HAMPTON ROADS VENTURES - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Chairman
• Executive Director for Garden of Hope Community Development Corp

Alphonso Albert attended Norfolk State University, St. Leo College, and Norfolk Business College, where he majored in Business Administration and Accounting. Currently, Alphonso serves as the Executive Director for Garden of Hope Community Development Corp, whose mission is to build healthy neighborhoods by providing services and programs to underserved individuals, families, and communities throughout Hampton Roads. "Alphonso is highly recognized region-wide for his integrity, strong leadership in reviving communities, and ability to galvanize leaders to address vital issues. This expertise will bring great value to the board", said NRHA former Chief Executive Officer Shurl Montgomery. Highlights of Alphonso's professional affiliations include LEAD Hampton Roads, Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, Hampton Roads 200+ Men, Tidewater Children's Foundation, Norfolk Drug Court Foundation and Park Place Property Owner's Association. He is a longtime resident of Norfolk and currently resides in the Broad Creek neighborhood with his wife Linda.

Job Titles:

• Vice Chairman

Job Titles:

• Chairman of the Advisory Board
• Regional Vice President, Southern Region for NeighborWorks America

Don Phoenix is the Regional Vice President, Southern Region for NeighborWorks America (NeighborWorks). NeighborWorks is a congressionally-chartered non-profit community development organization that is dedicated to improving distressed communities throughout the country through a network of 240 neighborhood-based community revitalization organizations in 50 states.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Advisory Board
• Director of Policy for the Education and Society Program at the Aspen Institute

Edna Primrose is the Director of Policy for the Education and Society Program at the Aspen Institute. In this role, she leads programs that seek to address poverty in America by fostering connections across education, economic and social mobility, and equity. Prior to joining Aspen, Ms. Primrose served as Assistant Administrator for Water and Environmental Programs and Chief Operating Officer at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She led national programs to enhance rural communities' access to water and waste infrastructure and promote education and workforce initiatives. Ms. Primrose also served over a decade in local and national leadership positions, including National Director for the U.S. Department of Labor's Job Corps Program, a national education and training program for low-income youth. She began her career in the labor movement, managing training and equity programs in the construction industry. She has served on distinguished Governance Boards and Councils that included the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention, a White House initiative, and Advisor for the United States Federal Committee on Apprenticeship. She currently serves on multiple boards at her alma mater, Towson University.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Advisory Board

Edward R. Jones was sworn in for his third consecutive term as the 7 th mayor of the city of Grambling, Louisiana, on January 2, 2019. He had previously served eight years (two terms) on the Grambling City Council and as Mayor Pro Tempore during his second term. He is primarily focused on economic development and growth and enhancing the lives of the city's 5,000 plus citizens. Prior to becoming an elected official, Mayor Jones spent nine years as a public school teacher in California and Louisiana. He later joined the English faculty at Grambling State University, a position from which he retired after twenty-five years of service. He is also a former real estate an insurance agent, Farmers Home Administration-certified apartment manager, and the former owner of a AT&T and Sprint franchise.

Job Titles:

• Member of the HRV Team
• Portfolio Manager

Elizabeth Leathers joined the HRV team in 2018 and is responsible for structuring the internal organization processes and infrastructure for NMTC compliance, as well as for the management and oversight of the regulatory, financial and program compliance for HRV's closed investments and/or investor relationships in a portfolio of multiple NMTC allocations. Formerly a Real Estate Analyst for the City of Norfolk, Elizabeth has extensive knowledge and expertise in overseeing complex data collection, compilation and entry for reports submitted to government agencies. Elizabeth attended the business programs of Tidewater Community College and Lord Fairfax and Germanna Community College. She completed the Graduate REALTOR® Institute (2008) and the Examination for the Residential Appraisal Education Program of the Real Estate Educators, Inc.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Advisory Board
• Founder and President of TCG Development Services

Jaime Bordenave is the founder and President of TCG Development Services, LLC (TCGD), which works nationwide, and finds that historically 90% of their portfolio is focused on very low-income communities and specializes in revitalizing severely distressed low-income communities.

Job Titles:

• Chief Executive Officer
• Member of the HRV Team

Jennifer Donohue, currently Chief Executive Officer of HRV, worked as the Operations and Compliance Director of HRV for four years before she became the COO in 2015. She manages the HRV portfolio of NMTC projects for both compliance and risk management. She also maintains the CDE's compliance with its investors, and both the IRS Section 45(d) regulations as well as the terms of the CDE's Allocation Agreement with the CDFI Fund. She worked for the Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority, HRV's affiliate, for three years handling housing projects involving both Low-Income Housing Tax Credits and private funds. Jennifer has experience monitoring funding compliance for mixed-finance transactions, during development and through operation, combining the regulatory and program requirements of layered development sources as well as complying with the statements made in the various funding applications. She has experience in analyzing applicable statutory and regulatory frameworks; preparing applications and securing project financing; project cost certifications; permanent financing conversion; asset management; and regulatory and programmatic compliance and reporting. She also has over 10 years of experience working as a paralegal practicing in corporate, residential and commercial real estate, and 3 years as a SWaM business owner of a construction company, she was a Class A Contractors License and Real Estate Agent. She brings a unique blend of legal skills, organizational abilities, and construction knowledge to HRV's team. Jennifer has an associate's degree in accounting, bachelor's degree in business management, and a master's degree in public administration from Old Dominion University.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board

Joe W. Dillard, Jr. is a millennial leader who strives to create positive change in the world with the purpose of leaving the world in a better place for future generations. He is currently the External & Governmental Affairs Liaison for Hampton Roads Transit and participates in policy advocacy at the local, state and federal level. Mr. Dillard began his undergraduate studies at Virginia State University where he pursued a Bachelor of Arts in Business Management. After transferring to Norfolk State University (NSU), he completed his Bachelors of Arts Degree in Political Science in 2012. In November of 2014, he was elected President of the Norfolk Branch NAACP, becoming the youngest branch president in the United States. The following year, he was elected to serve as the Vice President for the Virginia State Conference of the NAACP. Under this role, Mr. Dillard was the chair of the State Legislative Advocacy Committee. In 2016, he was elected to serve as the Vice-Chair of the Region 7 of the NAACP which consisted of Virginia, Washington DC and Maryland. Mr. Dillard is the youngest Worshipful Master of his respective Prince Hall Masonic Lodge (Blooming Light Lodge No. 132). He also serves as the Worthy Grand Assistant Marshall for the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge. Mr. Dillard serves as Vice President of the Greater Hampton Roads Black Democrats and Outreach Chair of the Norfolk Democratic Executive Committee. He has served as an executive board member of the Hampton Roads Young Democrats and 2nd Vice President of the West Tidewater Young Democrats. Mr. Dillard also served as a Commissioner on Norfolk's Mayor Commission to Reduce Poverty. Mr. Dillard was recognized as the Master Mason of the Year for the First Masonic District of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Virginia in 2013. The following year, he was honored as a Hampton Roads Living Legend by the City of Norfolk for his impactful work in the community. Also in 2014, he was honored by Bank Street Memorial Baptist Church for his leadership across the City of Norfolk. Mr. Dillard was recognized as an "Agent of Change" on WVEC Channel 13 in 2016. Mr. Dillard was ranked number eight in the Historical Black College & Universities (HBCU) Top 30 under 30 in its 2016 rankings. Mr. Dillard looks forward to continuing to work to improve the lives of those around him.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Advisory Board
• Economic Development Coordinator for the District of Columbia Housing Authority

Julian Conway Wilson is an Economic Development Coordinator for the District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA). DCHA owns and manages close to 7,500 public housing units in 56 active developments in our nation's capital. All but one of the complexes are located in lower-income communities, 55 of which are severely distressed as such term is defined by the CDFI Fund. Julian is responsible for managing a series of financial and technical programs designed to assist low-income public housing residents achieve financial independence.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Senior Vice President With CBRE Hampton Roads

Ken Benassi is Senior Vice President with CBRE Hampton Roads, a commercial real estate firm. He is a commercial broker focused on industrial real estate. Benassi graduated from University of Virginia with a degree in history and he added an MBA from Old Dominion University. Prior to his career in commercial real estate he was in sales and marketing management with National Welders Supply and Airgas. Highlights of his professional career involve the disposition of the former Ford plant, the acquisition of the former Lillian Vernon property, the acquisition of the former Virginia Chemical/BASF plant and the assemblage of land for the Old Dominion Real Estate Foundation of what is now the Old Dominion University Village. Benassi and his wife Tracey live in the East Beach neighborhood.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Vice President of E.T. Gresham Company

Richard Gresham is Vice President of E.T. Gresham Company, a local family-owned construction firm in Norfolk. Richard graduated from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University with a degree in architecture and has over 43 years of experience in the industry, 30 years of which are with E. T Gresham. Highlights of his professional affiliations include Mayor's Downtown Norfolk Taskforce, General Douglas MacArthur Foundation, Norfolk Society for Cemetery Conservation and Ghent Business Association. Richard is a Norfolk native and currently resides in the Belvidere neighborhood with his wife Jane.

Job Titles:

• Executive Assistant
• Member of the HRV Team

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• Member of the First Baptist Church of Lamberts Point

Rose Arrington joined the Hampton Roads Ventures Board in August of 2012. Rose has been an advocate for improving her community for many years. This appointment provides her with another opportunity to fulfill her mission to champion economic self-sufficiency for socially and economically challenged families, particularly those in public housing. She has served on the Board of Directors of several non-profit agencies, whose missions benefited economically and socially disadvantaged populations, including Community Housing Services, The Center for Community and Family Services, The He Ain't Heavy Foundation and Northwest Manors Affordable Housing Development Corporation. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Legal Aid Society of Eastern Virginia. She has managed polling venues and coordinated voter registration events. Rose is also an advocate for creating opportunities for grief counseling within the public housing community. She believes that grief counseling is a staple missing from these communities, particularly since these families experience tragedy, per capita, at a much higher rate than families in other communities. She knows first hand experiencing the tragic loss of both her teen-aged son, followed several years later by the tragic loss of her husband due to social and economic disadvantage. These tragedies have provided her with a passion and special insight that makes her a better champion for her cause. She is an advocate for Victims of Violent Crimes, Victims of Domestic Violence and Victims of Child Abuse. Rose is a member of the First Baptist Church of Lamberts Point in Norfolk, Virginia.

Job Titles:

• Member of the Board
• President of the Planning Council

Suzanne is President of The Planning Council, a regional nonprofit organization that plans, develops and manages human services programs. Prior to joining The Planning Council, Suzanne served as the Director of the Department of Human Services for the City of Norfolk, administered community-based programs for a private child-serving company, and provided consulting and facilitation services to local governments and nonprofit agencies to increase organizational capacity and effectiveness. Suzanne has an undergraduate degree in Political Science and Masters of Public Administration from Old Dominion University. She is an alumna of the Senior Executive Institute of the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, University of Virginia, and CIVIC Leadership Institute. She serves on various community boards, including Hampton Roads Center for Civic Engagement, Westminster-Canterbury on Chesapeake Bay, YMCA of South Hampton Roads, Tidewater Pastoral Counseling, as well as Together We Can Foundation and Hampton Roads Community Foundation. She is a past President of the Board of Trustees of St. Mary's Home for Disabled Children and the National Association of Planning Councils. "We are pleased to have Suzanne join our Board," said John Kownack, Executive Director. "She brings a wealth of experience to our board and I know she will help us do great things."

Job Titles:

• Member of the Advisory Board
• President and Chief Executive Officer of the Texas Mezzanine Fund

Victor Elmore is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Texas Mezzanine Fund. The Texas Mezzanine Fund, Inc. (TMF), is a statewide Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that provides financing for businesses located in distressed areas, minority-owned businesses, and small businesses that create jobs for low and moderate-income people.