The Athens Area Community Foundation is pleased to welcome six new members to its Board of Directors. Newly elected Board Members are: Alicia Battle, David Bradley, Bob Carson, Kevin Clark, Rob Fezekas, and Neil Stevens.

Board Chair, Phil Bettendorf, announces, “Our board members are great minds from every sector of the community with the goal of making the Athens area a great place to live, to work, and to be educated.”

Immediate Past Chair, Alex Patterson shares, “As we look ahead, we must recognize two outgoing Board Members. We would not be where we are as a Community Foundation without the distinguished service of founding Board Members and Past Chairs, Judge Steve Jones of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia and Bill Douglas, President of Synovus Athens. Their vision for philanthropy in our community set the stage for our success.”
 
The Athens Area Community Foundation 2018-2019 Board of Directors are:

Chair - Phil Bettendorf, Senior Vice President, Synovus Bank

Vice Chair - Rhodes McLanahan, President & CEO, First American Bank & Trust                                   

Secretary - Kelly Holloway, Attorney, Epps, Holloway, DeLoach & Hoipkemier, LLC                              

Treasurer - G. Michael Smith, Managing Partner, G. Michael Smith & Associates, CPAs                       

Immediate Past Chair - Alex Patterson, Retired Partner, Alston and Bird, LLP                                  
                   
Alicia Battle, Director of Workforce Development, Goodwill of North Georgia                              

David Bradley, President & CEO, Athens Area Chamber of Commerce                                                      
Bob Carson, President, Carson Advisory, Inc.                                                                                     

Kevin Clark, General Manager, Online Athens and Athens Banner Herald                                  

Sally Coenen, Community Member  

Myron Downs, Co-founder, Athens Veterinary Surgery Center                                           

Rob Fezekas, Wealth Adviser, Vickery Financial Services                                                         

Dexter Fisher, Director of Facilities, University of Georgia                                      

Jennifer Frum, Vice President for Public Service and Outreach, University of Georgia                  

Patrick Garrard, Attorney, Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, P.C.                      

Hank Huckaby, Higher Education Administration, Retired                                              

Tim Johnson, Executive Director, Family Connection-Communities in Schools of Athens             

Kathy Kirbo, Executive Director, Reefball Foundation                                                                       

Cynthia Lester, Vice President and Senior Trust Relationship Manager, Synovus Trust Company  

Pat Mercardante, First Vice President, Investment Officer, Wells Fargo Advisors                

Jinx Patel, Scientist, Athens Research and Technology, Inc., Retired                                             

R. Edward Perkins, Johnson & Johnson, Retired                                                                

Bernard Saunders, MBA Board Fellow, University of Georgia                                                          

Sara Schramm, Attorney, Blasingame, Burch, Garrard & Ashley, P.C.                            

Shriraj Shrikhande, MBA Board Fellow, University of Georgia                                                          

Lewis Shropshire, Hotel Industry, Retired                                                                                          

Lawton Stephens, Judge of Superior Court                                                                                     

Neil Stevens, President & CEO, Oconee State Bank                                                 

Ovita Thornton, State Director of the Georgia Clients Council, CCSD Board Member                            

Justin Widener, Research & Development Leader, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health