Charles Page currently leads Cool Spring Center, Inc. as President and Senior Facilitator. Cool Spring Center, an innovative corporate training company, specializes in people development programs such as individual and team assessments, strategic planning, leadership development and experiential teambuilding retreats. His career includes leadership positions in both the public and private sectors spanning the Charlotte region. He served in the United States Army Reserves as a company commander, basic combat training, 108th Division (Tng).
Ryan Repp is a Business Support Manager for U.S. Trust Philanthropic Solutions in Charlotte, NC at Bank of America. Philanthropic Solutions provides specialized advisory, consulting, administrative and investment solutions to both nonprofit organizations and private philanthropic clients that help transform their missions and charitable goals into meaningful action. Ryan graduated from Truman State University in Missouri where he earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Accounting. His father retired as a Colonel in the US Army’s 21st General Hospital, his older brother served 5 years as a US Naval officer and his younger brother serves in the US Air Force Reserves and previously served as a US Army crew chief for Chinooks in the Middle East for 18 months, the majority in Ballad, Iraq. Several of his uncles and extended family have served in the US Army as well. Through his involvement in the Charlotte community with veteran related charities as well as the Harley Owners Group, he has a connection to many extraordinary veterans for which he holds the most gracious admiration.
Samantha Christopher is a Service Connected Disabled Veteran with four years of active duty service. She is currently a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps Reserves and a full-time student at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Samantha is working toward a double major in Psychology and Mathematics with a concentration in Statistics. She plans to dedicate her life to helping Veterans and their struggle with P.T.S.D. She and her husband are both Purple Heart recipients that were injured during their second combat deployment in 2013 to Afghanistan. In January 2014, Samantha and her husband received their very first home from Purple Heart Homes through the Veteran Home Ownership Program. Samantha and Benjamin have two children ages two and five.
Darrin Sirois is a Service Connected Disabled Veteran with 26 years of active duty experience with the U.S. Army. He served from 1989-2014, and spent most of his career at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina in Special Operations. His tours include Operation Just Cause (Panama), Gulf War, Bosnia, Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) and Operation Iraqi Freedom. As a retired Sergeant Major, he now teaches tactics and communications at Ft. Bragg in North Carolina.
Ms. Schweizer moved from New York City to Charlotte in 2013 and before moving she worked on Wall Street for many years. Her broad and powerful life experiences have directly resulted in her passion for philanthropy. Her dedication to this country and our veterans is something near and dear to her heart after witnessing the events of 9/11 from only a couple of blocks away. As she continues her mission to paint for charity auctions worldwide she is bringing her ongoing dedication to Purple Heart Homes.
Liz has spent her career in advertising, both as an award winning writer and creative director for brands such as Audi, Land’s End, NASDAQ and Nationwide Insurance. Along the path, she has touched everything from Superbowl commercials to long-form videos to branded web series. Liz even starred in a reality show about advertising called, “The Pitch.” Most recently, Liz was Executive Creative Director of McKinney in Durham, NC and has served as a juror for the most highly regarded award shows in the industry, including the Cannes Festival of Creativity. Liz has also been a panelist at the 3% Conference where the mission is to increase female leadership in the advertising industry. Currently, she is working on documentaries and reality show ideas with Hocus Pocus Productions. Liz is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, is married and has three children.
Sherry Yaskin is Vice President of Human Resources, U.S. Stores and Operations, for The Home Depot. She is responsible for all human resources functions for the Company’s 1,977 stores in the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sherry joined The Home Depot in 2004 as Director of Learning and has held positions of increasing responsibility, including Director of Talent Management and Organizational Effectiveness, Senior Director of Human Resources for both the Western and Northern divisions, Senior Director of Human Resources for U.S. Operations and the Pro Business. Prior to joining the company, Sherry was a District Manager with Circuit City. She also spent more than 14 years with Gap, Inc., where she held a variety of leadership positions. Sherry holds a Bachelor’s of Speech Communication from the University of Florida.