CHEROKEE - Key Persons
Amy Biggers is an Accounting Manager of Cherokee. Prior to joining Cherokee in January 2003, she was a senior accountant for AIMCO, a real estate investment trust, in Greenville, SC. She earned a BA in Accounting from North Carolina State University and is a licensed CPA in North Carolina. She and her husband Shan have two daughters.
Bret Batchelder is a Managing Director of Cherokee. Since joining Cherokee in 2001, Mr. Batchelder has directly overseen the closing and management of numerous brownfield investments. Previously, he was a Vice President in the Mergers and Acquisitions division of First Union Securities (formerly Bowles Hollowell Conner) where, among other accomplishments, he assisted in the establishment of the Technology Investment Banking Group. Mr. Batchelder has previously worked as an Associate in the investment banking division of Goldman, Sachs & Co. and was a fixed income Portfolio Manager with Bank South, N.A. Mr. Batchelder received a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Scholar, and an MBA in Finance and Accounting from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern. He is a Certified Public Accountant and Chartered Financial Analyst and holds his North Carolina Real Estate License. Mr. Batchelder is also active in several non-profit groups and service organizations throughout North Carolina. He and his wife Virginia have three children.
Elizabeth Merritt is a Managing Director of Cherokee. Prior to joining Cherokee in 2004, Ms. Merritt was an Associate in the Leveraged Finance Group at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York. In this capacity, she provided financial advice for leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations and analyzed complex capital structure issues for clients in various industries. She also spent two years as an Analyst in the Mergers & Acquisitions Group at Goldman Sachs. Ms. Merritt received a BA in Economics and English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. Ms. Merritt and her husband John have three sons and live in Raleigh.
S.H. "Jim" Fogleman, III is the Chief Financial Officer - Investment Services of Cherokee where he oversees investment-level financial reporting and compliance matters on behalf of the Cherokee private equity funds. Prior to joining Cherokee, he held CFO positions with privately held companies involved in start-ups, turnarounds, and real estate development. These companies included Blue Rhino Corporation, the nation's largest propane cylinder exchange marketer/distributor; Platinum Service Corp., a developer of Boston Market restaurant properties located primarily in the Carolinas and Georgia; and National Packaging Solutions Group, a southeastern US manufacturer and distributor of industrial packaging. Mr. Fogleman began his career in public accounting with Price Waterhouse and later with Pryor, Sills and Fogleman and the Daniel Professional Group. He earned a BS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a licensed CPA in North Carolina. Mr. Fogleman and his wife Mary Edna have three sons.
Job Titles:
- Founder
- Managing Principal
- Member of the Executive Leadership Team
John Mazzarino is founder and Managing Principal of Cherokee. Cherokee has raised $2.2 billion in five institutional private equity funds, and invested this capital in the acquisition, cleanup, development, and sale of more than 550 properties in the US, Canada and Europe.
Prior to forming Cherokee, John worked at Bain & Company and was President of two private equity-funded businesses. He began investing personal capital in corporate transactions in the late 1980s and has formed, invested in or acquired with others more than 100 businesses, primarily in the sustainability arena. These businesses include: Cherokee Environmental Risk Management (environmental insurance), Brownfield Revitalization (new markets tax credits for brownfield redevelopment), Eco-Site (urban brownfield cell towers), PGSI (supply-side smart grid), and IHHI (fusion energy). John is also a limited partner in a number of venture capital and private equity funds.
John has served on corporate and non-profit boards and currently is on the Board of Directors of Fidus Investment Corporation, IHHI, Hometown America (where he was Chairman for three years), aPersona, Mi-Co, 510 Nano and United Protective Technologies. He is also a member of the Board of Advisors of the MIT Sloan School of Management, the MIT Sloan Finance Group, the MIT Sustainability Initiative, and Cherokee Gives Back, Cherokee's charitable foundation. Reflecting his interest in sustainability strategy and practice, John personally funds interdisciplinary research at the MIT Sustainability Initiative.
John received a BA in Mathematics from Colgate University where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. After Colgate he studied for two years in the PhD program in Operations Research at MIT. While completing the course requirements for the PhD, he was a teaching assistant and lecturer for graduate courses in optimization and statistics. He later received an MS in Management from MIT's Sloan School of Management.
Prior to joining Cherokee in 2003, Ms. Shaw was the Office Manager of ARP-Phoenix. She has held administrative positions with Concentra Medical Center and Duke University Sports Medicine. Ms. Shaw earned an associate degree in Criminal Justice. She is on the board of Neighbor Health and an active volunteer, involved in several youth mentorship programs. In her spare time, Ms. Shaw enjoys staying active both training in the gym and outdoors. She resides in Raleigh.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Founder
- Member of the Executive Leadership Team
Tom Darden is founder and CEO of Cherokee and its predecessors. Cherokee has raised over $2.2 billion in five institutional private equity funds, and invested this capital in the acquisition, cleanup, development, and sale of approximately 550 environmentally contaminated real estate assets in the US, Europe and Canada.
Tom began investing personal capital in environmental companies before raising institutional private equity funds, and approximately 25% of his early stage investments have been founded or co-founded by him. Since the 1980's he has invested in over 100 companies including Cherokee Environmental Risk Management (environmental insurance), Brownfield Revitalization (new markets tax credits for brownfield redevelopment), Tethis (biological superabsorbent), Living Homes (green buildings), Cherokee Biotechnology (biological remediation), Cherokee Solar (solar energy), Eco-Site (cell towers), Consert (demand-side energy management), PGSI (supply-side energy management), and Industrial Heat (energy).
Tom began his career with Bain & Company in Boston, working with Bain from 1981 to 1984. Beginning in 1984, he served for 16 years as the Chairman of Cherokee Sanford Group, the largest private brick manufacturing company in the United States and previously the Southeast's largest soil remediation company.
Tom has served or continues to serve on numerous boards, including the Boards of Shaw University, Environmental Defense Action Fund, Research Triangle Institute, the University of North Carolina's environmental department, Winston Hotels, Waste Industries, Gentra Systems, Consert, Inc., Evofem, The Prince of Wales Trust, WakeMed Hospital, and Helping Hand Mission. He was Chairman of the Research Triangle Transit Authority and served two terms on the N.C. Board of Transportation, through appointments by the Governor and the Speaker of the House.
Tom earned a Master in Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a JD from Yale Law School and a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Scholar. His 1976 undergraduate thesis analyzed the environmental impact of third world development and his 1981 Yale thesis addressed interstate acid rain air pollution.
Job Titles:
- Executive Assistant
- Office Manager
Vickie Harp is the Office Manager and an Executive Assistant at Cherokee. Since joining Cherokee in 2006, Mrs. Harp has filled several roles and assisted with numerous projects. Previously, she was a Statistical Analyst and Executive Assistant at CenturyLink (formerly Embarq). Mrs. Harp has previously worked in several administrative positions with the North Carolina Department of Justice (Attorney General's Office). She is also a Pastor's wife at Grace Fellowship Church of God in Youngsville, NC. Vickie and her husband Rodney have three sons.
Wendy Carter is an Accountant of Cherokee. Prior to joining Cherokee in 2000, she was employed with Building One services in Sumter, South Carolina, and then relocated to the Raleigh electrical division as the residential billing manager. She graduated with honors from Kent State University, where she received an Associate degree in Accounting and an Associate degree in Art. Wendy also graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS in Accounting from North Carolina State University. She and her husband Alan have one son.