DELIVERING JOBS - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- President of the Foundation for a Better Life / the Foundation for a Better Life
Formerly, Gary served as vice president of Bonneville Communications where he directed the creative development of many successful campaigns, including Homefront, Major League Baseball, Children's Miracle Network and the American Cancer Society.
He has also been a speaker at regional and national advertising conferences for the American Advertising Federation and a keynote speaker for various events. Other assignments took him to Jakarta, where he served as a communications consultant on an Indonesian government project and, early in his career, to Japan where he directed a documentary on the first Trans- -Pacific flight.
Gary has a master's degree in communications from Brigham Young University and a bachelor's in broadcasting from Texas Tech University. He serves on the National Board of Directors for the College of Media and Communication at TTU. He lives in Denver with his wife Susan and their family.
Kevin Valdez was diagnosed with autism at the age of 22 months. After growing up in Ripon, California, he found a small passion for acting during his time in elementary school and dreamed about making it big in Hollywood.
At 14 years old Kevin got his first acting role in Cornerstone Community Church's theatre production of Cinderella Kids in Manteca. He would later play parts in other productions like Seussical Jr. and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.
Kevin was part of his high school drama club for four years and was selected to play Teddy Brewster in their production of Arsenic and Old Lace as a sophomore. He graduated from Ripon High School as the homecoming king and later turned to Futures Explored, a subsidiary of Inclusion Films, which was founded by Joey Travolta. He currently attends their workshop in Stockton.
Kevin starred in his first screen role as Louie King in the Apple TV+ series Little Voice.
Kevin is hoping to become an advocate to those with autism and other disabilities and make more stories be heard around the globe by sharing his story with others.
Job Titles:
- CEO of Spectrum Design Foundation / As Spectrum Design Foundation
's CEO, Patrick oversees the day-to-day running of Spectrum Designs, Spectrum Bakes and Spectrum Suds. He holds a Masters in Special Education, with a concentration in Behavior Analysis through Long Island University. A natural leader and born innovator, he spends most of his time securing future growth and relationships for the betterment and expansion of all the social enterprises. Under Patrick's leadership Spectrum's businesses have generated annual revenues of over $5m and created more than 50 jobs in a neurodiverse workforce.
Patrick brings an enormous skill-set that spans many disciplines, as well as over 15 years of experience working with people adults with developmental disabilities. Outside of his work at Spectrum Designs, Patrick is a board member of New York State Industries for the Disabled (NYSID), a member of the Autism @ Work Employer Roundtable and a member of the invite-only Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC).
In 2018 Patrick was named in the top 40 under 40 Rising Stars by New York Non Profits. In 2019 Patrick graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10k Small Business program and joined the Autism @ Work Employer Round table, joining an international collection of cross industry employers and innovative leaders who run autism-focused hiring initiatives. In 2020 Patrick was elected to Vice President of the NYSID Board which is responsible for over 7,000 jobs for New Yorkers with disabilities and $250m worth of annual contracts. In 2020 he also successfully oversaw the expansion of Spectrum Designs into Westchester including the full renovation of a new 8,000 square foot facility and creating 20+ new neurodiverse jobs into 2021.
Job Titles:
- President of Lee Container
Robert Varnedoe is the President of Lee Container. His experience with the company (he joined Lee Container at its inception in 1989) includes sales, operations, and general management. Robert is a graduate of the University of Georgia and Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College. He and his wife Layne have two sons, Joel and John, and one feisty granddaughter, Bea. He is a lover of Labrador Retrievers and loves hanging out at his farms in Iowa and South Georgia.