The Greenville Eastern North Carolina (ENC) Alliance welcomes new leadership for the 2023-2024 Fiscal Year which begins on July 1, 2023. Several new board members and executive committee members were voted in during the May 18 annual board meeting. Drake Brinkley, a commercial real property attorney at Ward and Smith, P.A., is now chairman after serving on the executive committee as secretary and vice chair.
"We are entering this fiscal year with an abundance of enthusiasm and momentum, bolstered by our recently completed five-year strategic plan," said Brinkley. "It is truly an honor to be at the helm of this exciting journey with such an outstanding team of professionals, a distinguished board of directors, and dedicated community partners."
As the organization welcomes new directors and new executive committee leadership, it also expresses gratitude to those who previously served in leadership roles, including former chairman Tom Kulikowski, who will remain on the board of directors, and Spence Cosby, who served as immediate past chair. Kulikowski and Cosby were both major supporters and advocates for economic development through their work with the Pitt County Committee of 100 and the creation of the Greenville ENC Alliance in 2019.
“I often mention that our organization would not have been successfully launched without a tremendous amount of time sacrificed by many community stakeholders; not to mention the bumps and bruises they collected along the way. Creating a new organization to unify economic development efforts and partnerships is not without significant hurdles. Folks like Spence and Tom have been a part of the group that made our existence possible, and the Greenville – Pitt County area will be all the better for it,” said Josh Lewis, CEcD, president and CEO of the Greenville ENC Alliance.
The Greenville ENC Alliance welcomes two new private sector board members. Thomas Taft, Jr. with Taft Family Ventures will fill the Platinum Level seat for outgoing board member Lance Clark of Bill Clark Homes and Don Edwards of University Book Exchange U.B.E. will fill an open seat at the Silver Level. Michael Overton (Gold Level), Lynn Hudson (Silver Level), and Christian Porter (Bronze Level) were re-elected to their private sector board member seats, each serving an additional three-year term.
The City of Greenville has appointed Greenville residents Jennifer Cargile and Will Litchfield to fill vacant seats within the public sector. City of Greenville council member Will Bell will move into an ex-officio role as the council liaison. In addition, the Town of Grimesland will rotate a representative into one of the municipal board voting seats. Departing from this municipal voting seat is Stephen Tripp, Mayor of Ayden; however, he will remain on the board as an ex-officio member.
“We are thankful for those who wish to engage and serve the community through investing and serving on our board of directors,” expressed Lewis. “It is through direct collaboration and inclusiveness with business and community stakeholders that this organization gains a competitive advantage.”
In addition to Brinkley serving as chairman, other board officer positions are held by Aaron Driver as vice chair, Jon Anderson as treasurer, and Thomas Taft, Jr. as secretary.
"Our mission is clear, the team is well-prepared, excited, and resolute. We can't wait to tap into the team's vast potential to propel the region toward economic development, growth, and success," added Brinkley.
The full list of the 2023-24 Greenville ENC Alliance Board of Directors is available by clicking here.
Media Relations Contact:
Maria Satira
Director of Marketing and Communications
Greenville - Eastern North Carolina Alliance
satira@encalliance.com
252-414-2875
