, as well as the lead generation and brand awareness initiatives across the portfolio. Allison has 15+ years of experience in leadership roles in multifamily management and marketing. Prior to joining Hawthorne, she served as VP of Marketing and Director of Marketing at two large multifamily management companies and served as the Senior Director of Marketing for an award-winning marketing agency, bringing with her a wealth of knowledge and expertise. Earlier in her career, Allison held a variety of on-site management, sales, and regional marketing positions.
Allison earned her BS in Business Administration and Marketing from the University of Tennessee where she graduated summa cum laude. Allison is a frequent speaker at national industry conferences and apartment associations throughout the Southeast.

Vice President of Marketing
Allison
Weber
Vice President of Marketing

Zack Baranick
Vice President of Learning & Development
Zack Baranick joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2010 and serves as the Vice President of Learning and Development. In this role, Zack is responsible for the ongoing management and implementation of Hawthorne’s training and development needs. By identifying appropriate learning and development strategies that engage and empower site teams, he is able to create in-person and virtual training tools, welcoming environments and processes that add tremendous value to the company. Most recently, Zack was the Director of Training and Operations Support. Earlier in his career, Zack served as Community Manager, Operations Support Manager, and Regional Manager within Hawthorne.
Zack holds the certification of Accredited Regional Manager from IREM.

Vice President of Learning & Development
Zack
Baranick
Vice President of Learning & Development

Becky Carter
Senior Director of Software Support
Becky Carter joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2010 and serves as the Senior Director of Software Support. In this role she is responsible for leading the training and support for Yardi Voyager, PayScan, CheckScan and a number of other interfaces. Becky has served in the regional support and training role and as the Director of Education and Development before becoming Hawthorne’s Director of Software Support. With over 25 years of experience in the multifamily industry, Becky brings with her a wealth of expertise and understanding.
Becky has earned the industry designations of Certified Apartment Manager and NALP. Additionally, she has taught classes for the Atlanta Apartment Association and the Triad Apartment Association.

Senior Director of Software Support
Becky
Carter
Senior Director of Software Support

Barry Morrow
Senior Director of Information Technology
Barry Morrow joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2016 and serves as the Senior Director of Information Technology. In this role, it is Barry’s responsibility to manage the IT equipment support for Hawthorne’s properties, regional, and corporate teams. During his time here, Barry has overseen high-profile projects such as upgrading the helpdesk platform, migrating the email solution to a new provider, developing new strategic relationships, and securing national account pricing from equipment and service providers such as Dell and Microsoft.
With over 30 years of experience in the IT and telecommunication industry, Barry has held certifications with Cisco, Juniper Networks, Red Hat, Microsoft, and Ethical Hacking. He brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the company.

Senior Director of Information Technology
Barry
Morrow
Senior Director of Information Technology

Ed McVeigh
Director of Property Improvements
Ed McVeigh joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2015 and serves as the Director of Property Improvements. In this role, he is responsible for managing, mentoring, and coaching the property improvements team throughout the entire construction process. Within his 40 years of experience in the construction industry, Ed has successfully completed hundreds of projects throughout the southeast that include new commercial building, commercial renovation, site development, residential remodeling, multifamily, restoration, and casualty loss. During his career with Hawthorne, Ed has been responsible for capital improvement projects valued at over $100 million dollars and instituted processes that have enhanced the overall management of construction projects.
Ed earned his BS in Architecture/Construction Management from Southern Polytechnic State University, now known as Kennesaw State University. He also holds an OSHA safety certification.

Director of Property Improvements
Ed
McVeigh
Director of Property Improvements

Meg Pisczek
Area Vice President
Meg Pisczek joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2015 and serves as an Area Vice President. In her role, she is responsible for overseeing multiple Regional Vice Presidents in North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Florida, and Louisiana totaling over 17,000 units. Meg began her career in property management as a Leasing Consultant and was quickly promoted through the ranks reaching the Senior Vice President of Property Management level. Her background includes senior level oversight of both affordable and market rate assets, including lease-ups and new construction, high rise, mid-rise, and garden-style apartment homes.
Meg earned her BA in Management/Sociology from Marietta College. She is a two-time past President of the Triangle Apartment Association, and has served as President of the Apartment Association of North Carolina. She also holds the Institute of Real Estate Management CPM Designation.

Area Vice President
Meg
Pisczek
Area Vice President

Alan Dye
Area Vice President
Alan Dye joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2015 and serves as an Area Vice President. In his role, he is responsible for overseeing multiple Regional Vice Presidents in North Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia and Florida with units totaling over 19,000. Alan has experience at several levels within the multifamily industry including Regional Manager and Regional Vice President. He has had continued success throughout his twenty years within the multifamily industry and continues to achieve new heights for Hawthorne. His background includes a variety of portfolio sizes and class types including conventional, urban midrise, acquisitions, dispositions, new development and asset repositioning.
Alan earned his BS in Communication Media from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Area Vice President
Alan
Dye
Area Vice President

Wendy Dorchester
Vice President, Operations and Corporate Support
Wendy joined Hawthorne Residential Partners in 2023 and serves as the Vice President, Operations and Corporate Support. In her role, she is responsible for property operations for a portfolio of communities in NC and SC as well as supporting new business development and talent acquisitions. Wendy brings over 25 years of experience in multifamily property management. She has held multiple leadership positions in corporate operations as well as on the supplier side of the industry, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience. Most recently, she served as the Director of Talent and Culture, and Senior Vice President of Operations for Pegasus Residential. Earlier in her career, Wendy served as the VP of Sales and Senior Regional Sales Director for Rent.
Wendy graduated with a BS in Human Development from the University of Maine. In addition, she has earned her Certified Apartment Portfolio Supervisor (CAPS) accreditation and is a graduate of NAA’s Leadership Lyceum. She is an active member of the National Apartment Association’s Operation and DEI committees as well as the Charleston Apartment Association (CAA). She is a former President, Vice President, and Education Chair of the Triad Apartment Association (TAA). Wendy supports several multifamily philanthropic platforms such as Shelters to Shutters.

Vice President, Operations and Corporate Support
Wendy
Dorchester
Vice President, Operations and Corporate Support

A true leadership dynamic
Hawthorne’s leadership extends to the teams supporting all aspects of our integrated services.