PRIDE officers in place for 2014-2015
July 1, 2014 by clackey
The PRIDE Board of Directors will be led in 2014/2015 by (left to right) Chairman Phil Osborne, President/CEO Tammie Wilson, Secretary Sandy Gay and Vice Chairman Jack Keeney. Treasurer A.L. Sinclair is not in the photo.
The 2014-2015 leadership team is in place at Eastern Kentucky PRIDE, Inc., the nonprofit organization caring for the environment in 42 counties of southern and eastern Kentucky. At its June 24 meeting, the PRIDE Board of Directors selected its new officers, who, aside from the President, are volunteers.
“I appreciate the time and energy these volunteers invest in PRIDE, making sure we fulfill our mission of helping the region’s communities to improve the quality and stewardship of our environment,” said Tammie Wilson, PRIDE President/Chief Executive Officer. “A small nonprofit relies heavily on the expertise and dedication of its board members and its officers, even more so.”
Phil Osborne now chairs the PRIDE Board of Directors. He is the President of Osborne & Associates, a full-service marketing, communications and research firm based in Lexington. At the company, he helped launch PRIDE’s public education campaign in 1997.
“I find it so gratifying to be a part of this organization,” Osborne said. “Being chair in an era of reduced funding and mounting pressures on our resources will be a challenge, but we have a great board, a solid staff and the vast numbers of volunteers throughout the region that will see us through it.”
Jack Keeney is the Vice Chairman of PRIDE. Keeney is the Executive Director of the Mill Springs Battlefield Museum in Nancy, Ky. He is a retired educator, and he has led the Somerset-Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce and God’s Food Pantry of Somerset.
The PRIDE Secretary is Sandy Gay, who is the Program Coordinator for the Lee County and Owsley County Conservation Districts. She has volunteered as the Lee County PRIDE Coordinator since PRIDE began in 1997.
A.L. Sinclair is the PRIDE Treasurer. Sinclair, who retired from the Forest Service, is the Adair County Solid Waste Coordinator. He has volunteered as the Adair County PRIDE Coordinator and a PRIDE Board of Directors member since PRIDE began.
The remaining members of the PRIDE Board of Directors are Doug Brock, Manager of Field Operations for Kentucky American Water Company; Jean Dorton; Rodney Hitch, Corporate Manager of Economic Development for East Kentucky Power Cooperative; Neil Middleton, News Director for WYMT-TV; and Tony Wilder, Commissioner of the Kentucky Department for Local Government. Elizabeth Schmitz, Executive Director of the Kentucky Environmental Education Council, serves in an advisory capacity.
The PRIDE Board of Directors meets bimonthly to establish guidelines for PRIDE programs and approve the organization’s budget. Nine board members are volunteers who bring particular expertise to fulfilling the PRIDE mission. One staff member, the President/Chief Executive Officer, also serves on the board.
PRIDE promotes “Personal Responsibility In a Desirable Environment” by encouraging and equipping communities to improve water quality, clean up solid waste problems and promote environmental education. PRIDE was founded by Congressman Hal Rogers (KY-5) and the late James Bickford, who was the Kentucky Secretary for Natural Resources and Environmental Protection.
For more information, please contact the PRIDE office, located at the Center for Rural Development in Somerset. The toll free number is 888.577.4339.
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