We are pleased to announce the Board of Directions Election Candidates for 2013:
PHIL BUFFINGTON
Phil Buffington joined Adams and Reese in 2011 in the Transactions Practice Group, practicing in the firm’s Jackson office. He has been practicing law since 1984 in transactions, and has extensive experience in representing financial institutions.
In the legal arena, Phil is a member of the American Bar Association, including the Banking Law Committee. He is also a member of the Business Law Section of the Mississippi Bar Association. He also is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Independent Community Bankers Association and the International Association of Defense Counsel. Phil serves as an adjunct professor at Mississippi College School of Law, and is a former President of the Mississippi College School of Law Alumni. He earned his J.D. from Mississippi College School of Law in 1984. He earned a double major in banking and finance/insurance at University of Mississippi, earning a B.B.A. in 1981. In the community, Phil is heavily involved with St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral, currently serving as a Vestry Member and having served in various positions and on numerous committees. He has also served on various nonprofit organizations boards, including serving as a former board member of Jackson Futbol Club, Inc. and Habitat for Humanity/Metro Jackson, Inc. Phil is a Mississippi native, born in Canton. He is married to Sarah Yelverton and they have three children, Phillip, Avery and Will.
DR. DON BURNHAM
James D. (Don) Burnham, Ph.D., Vice President of the Ridgeland Campus for Holmes Community College. Dr. Burnham is a native of Laurel, Mississippi. He received a Bachelor of Science in Forestry and Business Management from Mississippi State University in 1978. Dr. Burnham earned an M.B.A. from the University of Mississippi in 1985, and received his Ph.D. in Higher Education from the University of Mississippi in 2004.
Dr. Burnham began his career in quality control and held production management positions in an industrial setting until 2003. He joined Holmes Community College as a Business and Economics instructor in 2003 through January 2007 when he became the Director of Admissions and Records for the college. He was appointed Vice President of the Ridgeland Campus in June 2011. He is a member of the City of Ridgeland Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, the Madison-Ridgeland Rotary Club, and the Education Committee for the Business League of Madison County. He is also chairman of the Education and Workforce Taskforce for the Madison County Strategic Plan, and an active member of the Gideons International.
SAM KELLY
Sam Kelly was born in Bruce, Mississippi on July 5, 1961. He received his undergraduate (1983) and law (1988) degrees from Ole Miss. Upon graduating from law school, he served as law clerk to Judge Robert J. Yock of the United States Claims Court in Washington, D.C. He is an active member of and serves as General Counsel to the Mississippi Associated Builders and Contractors (the largest construction trade association in Mississippi), and the Mississippi Road Builders Association. Sam’s practice focuses on the construction industry and includes contract preparation and negotiations, bid protests, claim preparation and evaluation and dispute resolution through mediation, arbitration and litigation. In the field of Construction Litigation, Sam has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America®, Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers, and Mid-South Super Lawyers.
Sam actively serves his community and profession. He is a member of the Mississippi State Bar, and served from 1999-2000 as President of the Young Lawyers Division. He also serves on the Board of the Capital Club in Jackson. In addition, he has been active in the Madison County Schools for over twenty years, serving as past President of the PTOs for Madison Avenue Elementary, Madison Middle and Rosa Scott schools. He is Past President of the Madison Central Booster Club which serves 22 athletic programs. He was elected in 2013 to the Madison County School Board. Sam coached baseball in the Madison Ridgeland Youth leagues for many years. Sam is committed to his family—wife Kim, daughters Maggie Kate and Anna Claire, and his late son, Sam Clayton. He is a member of and teaches Life Group at Broadmoor Baptist Church in Madison.
NICOLE KEMP
Nicole Kemp, National Transportation Systems Manager for Levi Strauss & Co., Canton, MS. Nicole’s primary role is to ensure that millions of jeans are shipped globally each year from multi-site, U.S. distribution centers, while meeting cost and service objectives. Her areas of expertise include cost reduction, process improvement, carrier rate and service negotiations, project management and strategic management. She earned a BS in Management Information Systems in 2001 and a MS in Management in 2008. Prior to her career at Levi’s, Nicole worked as a Senior Purchasing Specialist for L-3 Vertex Aerospace where she procured items for the U.S military, both domestically and internationally. Nicole also participates in numerous community and civic organizations to include the Madison County Business League where she is a member of the Canton Community Development Committee and Entrepreneur Committee as well as a steering committee member for North Madison County’s Excel By 5. She is a board member for the Madison County Chamber of Commerce as well as President of the Advisory Council for Zip39, Madison County’s Young Professionals. She also serves as Membership Chair for the Madison Ridgeland Rotary Club. Nicole has received numerous awards to include Madison County’s Rising Star Award in 2011 and Mississippi Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40 and 50 Leading Business Women in 2012. Nicole is a lifelong Mississippian and resides in Madison County.
TERRELL KNIGHT
Terrell Knight has been with C Spire Wireless (Cellular South) for over 19 years. Terrell has severed in many roles with C Spire over the years. He first joined C-Spire as an Area Manager over South Mississippi, where he lived in Hattiesburg. In 1997 he was promoted to the very first Director of Sales for the company. As the company began to grow the Sales Division split and Terrell became Director of Business and Government. In 2008 the Business and Government sector split and Terrell became Director of Government.
Prior to working with C Spire, Terrell work for Bayer (Glenbrook Labs) for 10 years in Mississippi and then in Atlanta, Georgia. When Terrell left this company he had been promoted 5 times.
Terrell is very involved in the community and represents C Spire at most all functions in the State of Mississippi. Terrell has been on the board of the Jackson Metro YMCA, the Mississippi Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, and currently on the Executive Council for Boy Scouts of America, Andrew Jackson Council.
Terrell is married to Donna O’Connell Knight (28 Years) and has 3 children; Connell 23, Medical Student at UMMC, Lucy Tucker 21, Junior at Ole Miss, and Curt 16, Sophomore at Jackson Academy.
Terrell is a graduate of the University of Mississippi and is very involved with St. Richards Catholic Church. Terrell is also an avid runner and triathlete.
TINA LAKEY
Tina Lakey is the District Director for CenterPoint Energy in Mississippi. As director, Tina is responsible for Mississippi’s gas operations business and overseeing the budgetary needs in the state. CenterPoint serves 120,000 customers and has 100+ employees throughout the state.
Tina began her career with CenterPoint in 1979. She became the first women in management in Mississippi in 1989 as district administrative manager and then in 1997 was promoted to one of three district managers in the state. In 2006, the company went through reorganization and she became the first district director in Mississippi.
Tina presently serves as Mississippi Natural Gas Association President, the first woman to hold this position. She is the past chair and serves on CenterPoint Energy MWBE Advisory Council for Southern Gas Region. She serves on the board of directors for United Way and also chairs the newly formed Women in Leadership Committee for UW. Tina has served as president of the Madison-Ridgeland Rotary Club, the Ridgeland Chamber of Commerce, and Metro Area chairperson for United Way. She is a member of the Madison County Business League Government Relations Committee. She was selected as one of t he 2008 50 Leading Business Women. Tina believes “It’s all about the people”. Community involvement and volunteering are as much a part of her life as breathing. Tina and her husband Terry reside in Madison.
BRAD MALEY
Brad Maley is North Metro President in BancorpSouth’s Mid-Mississippi Division and is responsible for managing operations in the Madison County and North Metro Jackson markets. Brad began his banking career in 1996 after receiving a degree in Managerial Finance from the University of Mississippi. Brad holds NASD Series 7 and Series 66 securities licenses and has successfully completed the Mississippi School of Banking and the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. He currently serves on the boards of the Mississippi Children’s Home Services and the Mississippi Council on Economic Education. Brad is past President of the Madison City Chamber of Commerce, a graduate of Leadership Mississippi, and was named to the Mississippi Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40. He is married to Olivia Holmes of Meridian and they have two children. A resident of Madison Brad and his family are active members of Pear Orchard Presbyterian Church in Ridgeland.
JAMES C. NELSON
Vice President, Allen & Hoshall. Responsible for the day to day activities and leadership of the Jackson, Mississippi Regional Office and the Infrastructure Division of Allen & Hoshall. Duties include the management of workload and personnel to achieve project deadlines. Jimmy served as a Civil Engineer/Project Manager from 1984 until 2007. His duties included project management, planning, design and construction administration of airport, road, rail, water, elevated storage tanks, sewer, natural gas, riverport and recreational area projects; inert and Subtitle D sanitary landfill projects; preparation of local, state and federal permits for storm water runoff, wetlands permitting; preparation of transportation, riverport and industrial park master plans; preparation of flood studies incorporating HEC-2 computer analysis; preparation of hydraulic studies of water systems incorporating Hardy-Cross computer analysis; preparation of utility rate study projects; preparation of specifications and contract documents and on-site inspection. Project Engineer for gaming projects including performing permitting, planning, site design, casino design, and construction administration and inspection services.
From 1981 until 1984, Jimmy worked as a Civil Engineer, Mississippi State Highway Department Roadway Design Division. Responsibilities included the design of highways, interchanges, pavement structures and drainage structures in accordance with state and federal standards and the computation of quantities and cost estimates.
A 1981 graduate of Mississippi State University, B.S. in Civil Engineering, Jimmy has served on several boards and is active in numerous professional and civic activities including the Madison Ridgeland Rotary Club – Paul Harris Fellow, Madison County and Ridgeland Chambers of Commerce. He and his wife reside in Madison where they attend St. Joseph Catholic Church.
DR. DAVID L. POWE
Dr. David Powe currently serves as the Chief Administrative Officer at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC), and is responsible for overall operations including Physical Facilities and Real Property, Police/Security/Logistical Services, Environmental Health and Safety, Business – Governmental – Community relations, Medical Center Master Plan, Emergency Preparedness, Economic Impact initiatives, and space coordination. He currently serves on the following committees: Addie McBryde Governing Authority, Conflict of Interest Committee, Environmental Health and Safety Committee (chair), Institutional Compliance Committee, Medical Center Space Committee (chair), LCME Accreditation Committee, UMMC Marketing Committee, Parking Committee (chair), Patent Committee, SACS Leadership Committee, UMMC Master Plan Steering Committee (chair), Business, Government and Community Affairs Committee (chair), and the Mission Mississippi Development Committee. He also serves on the boards of the following organizations: The Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership Board of Directors, the YMCA of MS (Chairman 2012), Downtown Jackson Partners Advisory Board, Central Mississippi Growth Foundation Board, ChamberPlus, Jackson Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors (Chairman 2011). Dr. Powe has agreed to serve on the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership Steering Committee for the 10-year Regional Strategic Plan. He is also on the Leadership Council of the Girl Scouts of Greater Mississippi. Prior to his service at UMMC, he served as Superintendent of Education in McComb, MS, President of Mississippi Delta Community College in Moorhead, MS, and Director of NASA’s Environmental Science Directorate.
Dr. Powe received a bachelor’s degree in social work and psychology and a master’s degree in social science from Mississippi State University. He received his doctorate in education administration from the University of Southern Mississippi. In 2000 Dr. Powe was selected by NASA to receive its highest award, the Outstanding Leadership Medal. He was chosen by NASA to participate in the prestigious Harvard University’s Senior Executive Fellows Program where he became a Harvard Fellow.
Dr. Powe and his wife of 41 years, the former Brenda Brown of Forest, Mississippi, have three children and nine grandchildren. They reside in Forest and attend Forest Methodist Church. He has been an active participant and leader in church activities at local and state levels.
GLEN SILVERMAN
Glen M. Silverman is the Chief Executive Officer of Madison River Oaks Medical Center. Glen, originally from Howell, New Jersey, has called Madison County home for nearly a decade. Glen has worked with Health Management Associates since 1998; Serving as CFO, COO, and CEO of Central Mississippi Medical Center from 2004 until 2007. Because of his successes in leadership development and strategic planning in 2010, Glen was selected to lead Madison River Oaks (a 50 million dollar replacement hospital licensed for 67 beds in Canton, MS). Under his leadership, Madison River Oaks has experienced a 40% increase in admissions and 75% growth in surgery. Additionally, patient satisfaction scores have improved significantly and are ranked in the 87%ile nationally. Glen goals both in and out of the hospital are to lead and influence positive changes in the culture and add value to the community. Glen holds a Bachelor of Health Administration from Florida Atlantic University and a Masters of Business Administration from University of North Florida. He has served on numerous boards including the Metro Coalition, STOP SMA, The Canton Chamber of Commerce and the Mississippi Hospital Association. He also served as an Adjunct Professor at Mississippi College and is a graduate of Leadership Madison County. Glen and his wife, along with 5 children reside in Madison and their younger children attend Madison County Schools.
JOHN TAYLOR
John Taylor is the manager of Taylor Industries, LLC located in Madison, Mississippi. Taylor Industries is a family owned, specialty chemical manufacturer with clients across the U.S and Australia.
After receiving an engineering degree from Louisiana State University, John Taylor moved to Madison County when County Line Road was still a gravel road. John resides in Ridgeland with his wife Lucy, and two children who attend school in Madison.
MICHAEL WALKER
Michael Walker is Executive Director of External Affairs for AT&T Mississippi. In this position he manages the External Affairs activities and community relations positioning of AT&T to achieve the organization’s legislative, regulatory, and operational objectives.
Walker is a native of Vicksburg, Mississippi and a graduate of the Vicksburg public school system. He received his undergraduate degree in accounting from Jackson State University and a master’s in Business Administration from the University of Mississippi. Walker resides in Clinton where he attends Pleasant Green Baptist Church and serves as a deacon and Sunday school teacher.
