Leadership
Michael Giancaspro, Chair
Mike retired after 25 years as Vice President of Richmond-based Tredegar Corporation, a global manufacturer of plastic films and aluminum extrusions, where he led efforts in operations, strategic planning, mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, capital projects and real estate. He is also the former President and Owner of Turnaround Strategies LLC, a consulting firm that helped struggling small businesses develop and execute a game plan for success in order to achieve new bank financing.Mike currently serves on the board of Chesterfield County Mental Health Support Services, chairing the committees on Finance and Affordable Housing.
Mike began his career as a CPA at Deloitte. He has bachelor’s degree in business administration from Virginia Tech and also earned an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University.
Bruce Sadler, Secretary
Bruce is a professional engineer and the Managing Partner of Austin Brockenbrough & Associates, LLP. He is responsible for the accounting, human resources, information technology, and business development activities. Bruce served as partner-in-charge of mechanical, electrical, and structural engineering at Austin Brockenbrough from 1997 until 2008.Prior to joining Brockenbrough, Bruce was the Clemson Plant Facilities Engineer for BASF Corporation. He has a bachelor of science in mechanical engineering from University of Virginia. He is a member of American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Virginia.
John S. Brenneke
John is a retired pastor of the United Methodist Church and a former President of the UMFS Board of Associates. He serves as the current Chair of Guardian Place Board of Directors. Past professions as a Naval officer and businessman give him skills in the areas of leadership and business development.John Fuller
John serves as Executive Director of Virginia United Methodist Pensions, Inc. Prior to this position, he was employed by Mercer as a Senior Associate and as a Business Advisor / Marketing Research Manager for Anthem. He earned an MBA from the University of Richmond. John live in Glen Allen and is a member of Good Shepard UMC.Margaret Hardy
Margaret is President of the Mid-Atlantic law firm Sands Anderson PC, managing shareholder of the firm’s Fredericksburg office and is the firm’s healthcare group leader. Her practice focuses on the defense of healthcare providers in medical malpractice actions.Margaret regularly represents nurses, physicians, dentists and other health care professionals before the Virginia Department of Health Professions licensing boards and provides advice to providers on issues related to reimbursement, HIPAA and regulatory compliance, and risk management. In addition to being an attorney, Margaret is an RN and prior to law school worked on medical-surgical, psychiatric and substance abuse units. She is a member of the American Association of Nurse Attorneys and the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, as well as other professional and community organizations.
Iris Holliday
Iris currently serves as a consultant on public relations planning and strategy with a focus on non-profit organizations. She retired as Director of Corporate Philanthropy and Community Partnerships for Dominion Energy and served on the company’s Foundation Board. Dominion Energy is one of the nation’s largest producers and transporters of energy.
Her previous position as team leader for Virginia’s Central Region led to her wide recognition as a community leader and membership on the Community Foundation, Children’s Museum of Richmond, Jenkins Foundation, Richmond Region Tourism, and LEAD Virginia Board of Directors. Iris is also a former board member of the UMFS Charterhouse School.
Greg Peters
Greg is the President and Chief Executive Officer of UMFS. Greg oversees program, development, finance and human resources. He is an ex-officio member of the UMFS Board of Directors and serves on the boards of the Guardian Foundation and Guardian Place. Before becoming CEO, Greg was Chief Operating Officer, Associate Executive Director and Program Director.
Greg has served as Chair of the Virginia Coalition of Private Provider Associations, Virginia Association of Licensed Child Placing Agencies, and The Virginia Alliance. He is a licensed clinical social worker. Greg was appointed by Governor McAuliffe to serve on the State Executive Council of the Comprehensive Services Act and the Board for Virginia System of Care for at-risk youth.
Jennie Reynolds
Jennie is President of Anthem HealthKeepers Plus, Virginia’s largest provider of Medicaid managed care services. She leads the medical and behavioral health groups that work directly with the population of children and families that are impacted by UMFS.
Prior to her current position she had over 27 years of experience in the healthcare industry, including service as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Finance at Anthem. Jennie holds a master’s in business administration.
Melissa Sikes
Melissa is a partner at Mitchell, Wiggins & Company, where she serves clients in a variety of industries, including financial institutions, manufacturing, and healthcare. Melissa also provides audit and tax return services to nonprofit and small business clients.
Melissa is a member of the firm’s nonprofit and accounting and auditing committees. She is a member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Virginia Society of Certified Public Accountants. Melissa has a bachelor of science in business administration with a concentration in accounting from Bridgewater College. She was named Virginia Business Magazine’s Super Young CPA in 2008.
Marshall Ross, Vice Chair
Marshall serves as a Senior Assistant Attorney General and Manager of the Civil Trial Unit defending the Commonwealth, its agencies and employees. Marshall earned a bachelor of arts with high distinction and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Virginia before obtaining his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.Marshall began his law career serving in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps as a felony prosecutor and labor and employment counselor. After military service, Marshall practiced with a large law firm in Washington, D.C., followed by 20 years as a partner with Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver in the Shenandoah Valley, where he handled the defense of professionals, including health care providers and attorneys. He and his wife relocated to Richmond in 2014 where he continued his private practice defending professional with Goodman Allen Donnelly before joining the Office of the Attorney General.
Ken Huntsman, Past Chair
Ken is the co-founder of AOL. He has a bachelor of science in computer science from Penn State and a master’s in computer science from the University of Tennessee. Ken began his career with Telenet Corp. where he developed Telemail. Later called Sprintmail, it was one of the first commercially successful electronic mail systems. He held various positions at AOL, including systems programmer and Director of Systems Architecture. His other responsibilities included overseeing the expansion and implementation of the online service as well as monitoring its performance.Ken’s wife, Marci, is a United Methodist minister and current pastor of Lambs United Methodist Church in Altavista.
Betty J. Forbes
Betty is Chair of the UMFS Resource Development Committee. Betty retired in 2008 from Christian Children’s Fund (CCF), where she served as Vice President of Marketing and Sponsor Services and was responsible for all U.S. domestic fundraising. She served on CCF’s Board of Directors from 1992-2000 and was Chairman from 1997-1998.Betty currently serves as President of the Council on Finance and Administration for the Virginia Annual Conference. She is a member of the Church Location and Building Committee for the Virginia Conference, James River District, as well as Secretary/Treasurer of the Board of the Josephus Daniels Pell Foundation. Betty is a member of the Bermuda Hundred United Methodist Church, serving as both a member of the Finance Committee and Chairman of the Endowment Committee. Betty also is a board member at Ferrum College and serves as Chairman of both the Business Affairs Committee and the Trusteeship Committee.
James (Jim) C. Godwin, JR.
Jim is the Chief Human Resources Strategic Partner for Bon Secours Mercy Health, where he has served since 1985. He is responsible for workforce planning and deployment for 43 hospitals and more than 1,000 care delivery sites across seven states with 57,000 employees.
Jim earned an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a master’s in personnel management from Lynchburg College. He is certified as a Senior Human Resources professional (SPHR). Jim is past President of the Virginia Society for Healthcare Human Resources Administration. He is a past Chairman of the Henrico County Public Schools Career & Technical Education Advisory Council and served on the Richmond Technical Center Advisory Council for Richmond Public Schools. Jim also serves on the Board of the Richmond Chapter of the American Red Cross. He is a longtime and active member of Good Shepherd United Methodist Church in Henrico, where he has served in several leadership roles and taught adult Sunday School.
Keith Hare
Keith is the President and CEO of the Virginia Health Care Association. He served as Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services for the Office of Governor, Commonwealth of Virginia. Keith has many years of experience in government relations and public affairs for three Healthcare associations. He earned an MPA from Virginia Tech. Keith also serves as the Board Chair of Voices for Virginia’s Children.
Sarah Hoyle
Sarah is an artist. She and her husband, Joe, are adoptive parents and mental health advocates. The Hoyles’ daughter attended the UMFS Child & Family Healing Center (CFHC) and Charterhouse School. Sarah donates proceeds from her art classes to UMFS and sponsors summer drama camps for CFHC students.
David Reid
David is a member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 32nd district. David grew up in Rockbridge County, Virginia. In 1972, he moved to UMFS, which was then known as the Virginia Methodist Children’s Home. He left UMFS six years later, moving to Oklahoma with his foster parents. David became the first person in his family to graduate from college and went on to serve as a Naval Intelligence Officer for 23 years in the US Navy Reserve. In 2014, David founded Rockbridge Consulting.
In his first year as a delegate, David sponsored HB1219, legislation which allows foster children ages 14 years and up to request that their birth parents regain custody. Delegate Reid invited Governor Northam to the UMFS Richmond campus to sign the bill into law in May 2018.
David lives in Loudoun County with his wife Barbara and two daughters. He is a member of Arcola United Methodist Church.
N. H. Cookie Scott
Cookie recently retired as Deputy Director, Division of Administration for the Virginia Department of Corrections, overseeing a $1.2 billion budget. In this role, Cookie managed multiple departments including finance, human resources, information technology, the academy for staff development, legal, planning & research, architecture & engineering, correctional enterprises, health, compliance & accreditation, general services, and project management.
Cookie’s career began as a psychiatric social worker, working with adolescents. She also served as a juvenile probation officer and a Juvenile Court Service Unit Director. Cookie was the first African American graduate of Longwood University, earning a degree in sociology. The Cultural Diversity and Inclusion Center at Longwood is named in her honor.
Karen Walker
Karen is the co-owner of Physical Therapy Specialists in Winchester and a practicing physical therapist. She was previously employed by Physiotherapy Associates, where she began as a physical therapist and ended her career as area Vice President managing 40 orthopedic clinics throughout Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Karen is very active as a community volunteer in the Winchester community and prior to that in the Northern Virginia area. She is an active member of Braddock Street United Methodist Church and represents the church on the Children’s Champion Council for the UMFS Charterhouse School in Edinburg.