IRE - Key Persons
Mr. Riley has been an uber successful leader with more than a quarter century of commercial and residential real estate experience in both the public and private sectors. He has served in various senior operational and financial roles,
As president and COO, Mr. Riley will continue to drive the growth and profitability of IREGC, working closely with the CEO and board of advisors to pursue the company's goals and ensure compliance with its stated mission. He also will continue to create relationships with communities where IREGC works and with industry leaders to nurture future business investments. He initially joined IREGC as its chief operating and accounting officer in 2018.
Job Titles:
- CFO
- Member of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals
Jack Fritsche joined the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies (IREGC) in January 2023, bringing with him more than 20 years of proven real estate experience in senior financial leadership roles in various commercial real estate sectors. As IREGC's chief financial officer, he leads and provides oversight on all aspects of financial planning, including accounting, financial analysis and reporting, forecasting, budget management, cash flow planning, compliance, acquisition financing, and investor relations.
Mr. Fritsche is highly adept at process evaluation and streamlining, regulatory compliance, problem resolution, and managing cross-functional teams. Before coming to IREGC, he was part of a successful sales team at M3 in Lawrenceville, Georgia, a company that specializes in hospitality-specific software and business intelligence tools. Throughout his career, he has worked for public real estate investment trusts (REITs) focused on retail and leisure properties, a national senior living provider, and two private hotel hospitality management companies.
Mr. Fritsche is a member of Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals and is a certified hospitality account executive (CHAE). He holds a bachelor's degree in accounting from Penn State University.
He grew up in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, but spent 30 years in Northern Virginia before making the move to Lancaster with his wife, Lisa. Together they have two sons: Graham, who attends Penn State University, and Adam, who attends James Madison University. Mr. Fritsche enjoys a good round of golf, assisting with dog rescues and finding new restaurants to try.
Over the past quarter century, John H. Gilliland has become a national leader and visionary in the self storage industry. He has given back to his community as a philanthropist and is a devoted husband and father.
In 1997, Mr. Gilliland brokered his first self storage facility in Hanover, Pennsylvania. One year later, he founded the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies (IREGC), including Investment Real Estate, LLC, and built his first Moove In Self Storage facility near State College, Pennsylvania.
Since that time, Mr. Gilliland created numerous self storage-focused companies that reached national prominence. This includes Investment Real Estate Management, LLC, one of the largest firms in America to provide self storage clients with professional, fee-based management services, and Investment Real Estate Construction, LLC, which has developed and built over 3.5 million square feet of self storage.
Over the course of its first quarter century, IREGC grew into a national leader with more than 100 employees providing brokerage, feasibility, construction, development, insurance and property management services primarily across New England and the Mid-Atlantic states. During this time, the company brokered hundreds of transactions, achieved over $1 billion in sales for its clients and grew its Moove In Self Storage portfolio to more than 68 properties in seven states. Mr. Gilliland recently retired the company's brokerage services to focus solely on acquisitions to expand the Moove In Self Storage portfolio.
For his leadership and achievements, Mr. Gilliland was inducted into the inaugural class of the Pennsylvania Self Storage Hall of Fame in 2018. He received his industry's highest honor when he was inducted into the National Self Storage Association Hall of Fame in 2020.
Our founder and CEO, John Gilliland, didn't set out to work in self storage. Believe it or not, he grew up 18 miles from Penn State University, milking Holstein cows on his family's dairy farm. After graduating high school, he moved to central California, where he received his degree in dairy science from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly).
After college, John worked as a commercial real estate broker in Orange County, California. When he came back to Pennsylvania, John settled in central Pennsylvania to work for Bennett Williams and subsequently High Associates, where he was referred to a self storage listing in Hanover, Pennsylvania. This triggered his infamous "Holy Smokes!" moment, and Investment Real Estate, LLC was born.
Mary Beth joined the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies (IREGC) in May 2021 as Chief of Staff to the President and COO Chris Riley, and CEO John Gilliland.
Her responsibilities include working directly Mr. Gilliland, handling travel accommodations, calendar arrangements, assisting in supporting charitable activities, event support for Pink Power, and overseeing all office activities.
Prior to joining the team, Mary Beth worked for Springwood Hospitality as an Area Sales Manager for corporate accounts across four Hilton hotels for two years. She has had the pleasure of working for the York Revolution, Marriott, Cintas, White Rose Bar & Grill catering, and The Yorktowne Hotel which has contributed to her over 20 years of experience in hospitality, customer service, event management, leadership, and sales.
Mary Beth was born and raised in Rutland, VT and currently resides in York with her daughters. Outside of work she enjoys attending Broadway shows and concerts, supporting local by having dinner out with friends, singing and dancing, and weekend getaways with her kids to explore the region.
Job Titles:
- Vice President of Human Resources
Nancy Delach has more than 20 years of human resources experience in recruiting and talent acquisition, training and development, benefit design and administration, and payroll operations. In January 2023, she brought her expertise to the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies (IREGC) as the vice president of human resources. Ms. Delach is responsible for planning, leading, directing, developing and coordinating the policies, activities and staff of the human resources department. She also works to ensure legal compliance and implementation of IREGC's mission and talent strategy.
Before joining the team at IREGC, Ms. Delach held senior human resources positions for a call monitoring software company, an automotive dealership group and a self storage company. She is a member of the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the Chesapeake Human Resources Association, and holds her PHR (Professional in Human Resources) and SHRM-CP (Certified Professional) certifications. Her desire to create a welcoming environment where employees feel valued and have fun is what motivates her every day.
She is also passionate about serving her community, having served on the fundraising committee for Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital's Storybook Gala for four years and as the gala's silent auction chair for three years. Additionally, she has fostered over 30 dogs for an animal rescue located in southern Maryland.
Ms. Delach grew up in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area but now resides in Eldersburg, Maryland, with her husband, Joe. Together they have five adult children and two grandchildren. She enjoys trail riding with her rescued Arabian horse, Steel, and reading in her free time.
Job Titles:
- Operations Executive
- Vice President of Operations
Shaun Lewy is an accomplished operations executive with a proven track record of increasing sales, creating effective and efficient policy and procedure, and developing people to achieve desired goals. He joined the Investment Real Estate Group of Companies (IREGC) in December 2022 as vice president of operations. In this leadership role, he is responsible for providing oversight to dozens of self storage properties throughout the region; developing and strengthening individuals and teams for efficient, effective operations; and managing and reporting on budgets.
Mr. Lewy was well-versed in the self storage industry prior to joining IREGC. He previously led operations for two self storage companies for a combined eight years. For each of these companies, he led teams of district managers to achieve revenue and rental increases, retain customers, and maximize sales for auxiliary products. He also developed and implemented training to ensure high levels of customer service.
Before breaking into the storage industry, Mr. Lewy worked for a mattress chain, working his way up from a salesperson to the vice president of sales after 13 years with the company. He attended both Towson University and Catonsville Community College.
For the past 20 years, he has made his home in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. He and his wife have two children, a son in high school and a daughter who attends Towson University. In his free time, he is an avid movie lover and likes to read or listen to books.