EMP TASKFORCE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Key Account Manager for Defense & Government With PolyPhaser
- New Jersey Director
- New Jersey State Director
Adam Perone was born and raised in Oakland, New Jersey and spent 8 years in the United States Marine Corps with deployments to both Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and North Africa in support of Operation African Lion. Adam was awarded 8 medals and 1 meritorious citation over the course of his service in the Marine Corps. He graduated with honors from Ashford University in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in International Business. He then graduated Northeastern University in 2015 with Master of Science in Global Studies & International Affairs with an additional concentration in sustainability and post-conflict development. Adam is currently completing his Master of Arts in National Security at American Military University.
Today, Adam serves as the Key Account Manager for Defense & Government with PolyPhaser and Transtector Systems. Both PolyPhaser and Transtector are part of Infinite Electronics, a leading global supplier of electronic components and assemblies, serving the urgent needs of engineers through a family of highly recognized and trusted brands, a wide portfolio of products ready to ship, and world-class technical support on demand. INFINITE's PolyPhaser and Transtector brands are market leaders in AC, DC, DATA, and RF surge protection, hardened Ruggedized Power solutions and HEMP/EMP hardening.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Senior Multi - Disciplinary Systems Engineering Adviser
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Senior GMD Science Adviser
Dr. Alexander E. (Sandy) MacDonald retired from over 40 years of federal service in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, on January 3, 2016. He was a Senior Executive since 1990 and President of the American Meteorological Society in 2015. He retired after 10 years as Director of NOAA's largest research laboratory, the Earth System Research Lab in Boulder, Colorado. He was Chief Science Advisor for NOAA's research line, and it Deputy Assistant Administrator from 2006 to 2012. He was Director of NOAAs Forecast Systems Laboratory from 1988 to 2005. He is the inventor of NOAA's Science On a Sphere, an educational exhibit now in over 130 museums worldwide. He worked with Vice President Al Gore to start the GLOBE Program in 1994. He is the recipient of four Presidential Rank Awards.
Dr. MacDonald recently published (January 25, 2016) an article in Nature Climate Change, titled "Future cost-competitive electricity systems and their impact on US CO2 emissions" that was ranked in the 99th percentile of impact by Altimetric. The article presents results that show the US could reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by up to 80% by 2030, by implementing a High Voltage Direct Current transmission network. The article presents a solution to greenhouse gas emissions that could be implemented now with existing technology, and would be also be feasible in other major economies such as Europe, China and India.
On April 4, 2016 he joined Spire Global, where he is leading a group that is developing global weather models and advanced energy solutions.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Media and Press Adviser
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Utah Director
- Utah State Director
Bob McEntee is a 1988 USAFA Graduate, with a BS in US Military History, and a minor in German. He was a SAC Alert Force KC-135 Instructor & Navigator from 1990-1991, and a Single Integrated Operations Plan (SIOP) Instructor & Planner. He received the SAC 1994 Omaha Trophy on behalf of the 43rd ARW.
He is a USAF Squadron Officer School Graduate, a Combat Air Tactics Training Graduate, a Red Flag Planner & Flying Graduate, and a USAF Contingency Wartime Planning Course Graduate. He is also the recipient of 3 Air Medals for Combat Support/Missions in 5 Continents, with over 5,000 hours of flight time.
Bob McEntee is a 1988 US Air Force Academy Graduate, with a BS in US Military History, and a minor in German. He was a SAC Alert Force KC-135 Instructor & Navigator from 1990-1991, and a Single Integrated Operations Plan (SIOP) Instructor & Planner. He received the SAC 1994 Omaha Trophy on behalf of the 43rd ARW.
He is a USAF Squadron Officer School Graduate, a Combat Air Tactics Training Graduate, a Red Flag Planner & Flying Graduate, and a USAF Contingency Wartime Planning Course Graduate. He is also the recipient of 3 Air Medals for Combat Support/Missions in 5 Continents, with over 5,000 hours of flight time.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Kansas Director
- Kansas State Director
Brad is a pioneer and veteran of the mobile carrier, stored value, digital engagement, and privacy/security industries. Brad served as part of the initial team developing Sprint's digital mobile services strategy and business case. After refining and optimizing Sprint's local telephone product portfolio, he led Sprint Prepaid Solutions, where he pioneered new mobile marketing promotional techniques for large brands and agencies. He has also been a long-time entrepreneur, developing mobile and voice engagement solutions for non-profits and CPG brands.
He became increasingly interested in protecting the consumer digital lifestyle and led efforts to expand services within the US carrier mobile portfolio to include passcode management, compromised credentials monitoring, identity theft protection, and compartmentalized encrypted collaboration and communication. He led efforts to offer blockchain-based, no knowledge encryption communications solutions to the critical infrastructure and bulk electrical system market to ensure the integrity of key information management systems and assets. The process of mapping digital communications controls to NERC-CIP requirements led Brad to investigate and interact with members of the task force, where he gained increasing concerns regarding the public's safety from potential catastrophic events impacting critical US infrastructure.
Brad lives in Overland Park, KS and is married to Jennifer, where they are in various stages of raising 5 children. Kids include Anna (22, Duke volleyball, Accenture), Thomas (Electrical Construction Management), Lauren (18), Julia (16), and Johnny (7). Brad's hobbies include auto restoration and repair, shooting, fishing, and fine cigars. He has a BSEE degree from Kansas State University and an MBA from UNC-Chapel Hill.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Corporate Development Adviser
Born and raised in a humble Christian home in Georgia, Cleve Tidwell graduated from Norman Park College in Georgia and served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He began climbing the business ladder in Atlanta and moved rapidly from sales to management and continued to earn his way into senior management where he spent 20 years with the Textron Corporation. When the company sold in 1996, Cleve started his own consulting firm which later spread to an international company. His specialty in risk-management, investments, leadership and management development became highly sought after in companies in and out of America. He merged his company in 2003 with Knows-Iland of Japan with offices in Tokyo and Osaka. The company later opened an American division back in Denver in 2004 and Cleve returned to Denver to direct the North American operations as President. Cleve resigned from the company in 2009 to run for office in the United States Senate.
Cleve was selected by Nancy Reagan's staff to run the "Just Say No" Program in the southern states. A lifetime volunteer, Cleve served as director of a Central American Village for over 80 people who lost their home in Hurricane Mitch in 1998. Cleve is an active member of the Red Cross, certified to assist in disasters both in and out of the United States.
Job Titles:
- Acting Executive Director
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Executive Director of the Task Force
Cynthia Ayers serves as Deputy to the Executive Director of the Task Force on National and Homeland Security. Ms. Ayers is a national security threat analyst and consultant, having retired from the National Security Agency (NSA) in 2011 with over 38 years of military and civil service (combined). Her intelligence community career included a position as NSA Representative to the DCI's Counterterrorism Center at CIA headquarters, where she worked throughout the attack on the USS Cole and the 9/11 crisis (2000-2002). Her government service culminated in an eight-year assignment as the National Security Agency's Visiting Professor to the U.S. Army War College (USAWC), where she taught electives on contemporary threats to national security from an intelligence perspective (cyber warfare, terrorism, etc.) as well as military applications of artificial intelligence. She advised students on research concerning strategic intelligence, counterterrorism, cyber warfare, and critical infrastructure protection.
Post-retirement, Ms. Ayers was employed as Vice President of EMPact America, a bipartisan, not-for-profit group working in support of electric grid vulnerability mitigation. More recently, she worked as a temporary, part-time research assistant with George Mason University's Learning Agent Center on a grant concerning artificial intelligence-based systems. She is currently working as an independent cyberwarfare consultant within the Strategic Concepts and Doctrine Division of the Center for Strategic Leadership, U.S. Army War College.
Ms. Ayers has provided a plethora of briefings and presentations on critical infrastructure issues at organizational gatherings, conferences, and workshops to members of the non-profit sector, government entities, and interested groups within academic institutions. She has testified before the Canadian Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defense; the Joint Standing Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Technology of the Maine State Legislature; the Energy Policy Committee of the Michigan State Legislature; members of Indiana's State Legislature, and the reestablished Congressional EMP Commission.
Ms. Ayers has written several published articles on critical infrastructure and national security issues, a monograph on cyber sovereignty (Rethinking Sovereignty in the Context of Cyberspace), and co-authored academic papers on the development of cognitive agents for intelligence analysis.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Director of the Waldo County Emergency Management Agency
- Maine Director
Dale Rowley is the Director of the Waldo County Emergency Management Agency in Belfast, Maine. He served 22-years in the USAF and Maine Air National Guard, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2011. He has degrees in Emergency and Disaster Management (MA) and in Civil Engineering (B.S.). He is credentialed as a Certified Emergency Manager (CEM) with the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) and as a Licensed Professional Engineer (PE) with the State of Maine.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Chief Executive Officer, Microgrid Solutions, Shell New Energies
- Energy Industry Executive
- Senior Resilient Sustainable Engineering Adviser
Daniel Gregory is a 30+ year energy industry executive, entrepreneur, and technologist focused on delivering secure energy solutions globally, Dan founded Pos-En, which recently was acquired by Shell New Energies.
He is a member of IEEE, CIGRE, National and Homeland Security EMP Task Force, and Vice Chair of the National Science Foundation FREEDM Systems Center. He holds two US patents and has published multiple industry papers and articles.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Eur Ing
- Project Engineering Director
Born in England, Dave Phelps officially retired and immigrated to the US in 2008. He is a Fellow of the London-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers, a highly respected international organization of Professional Engineers. Dave spent much of his career in the process and oil industries and held leadership positions in design, manufacturing, operations, project management and new product development. As a Global Product Development Manager for a Fortune 500 company he developed and commercialized numerous world-class multimillion-dollar product lines. Dave's current focus is on EMP's and other threats to US security where he believes his particular experience is applicable to resolving the grid-hardening conundrum. He is actively involved in a number of national independent groups of EMP experts. Now a U.S. citizen, Dave and his wife Trudy live in Fort Mill, SC.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Deputy Director, National Operations
- Executive Vice President of the Task Force
- Expert
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Web and Digital Communications Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Administrator
- Education Director
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
Professionally, Don Davidson was an independent educational consultant for schools and districts nationally and internationally with 175 on-site staff development presentations and 77 on-site presentations featuring educational improvement and school safety issues. He is a university faculty supervisor and graduate school facilitator online for another prominent institution, with many successes at those endeavors since 1999, and specialized in leveraging technology and data to improve communication, learning and community outreach.
Davidson has been a school administrator at the elementary, intermediate, middle and high school levels with ten years of supervisory experience including the university level. He has monitored expenditures, admission and compliance, ongoing professional learning, and funds resourcing in those environments. He was the past director of professional development for the Department of Education in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
He has a background of association with Colorado Mesa University and its predecessors, having been an aspinall scholar and phi alpha theta national writing champion, adult finite math instructor, former mesa student-athlete, and currently a Montrose campus lecturer.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- California Director
Dr. Manner is presently a consultant for magnetics and high voltage power supply designs with scientific and medical applications. He served as a senior member of the technical staff at L-3 Communications supporting R&D of wideband microwave receivers. This included radiation tolerant power supply architectures for the nuclear battlefield. Dr. Manner, having earned degrees in Electrical Engineering, System Science, and Mechanical Engineering disciplines, contributed to detailed electronic designs, packaging/EMI designs, and signal processing. In addition, Dr. Manner was an expert witness for an International Trade Commission litigation involving inkjet printer technology.
Dr. Manner was the Manager of the Gyro Suspension Flight Electronics for Gravity Probe-B at Stanford University, making individual contributions to error analysis, detailed design of ultra-low noise analog electronics and extensive EMI/Shielding.
Dr. Manner is an Invited Editorial Reader for the Int. Journal of Heat & Mass Transfer, and the ASME Journal of Heat Transfer. He is a full member of Sigma Xi and Eta Kappa Nu and holds numerous patents for improved aircraft air pumps, and various power systems concepts.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Is Director of Advanced Analysis Applications
- Senior EMP Science Adviser
Dr. Drew Miller is Director of Advanced Analysis Applications. He served a consultant in risk assessment and financial analysis as President of Heartland Management Consulting Group for over a decade before founding Advanced Analysis Applications. He served as a Manager in Corporate Planning and Development at ConAgra Inc. Dr. Miller worked in the financial services industry as a Financial Planner, Registered Investment Advisor, and Vice President of Securities America, one of the largest independent broker-dealers in the United States.
A USAF Academy Honor Graduate, he received an academic scholarship to Harvard University where he received a Master's Degree and PhD in Operations Research. He has taught in university business schools, and done advanced analysis as an intelligence officer and Department of Defense analyst. He is a Certified Financial Planner, Certified Management Accountant, and a Certified Mergers and Acquisitions Advisor.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Senior EMP Hardening Test Engineering Adviser
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Director Regional Power Resiliency Dir / LASP Liaison
- Manager for Strategic Initiatives at the Laboratory for Atmospheric
Edgar Johansson is the Manager for Strategic Initiatives at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder (2014-present. In this capacity, he is responsible for state and federal relations, communications, and the development of new business pipeline in Colorado and all points beyond. In Edgar's first tour with LASP (2004-2008) his responsibilities included Risk Manager on the TIM instrument for the NASA mission Glory as well as Risk Manager for TSIS on NPOESS. Through Edgar's extensive network of federal, state and commercial contacts he was able to re-secure $4.5 million in the NASA budget for Glory TIM in 2005 and played a key role in the $34 million re-manifestation of the TSIS suite on the NPOESS C1 satellite which was announced in May 2008.
Prior to Edgar's experience at LASP, he spent four years as the Director-Asia for the State of Colorado organizing eleven trade missions to the Far East representing over eighty Colorado companies covering nine different Asian markets. These efforts yielded many exclusive distributor contracts and between $25 to $50 million of annual sales through the export of Colorado products and services to Asia. During the same four years Edgar was also the Space Liaison to the Office of Economic Development & International Trade, the Governor's Office, and the Office of Innovation & Technology. Edgar assumed these additional responsibilities in April of 2001 and implemented many new and dynamic programs that have added to the strength of Colorado's economy and Colorado's status in the global space and aerospace market.
Edgar ‘s additional history includes having been The Colorado Business Roundtable's (COBRT) Aerospace Advocate. As COBTR Aerospace Advocate Edgar hosts the Colorado Space hour monthly on 1690 AM where he spoke with aerospace leaders from across the state and the nation. For the previous 15 years Edgar was intimately involved with the Colorado Space Business Roundtable (CSBR) where he worked himself up to both Past President & Past Chairman of the Board. Edgar sits on the board of the Colorado Space Coalition and the CO LABS. He is a graduate of the "Leadership Program of the Rockies" as well as the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado Boulder's "50 for Colorado" program. Edgar was the recipient of the 2003 Communications Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of Colorado, Denver where he holds a degree in Communication (focus on international business and Asian studies). Edgar has studied the Japanese language, culture and history in the United States at Metro State College, the University of Colorado and at the Japan Center for Michigan University in Hikone, Japan.
Since 1990, Edgar has continued his pursuit of the Japanese martial art of Aikido. His commitment to this martial art has afforded him the opportunity to meet and train with some of the world's finest aikidoka and instructors. Edgar currently holds the rank of Godan (55h degree black belt) and is dojo cho and chief instructor at Denver Aikikai (www.denveraikikai.com).
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- California State Director
- Western Regional Director
F. H. Rick Smith, an I.T. Infrastructure Architect, recently completed a successful 44 year career in the energy industry having had the pleasure of working for Getty Oil, Texaco, and most recently Chevron. During his career, Mr. was fortunate to have worked across the disciplines of automation, telecom, I.T., and electric power. Mr. Smith has had a longstanding interest in FCC telecom policy, serving on the Enterprise Wireless Alliance Board of Directors since 1998, and having been their Chair of the Board for 2004 and 2005.
Mr. Smith also served as part of the API Telecommunications Subcommittee from 1986 onward focusing on spectrum and wireline issues needed for the safe and efficient operations of U. S. oil and gas infrastructure.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Arizona Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Director, National Operations
Mr. Rhoades also served as a member of the National Science Foundation's workshop on the ethical, societal and legal implications of nanotechnology. On November 16th, 2006 he helped open the University of Colorado's Nanofabrication Lab which allowed CU entry into the National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network (NNIN).
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Education Advisor
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Caribbean Regional Director
Israel Romero's priorities are his faith, family and enhancing human capabilities within the work force.
Israel (also known as Izzy to those who are close to him) launched his career as a sales representative, marketing occupational health and safety equipment to the pharmaceutical and manufacturing industries. He learned quickly he had the ability to connect with people, breaking sales records and developing new business opportunities.
Now knowing his ability to connect with people, he asked his father to team with him in the start of a new business, Caribbean Business Group; together, they started this new venture, focused on supplying equipment and services to Federal, State and Municipal Law organizations. While running the Caribbean Business Group, Israel was asked by some of the companies he represented to assist in the startup of three telecommunications companies after President Bill Clinton had signed the Telecommunications Act of 1996, resulting in the breakup of the Bell and AT&T monopolies, making room for new competitors. After successfully launching these companies, he was selected to assist in the business expansion for some of the companies he represented in the Caribbean. Being a natural networker, Israel cultivated strong relationships with the Puerto Rican diplomatic community. His outgoing, gregarious personality encouraged his friends there to assist in opening doors and facilitating meetings in their respective countries, resulting in a professional network that continues to grow.
With the events of 9/11, Israel's life changed from businessman and part time soldier to full time soldier. In 2003, he mobilized and deployed in support of Iraqi Freedom, Noble Eagle and Enduring Freedom. Stationed in the crucially central Washington DC area, he provided the sourcing, preparation, and deployment of over 352,000 soldiers in a timely manner to support the different missions throughout the globe. Israel trained the staffs of General Officers, ensuring they had the proper skill sets to function overseas. Once again recognized for his advanced people skills, Israel was selected to become the Chief for International Affairs for the Americas, meeting with Ambassadors weekly to discuss security cooperation and security assistance matters. Israel has commanded on six occasions, most recently returning from commanding a US lead mission in El Salvador, where he led 3,000 service members composed of the US Army, US Air Force, US Marines, Salvadorian Army and the Peruvian Army. Mission successes included providing medical treatment for over 16,348 citizens of El Salvador, 47 surgeries in 10 days, building four schools and a medical clinic. The record of these successes can be found on google - Colonel Israel Romero and/or "Beyond the Horizons 2018" and on Facebook search for "Beyond the Horizons 2018" and "Joint Training Center Camp Santiago", which is Israel's new project.
Israel has an MBA in Acquisitions and is a graduate of the United States Army War College, where the Army sends its top 1% to train to become a General Officer. Israel maintains active communications with his colleagues across the Americas and around the globe.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Technologist
- Information Technology Coordinator
James is a Technologist, and Senior IT Management professional with 35+ years experience. Creative application of emerging technologies has been a mainstay throughout his career, with focus on Operational Support Systems- i.e. monitoring IT systems and services to ensure availability, functionality, and performance. James' roles have included sales & marketing, hardware & software product development, IT service delivery management, Infrastructure Design and deployment, server virtualization for reliability and scalability, IT Operations including Disaster Recovery Plans and more.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Senior EMP Science Adviser
For nearly 8 years after receiving my degree in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado, Jerry worked for the Ampex Corporation, the company that invented the video tape recorder. During most of that time he was a test engineer, developing test procedures and designing test interface equipment for their professional audio products. He wrote all of the test procedures for the electronic sub-assemblies (as well as the final system test) for the ATR-100, which was the last major innovation in analog audio tape recorders. He also did some engineering work on the production testing of Ampex professional video recording equipment.
From August 1978 until January 2008, He worked as a radio and television transmitter engineer, most of that time as Transmitter Supervisor, for the ABC affiliate in Colorado Springs. He worked atop Cheyenne Mountain, just outside of Colorado Springs. He has driven to the summit of Cheyenne Mountain more than 4,000 times, and still works as an electronics consultant atop that mountain several times a year. He now have a multi-faceted career operating two separate one-person businesses. He does science writing and editing for his one-person company called Futurescience, LLC. which is now primarily devoted to distributing advanced information related to preventive medicine and healthy life extension. He has a very large amount of scientific information on the futurescience.com web site on the subject of Nuclear EMP.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Washington State Director
John grew up in Hawaii and graduated with distinction from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1988 with a BS in Mathematics and then in 1990 from Penn State with a Masters (M Eng) in Nuclear Engineering. He served onboard USS Olympia (SSN 717, a Los Angeles Class Nuclear Powered Fast Attack Submarine) from 1991 till 1994, and then on the Operations Staff for the Commander Anti-Submarine Warfare U.S. Pacific Fleet from 1994 thru 1996, both in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. John spent two additional years in the Reserves and completed his Naval Submarine Service as a Lieutenant Commander.
Since 1996, John has lived near Arlington, Washington, 40 miles North of Seattle, with his wife, Heidi, and their son, Van. He is the President/Owner of McKeon Financial (www.mckeonfinancial.com). John and Heidi are both active members of Snohomish County Volunteer Search and Rescue (SCVSAR) (www.scvsar.org; the website includes the story of how their son and his friends were rescued by SCVSAR). He and his wife are both Team Leaders with the Operations Support Unit of SCVSAR.
Despite his Naval Nuclear and Operations background, until December 2016, John was as unaware as the vast majority of Americans regarding the magnitude of the threats to our electric power grid and our critical infrastructures. After reading the book, One Second After, by William R. Forstchen, John chose to verify statements in the book's forward and story by reading the 2004 and 2008 Congressional EMP Commission Reports. He was astounded by the staggering loss of life projections that a sustained loss of our power grid would incur, and was appalled to learn no significant action had been taken to protect Americans in the 13 years since the first Congressional EMP Commission Report of 2004. After intense study on the subject and recognizing the extreme urgency of the situation, John reached out to volunteer whatever services he could provide.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Colorado Director
- Colorado State Director
As Director of the Colorado Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Task Force, I've been working with state legislators of both political parties to protect the electric grid and other critical infrastructure. For 38 years, I worked for the General Accounting Office (GAO) in information systems, critical infrastructure protection and financal management. This includes top secret cybersecurity audits of the classified and unclassified computer networks at Los Alamos National Laboratory. I authored the Federal Information System Controls Audit Manual (FISCAM). I wrote an audit report on critical infrastructure protection.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Massachusetts Director
- Massachusetts State Director
A graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth with an MSEE, and BSEE, and a graduate of Portsmouth Abbey School, Jon has had a decade of experience in political activism. He has had a unique vantage point to witness the dangerous consequences of government corruption, and sees this as one of the greatest internal, and frequently hidden, threats to our nation and it's citizens. He was one of the founders of the America First Party established in 2002, and served as it's National Chairman as well as Finance Chairman, and has reached out to tens of thousands across the country as part of the party's media and fundraising activities. Jon has organized public events, volunteered for and chaired political campaigns, and has been a pro-life activist for 10+ years. He worked as an engineer at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Newport Rhode Island, and later as an independent contractor.
He operates a small business in Massachusetts, and lives on the south coast of Massachusetts with his wife, Ruth. He enjoys supporting Catholic institutions, sailing, hiking, reading and watching German media, and is occasionally involved with World War II reenactment.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Executive Director
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Founder and CEO of Grid Down Consulting
Jonathan Hollerman is the founder and CEO of Grid Down Consulting. GDC specializes in security-driven off-grid structural design, land evaluation, bunker design, strategic site security, and extraction planning for high-net worth clients and continuity of operations for large corporate interests in disaster scenarios. GDC has consulted with over 500 clients worldwide over the last decade.
Jonathan served as a US Air Force S.E.R.E. (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape) Specialist. SERE Specialists are trained in every major climatic condition: arctic, desert, tropical, ocean and temperate. They must complete intensive training in the following areas: wilderness living, shelter construction, fire building, map and compass navigation, backpacking, food and water procurement, wilderness medicine and first aid, signaling and rescue techniques, escape and evasion, conduct after capture, anti-interrogation techniques, and the methods needed for instructing all these skills.
Jonathan is a #1 Bestselling Author of Survival Theory in the survival and emergency preparedness genre. Jonathan's books primarily focus on the psychological and physiological effects of extreme starvation and desperation after an extended grid-down scenario. He is the author of two emergency preparedness guides and three instructional-fiction novels. In 2019, at the behest of the joint-services Electromagnetic Defense Task Force (EDTF), Hollerman authored a white paper for military education and training on the psychological effects of human desperation and starvation on military personnel after a long-term grid down event. Jonathan has numerous published articles and been a guest on various shows like the Hagmann Report and others. Jonathan also maintains a private pilot's license and specializes in short field take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft for client extraction.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Pennsylvania Director
Kaleb is a graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a B.A in political science while minoring in homeland security - specializing in intelligence and national security. After graduation, he then went to work obtaining experience in management and operations while pursuing graduate studies. Kaleb graduated from Adelphi University in August of 2022, receiving a M.S in emergency management while minoring in homeland security - specializing in national security and civil defense policy.
Kaleb's primary focus points are to enhance community resilience and advocate for an
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- North Dakota Director
Ken Sletten graduated from North Dakota State University with a degree in electrical engineering. Thereafter Ken spent 30 years as a civil service systems and software engineer at a U.S. Navy facility in Washington State.
After retiring in 2007, Ken was selected as an alternate delegate from Washington State to the Republican National Convention in 2008.
During more recent years, Ken has focused on becoming better informed regarding all technical details of serious threats to our national electrical grid from solar EMP, NEMP, and terrorists. Near the end of 2016, at the request of a North Dakota state legislator, Ken drafted original version of what ended up being adopted as ND State House Concurrent Resolution 3010, which recognized the need for the State of North Dakota and the entire United States to undertake responsible measures to harden our commercial electric grid against multiple serious threats.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- North Carolina Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Florida Director
Larry was born and raised in Brooklyn New York. He graduated Brooklyn college in 1987 with a B.A. in Biology. He then graduated New York University College of Dentistry in 1991 with a Doctorate in Dental Surgery and then also completed his postgraduate training at New York University College of Dentistry to earn his specialty certificate in orthodontics in 1993. He then began his private practice in Boca Raton Florida in 1993.
His practice then grew to be the largest single orthodontic practice in the United States. The practice became the staff model for the American Association of Orthodontics. His office won the prestigious American Society of Interior Designers Healthcare Project of the Millenium Award in the year 2000. The aquatic themed office gained further notoriety after National Geographic featured the office on its global show Fish Tank Kings (see braces1.com ).
Larry then started another company, TheaterEars, which dubs movies in real time in foreign languages in every theater in the US and Puerto Rico. This is done through audio fingerprinting for which Larry's company has four issued patents and a total of 21 patent applications. The app has over a third of a million users and his company has contracts with Disney, Universal, Warner Bros, Sony, Paramount, Lionsgate and STX Studios. Larry is both the founder and the Chairman of the Board of TheaterEars.
He used the knowledge that he gained in TheaterEars to help Senator Ron Johnson and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee gain access to the phone of the infamous San Bernardino shooter. He also was asked to brief Senator Johnson (chair of Senate HSGAC) for the 2016 Annual Threat Assessment hearing.
Larry has also worked with the House Transportation Committee (subcommittee on aviation). He has done so to enhance airline security with an emphasis on ADS-B (automatic dependent surveillance broadcast) radar.
He has also been the private client of Judicial Watch since 2013 with whom he has worked with on three federal cases including one cert petition in the United States Supreme Court.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Eastern Regional Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Texas Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Tennessee Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Director of Public Works
- Terrorism Adviser
Mike Sutherland has served as the Director of Public Works for nine years and EOC Director for nearly four years. His department oversight includes seven divisions led by three section managers with fifty members on staff. Working with police staff he helped build a Parker Incident Overhead Team (IOT) of forty nine individuals from six different departments. Other opportunities for challenge include serving on the Douglas County Incident Management Team in the positions of Incident Commander and Plans Section Chief as well as Terrorism Liaison Officer for Colorado Information Analysis Center, the state fusion center. Mike is also a trainer for the CELL (Counterterrorism Education Learning Lab) Community Awareness Program on "recognizing the signs of terrorism".
Prior to joining the first responder ranks in public works, Sutherland served as chief executive in a private firm specializing in aviation facility development and security, along with service as president of a non-profit organization that hosted and managed jet team air shows. During this period of his career Mike also served on the Board of Commissioners of a regional airport, and as City Council member for Grand Junction, Colorado. In the late 80s to mid-90s Sutherland held airport executive positions as Operations Manager, Deputy Director of Planning & Operations and Acting Airport Manager with a sidebar of flying as a search pilot for Civil Air Patrol around the mountains of Colorado. He has flown hang gliders, helicopters, gliders and motorized aircraft, and has recently begun flying unmanned aerial vehicles (drones).
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Community Outreach Education Adviser
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Information Technology Coordinator
- Nebraska Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Hilversum Senior EMP Task Force Advisor, Caribbean Region
- Puerto Rico / Virgin Islands Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- President of Jaxon Engineering
- Senior EMP Engineering Adviser
White is the President of Jaxon Engineering in Colorado Springs. Colorado. Scott, follows his father, Randy in moving Jaxon to the next level and has many years of experience both in technical, engineering and maintenance issues involving High Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse (HEMP) devices.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Connecticut Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Community Outreach Education Adviser
Terry R Vasquez is a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the U.S. Army after serving America for twenty-seven years in the Air and Missile Defense and the Army Acquisition Corps. Served in Operation Desert Storm and subsequent rotations to the Southwest Asia and also, served as Chief of Operations for the all the Alaskan Missile Defense Sites along with writing and analyzing air and missile defense national/international operational/technical requirements for the Patriot Air and Missile Defense system. After serving several other assignments from Platoon Leader to Battery Commander and Battalion Operations and Executive Officer and doing his last assignment at NORAD-NORTHCOM Command Center in Colorado Springs, Terry spent both time and energy developing his management, analysis and leadership skills at GE. Since his retirement from the military, Terry started Business Analytics Strategies consulting practice along with migrating to New York Life as a Registered Representative/Financial Advisor. Terry was recently a member of the Team at Centennial State Financial, an office of MetLife. Terry is now a Ground-Based Missile Defense (GMD) Analyst with emphasis on the Fire Control Center/Communications (GFC/C) subject matter expert in support of the Ballistic Missile Defense System. Terry as the GFC/C subject matter expert supports the Ballistic Missile Defense System, Operational Test Agency, conducting testing which includes missile defense flight-tests, integrated and distributed ground tests, supporting planning conferences, and other events as directed which is yet another endeavor added to his portfolio.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Wisconsin State Director
Job Titles:
- Member of the Task Force Advisory Board
- Education and Outreach Coordinator
Tom Clark has been working to promote interest in power grid resiliency to protect from EMP, GIC, cyber, and physical threats and to gather support for grid protective bills in Congress with Colorado representatives.
He is member of InfraGard, EMP Special Interest Group (SIG) FBI/Public Partnership and The Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Task Force on National and Homeland Security. He is a high school and middle school teacher in Denver.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Taskforce Leadership Team
- Missouri Director
Vince has a BSEE from Missouri S&T (University of Missouri-Rolla) and an MBA from Lindenwood University. He is a former member of NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) 70E, NEC® (National Electrical Code) Panels 4, 10 & 11, and the NEC® Correlating Committee. Vince is a Professional Engineer, an IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) Fellow, a NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturers Association) Kite and Key Award Winner, and an IAEI (International Association of Electrical Inspectors) Roadrunner. He retired as VP of Technical Sales at Eaton, after 42 years of service, specializing in overcurrent protection and electrical safety.