THE MARINERS' MUSEUM

Anne Conner was named President of Public Finance and Community Investment, a new division of TowneBank, in May, 2013. Anne is tasked with managing corporate federal tax liability through investment in privately placed tax-exempt bond issues as well as New Markets, Historic Rehabilitation and Low Income Housing Tax Credits. Prior to her new role, Anne was Regional President for TowneBank of Williamsburg from 2005 to 2013.

In addition to her position with TowneBank, Anne serves as Chairman of the Virginia College Building Authority under gubernatorial appointment and also serves as Vice Chairman of the Boards of Directors of WHRO and The Mariners’ Museum. Anne has also been involved in several private equity companies, most recently as Chairman of ivWatch, LLC, a medical device company which has developed state-of-the-art technology to detect infiltration and extravasation of peripheral IV’s.

Ed Whitmore grew up in the Sandbridge Beach, Virginia. He attended Elon University in North Carolina where he graduated in 1982. His first significant work experience came as a salesman with a local packaging supply company in Norfolk. In 1988, he accepted a sales position with Maersk, Inc. a large shipping company. He held sales positions in New York City before being transferred to Charlotte, NC where he headed up the company’s regional sales and operations activities. In 1994, he shifted industries when he returned to New York to accept a position at Standard Chartered Bank marketing foreign exchange currencies to large corporations. Here he held sales and management responsibilities over a ~seven year span. In early 2001, Whitmore accepted a position at AIG Trading. In this role he broadened his foreign exchange experience to include structured finance. In the fall of 2003, Whitmore returned to Norfolk where he set out to leverage his considerable experience in the small business arena.

In late 2003 Whitmore acquired Norfolk Tug Company (NTC), a small general marine towing business in the Berkley section of Norfolk. Following three months of operation, he shutdown the business, tied up its two poor quality assets and laid off everyone while he developed a solid business plan for his new tug operation. By 2004, the “new” Norfolk Tug Company employed 20 mariners and operated four rebuilt tugs. In 2005 NTC acquired A1 Towing, Inc. In 2006 Whitmore began a repower program targeting the installation of tier II engines (very efficient and environmentally friendly) for all towing vessels. In December of 2008, he acquired the “64 Express,” a congestion mitigation initiative that transports containers via barge in the James River between Hampton Roads and Richmond. Today, it is the longest running Short Sea Shipping initiative on the East Coast. In 2009, Whitmore formed Milton Point LLC – a property company that owns and operates various waterfront properties in Hampton Roads. In 2011, he formed US Waterways Transportation LLC (USWT LLC), a holding management company for various ventures and the following year USWT LLC acquired Buchanan Marine L.P. (BMLP). Today the marine related companies manage ~100 dry bulk barges, fourteen tugs, a stevedoring business, and numerous water dependant properties. The Company employs about 150 people working on tugs between Houston and the eastern seaboard north to Long Island Sound. NTC and BMLP are positioned as the most environmentally friendly marine operator in their space, owning and operating more tier II equipped 2000 horse power tugs than any other on the east coast.  

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Frank W. Wagner was elected to the State Senate of the Virginia General Assembly during a special election in December 2000, winning nearly 70% of the electoral vote. He currently represents the 7th Senatorial District in Virginia Beach, having won re-election in 2003, 2007 and 2011. Prior to his election to the State Senate, Frank served in the Virginia House of Delegates for over a decade, representing the 21st District in Virginia Beach. 

During his tenure in the House of Delegates, Frank served on several committees including Conservation and Natural Resources, Corporations, Insurance, and Banking, Education, Finance, General Laws, and Militia and Police. Currently, he serves on, Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services; Commerce and Labor; Finance and Transportation Committees. He is on four Finance Subcommittees: Claims; Health & Human Resources; Public Safety; and Transportation. He sits on the Commerce and Labor Subcommittee on Worker’s Compensation.

He served on the Governor’s Commission on Climate Change, the Governor’s Economic Development and Jobs Creation Commission and the Virginia Attorney General’s Regulatory Reform Task Force. Frank also serves as the Chairman of The Joint Commission on Administrative Rules, Chairman of the Virginia Manufacturing Development Commission and is a member of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay Commission; Coal and Energy Commission; Frontier Culture Museum of Virginia, Board of Trustees; the Federal Action Contingency Trust (FACT) Fund Approval Advisory Commission; the Hampton Roads Transit District Commission, the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization Board; the Health Insurance Reform Commission; Joint Commission on Transportation Accountability; the Mariners’ Museum, Board of Trustees; and the Unemployment Compensation Commission. His most recent appointments include 3 subcommittees of the Joint Commission on Transportation Accountability (JCTA). He is chairman of the Vehicle Subcommittee of the JCTA and sits on the Tolling Subcommittee as well as the Technology Subcommittee of the JCTA.

Frank is perhaps best known for his visionary Virginia Energy Plan, legislation that passed in the 2006 Virginia General Assembly session. This legislation directs the Commonwealth to create a comprehensive plan for the development of energy resources, including clean coal, oil, natural gas, wind, solar, tide, current, geothermal, nuclear, alternative fuels coupled with conservation and energy efficiency measures. The ultimate goal of the plan is to achieve energy independence in an environmentally safe and responsible manner. He has spoken at a variety of energy conferences and meetings in Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey, Texas, Louisiana, Kentucky, California, Washington, Washington, D.C., Nova Scotia, Canada and Oslo, Norway and has testified before Congress on energy matters.

More recently, he has become a key figure in Transportation. He was the driving force on the comprehensive Transportation Plan during the 2013 General Assembly Session. As a Conferee on HB2313 (The Transportation Plan), Frank’s tireless efforts in finding compromise and working together with others, made it possible for the first major transportation plan to pass the Legislature in almost 30 years.

The American Council of Young Political Leaders selected Frank as an “Outstanding Young Legislator” in 1995. In 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 he received the Virginia Manufacturers Association’s “Industrial Strength Leadership Award”, given to one Delegate and one Senator each year to recognize outstanding leadership on key industry issues during the Virginia General Assembly session. In October 2009, Frank received the Virginia Retail Merchants Association’s Legislator of the Year award. In May 2012, he received the Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s (VCC) Legislator of the Year award. In May 2013, he received the VCC’s Economic Competitiveness Award. Most recently, in April 2014, the Hampton Roads Global Commerce Council awarded him the 2013 Commerce Builders Award and in May the VCC awarded him the Military and Veterans Affairs Advocate Award as well as the Champion of Free Enterprise Award.

Frank Wagner is a 1977 U.S. Naval Academy graduate, receiving a B.S. in Ocean Engineering. He served in the United States Navy as a diving and engineering officer. After his service in the Navy, Frank went into business with his father and started a ship repair firm, Earl Industries, in Portsmouth, Virginia. 
Today, he is the President of Davis Boat Works, Inc., one of Virginia’s premier small boat repair firms, located in Newport News, Virginia. 

In his spare time, Frank enjoys golf, diving, camping, theater and playing the piano.

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Keith VanderVennet is responsible for developing Ferguson’s sales strategy and talented group of sales associates, while building upon the company’s foundation of world-class customer service.

VanderVennet grew up in Newport News, spending many days at The Mariners’ Museum and in the Park. He attended Hampton Roads Academy, Hampden-Sydney College and Harvard Business School and has been with Ferguson since 1987. VanderVennet had prior roles in Baltimore, Orlando, Atlanta, Memphis, Newport News and most recently Toronto. He currently serves on the boards of Hampton Roads Academy and Habitat for Humanity.

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Mr. Sullivan was elected to the Board of Trustees in December of 2009. He serves on the Finance & Pension and the Collections, Library & Program Committees. Mr. Sullivan served as President & CEO of The Mariners’ Museum from November of 2006 to November of 2009. Prior to The Museum Mr. Sullivan came to the College of William and Mary as a freshman in 1962. He left four years later with a bachelor’s degree in government, a Phi Beta Kappa key and membership in Omicron Delta Kappa. He became the 25th President of the College of William and Mary in 1992. He became President Emeritus in 2005.

After receiving a law degree from Harvard University in 1969, Sullivan went on to serve in the Army Signal Corps in Vietnam, where he received the Army Commendation Medal, First Oak Leaf Cluster Bronze Star, and the Vietnam Campaign Medal with three battle stars.

In 1981 and 1982, he was a visiting law professor at the University of Virginia School of Law. He served for nearly three years as executive assistant for policy for then-Governor Charles S. Robb. Sullivan returned to Marshall-Wythe in 1984, as the John Stewart Bryan Professor of Jurisprudence. He became dean of the law school in July 1985. He is a member of the Virginia State Bar and the Ohio State Bar, a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and the Virginia Bar Foundation.

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Teresa A. Sullivan was elected eighth President of the University, effective Aug. 1, 2010. Before coming to UVA, President Sullivan was the Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Michigan. She was also Professor of Sociology in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Prior to coming to the University of Michigan, Ms. Sullivan was Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for the University of Texas System, a position she held from 2002 until May 2006. In that role, she was the chief academic officer for the nine academic campuses within the University of Texas System. Her responsibilities included developing tuition-setting procedures, initiating and supporting educational and research collaborations among the various campuses, and developing external collaborations. Ms. Sullivan first joined the University of Texas at Austin in 1975 as an instructor and then assistant professor in the Department of Sociology. From 1977-81, she was a faculty member at the University of Chicago. Ms. Sullivan returned to Texas in 1981 as a faculty member in Sociology. In 1986 she was named to the Law School faculty as well. Ms. Sullivan also held several administrative positions at Texas including: Vice President and Graduate Dean (1995-2002), Vice Provost (1994-95), Chair of the Department of Sociology (1990-92), and Director of Women’s Studies (1985-87). Ms. Sullivan’s research focuses on labor force demography, with particular emphasis on economic marginality and consumer debt. The author or co-author of six books and more than 50 scholarly articles, her most recent work explores the question of who files for bankruptcy and why. Ms. Sullivan has served as chair of the U.S. Census Advisory Committee. She is past secretary of the American Sociological Association and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. A graduate of James Madison College at Michigan State University, Ms. Sullivan received her doctoral degree in sociology from the University of Chicago.

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Mr. Sheild has practiced law with Jones, Blechman, Woltz & Kelly, P.C., since 1969. He previously served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Peninsula Region Bank Board for RBC Centura Bank from 1999 to 2003, and was a member of the Board of Directors of First Coastal Bank from 1997 to 1999, before it was acquired by Centura Bank. Mr. Sheild was formerly Chairman of Christopher Newport University School of Business Board of Directors.

Mr. Sheild has been active in many community organizations, and has been Chairman of the following Boards on the Virginia Peninsula, to include The United Way of the Virginia Peninsula, The United Way-Campaign of the Virginia Peninsula, the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, Virginia International Terminals, Inc., Riverside Behavioral Center Hospital, Peninsula Family Services/Travelers Aid, Virginia Living Museum, and WHRO Public Broadcasting Foundation.

He also has served on Boards for the two schools he attended, Virginia Episcopal School and Washington and Lee University. He received the award as the “Distinguished Citizen for the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce” for the year 2000, the NCCJ Humanitarian Award in 2004, the Colonial Virginia Council Boy Scouts of America 2013 Citizenship Award, and the 2014 Distinguished Alumnus Award from Washington & Lee University.

Currently he is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Virginia Company Bank and Riverside Behavioral Center Hospital.

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Matt Mulherin is corporate vice president of Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) and president of Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) in Newport News, Va. Named to this position in 2011, he is responsible for all Newport News Shipbuilding engineering, operations and programs, to include the most complex ships in the world: nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines. Newport News Shipbuilding has approximately $4 billion in revenues and more than 23,700 employees. 

Mulherin also has responsibility for Continental Maritime, a San Diego shipyard that services and supports U.S. Navy ships on the West Coast; AMSEC, a full-service provider of engineering, logistics and technical support services to the U.S. Navy; and The S. M. Stoller Corporation, a provider of technical, ecological, waste management, remediation and consulting services within the Department of Energy arena. 

Before being named president of NNS, Mulherin served as vice president and general manager of site operations at Newport News as part of Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. His responsibilities included programs for the company’s Newport News operations, where he successfully led the sector’s aircraft carrier design and construction programs, carrier refueling and overhaul programs, and the submarine program. 

He earned a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Virginia Tech in 1981 and began his career at Newport News the same year as a nuclear test engineer. Since then, he has held increasingly responsible positions, including nuclear project manager for Los Angeles-class submarines, director of facilities, director of nuclear engineering and refueling, and director of carrier refueling and overhaul construction. He also served as director and vice president for the next generation of aircraft carriers, the Gerald R. Ford class, and vice president of all programs to include shipbuilding and repair, Department of Energy and commercial energy. 

Mulherin serves on the board of directors for the Shipbuilders Council of America and the Naval Submarine League. He also serves on the board of trustees for The Mariners’ Museum, is a committee member of Greater Peninsula NOW, is a member of the Hampton Roads Business Roundtable, and a member of the Peninsula TowneBank Board. In 2013, Mulherin was appointed by the governor to serve on the board of directors for the Virginia Nuclear Energy Consortium Authority. 

Huntington Ingalls Industries designs, builds and maintains nuclear and non-nuclear ships for the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard and provides after-market services for military ships around the globe. For more than a century, HII has built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. Employing nearly 38,000 in Virginia, Mississippi, Louisiana and California, its primary business divisions are Newport News Shipbuilding and Ingalls Shipbuilding. For more information, please visit www.huntingtoningalls.com.

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Mr. Morris currently serves as the Vice President for Operations & Engineering for Smithfield Foods. He and his wife have visited the museum, they live in Riverside and are very eager to engage and be involved with The Mariners’ Museum.

Mr. Morris is a graduate from Texas A&M University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He has served the meat industry for 43 years, as Plant Engineer with Owens Country Sausage, Vice President Engineering for Smithfield Packing and Vice President Operations for Smithfield and Gwaltney during his first 17 year tenure at Smithfield Foods. He rejoined Smithfield Foods in 2004 after nine years with ConAgra Foods where he was the Senior Vice President of Manufacturing for the Processed Meats Group. His current responsibilities include Operations and Engineering oversight for Global Smithfield, including all plant operations worldwide.

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Mr. Lawson began his career with W. M. Jordan Company as a Field Engineer in 1975 after graduating from Virginia Tech with a BS in Geophysics. Under his leadership, W.M. Jordan Company has become one of the largest Construction Managers in Virginia, with annual revenues of $500 million dollars and a ranking in Engineering News Record’s Top 400 Contractors in the United States for the past 29 years.

He is married to Paige and resides in Newport News with his 19 year old son, Taylor; 18 year old daughter, Tess; and 15 year old son, Jack. In his leisure time, he enjoys boating, college football, golfing, skiing, art and history.

Mr. Lawson is the Chairman for Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters, Fort Monroe Authority, Christopher Newport University’s $42 million Comprehensive Campaign, and the Virginia Kappa Alumni Corporation, Virginia Tech Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon. He currently serves on the board of TowneBank, Myers-Lawson School of Construction at Virginia Tech, CEO Roundtable, and the Virginia Tech Foundation. He is the Past Rector of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors, Past Chairman of the Mariners’ Museum, Virginia Economic Development Council and was Co-Chair for the Virginia Tech $1 Billion Comprehensive Campaign.

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Ms. Hunnicutt has been a member of the board since December of 2006. She has served as Chairman of the Facility, Park & Lake, Executive, Marketing & Development, and Finance & Pension Committees.

In addition to volunteering for The Mariners’ Museum Ms. Hunnicutt has also served on the boards of the Salvation Army, Virginia Air & Space Museum Foundation, Christopher Newport University Board of Visitors and School of Business, Board Member; Virginia Peninsula Rotary Member and Past President; and Ohio State University Presidents Club.

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Mr. Heidt has 40 years of experience in international trade, manufacturing and distribution. He joined The Penrod Company as a log buyer in 1969 and managed various positions until becoming president in 1983. He rose to Chairman and CEO in 1999. Over the course of his career, Heidt has overseen the company’s expansion into international markets as well as the development of innovative products, helping establish Penrod as a global competitor in the forest, metal and PVC products industry. Penrod has company locations in North America, Asia, Europe, Latin America and Africa.

Professionally, Heidt has served as Chairman of the Hardwood Plywood & Veneer Association, and holds membership in an array of professional associations. He also served on the US Department of Commerce Industrial Trade Advisory Committee and the board of Media5 in Sherbrooke, Canada. He serves as Chairman of The PENROD Company and its subsidiaries.

As a volunteer interested in global health, Heidt currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters. He sits on the Governing Board of the International Federation of Red Cross (in Geneva) representing the United States and the American Red Cross. He is Chair of the Intemational Movement Advisory Council. He also serves on the University of North Carolina Board of Visitors. Past assignments include National Vice Chairman of the American Red Cross, Chairman of Physicians for Peace, Chairman of the Children’s Health Foundation and various senior Red Cross volunteer positions leading groups with oversight on disaster and biomedical operations.

Heidt’s professional and personal endeavors have taken him all over the world. He holds a BA degree from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill and has three children and four grandchildren.

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Dr. Harden has been a member of the board since December of 2006. She has served on the Collections, Library & Program, Library Publications and Archives, Marketing & Development and the Facility, Park & Lake Committees. Dr. Harden is a graduate of Duke University Medical School. She has been in practice on the peninsula since 1991. In addition to being a senior partner with Virginia Oncology Associates and specialize in the treatment of blood and cancer disorders she is board certified in hematology and oncology. Dr. Harden practices primarily in Newport News.

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John Casteen served as president of the University of Virginia 1990-2010. The initiatives of these years included major institutional planning programs (Virginia 2020 and others); increases in the numbers of students and faculty members; construction of new buildings in Charlottesville, Wise, and elsewhere; expansion of international programs for research and for learning; increases in the University’s endowments and other non-state funds; and significant growth in the University’s stature. In this period, also, the University was recognized for its leadership in educating minority students, for its equity programs generally, for the quality of its undergraduate teaching and programs of financial aid for students with need, and for its success in refinancing itself following historic reductions in state tax support at the beginning of the decade.

After teaching English at the University of California (Berkeley) and the University of Virginia, and service as UVA’s Admissions Dean, Mr. Casteen became Virginia’s Secretary of Education in 1982. He served until 1985. While secretary, he directed reforms in both secondary and higher education, revamped Virginia’s college desegregation efforts, and initiated programs of state support for research. From 1985 to 1990, he was president of the University of Connecticut.

Mr. Casteen has been a director of the American Council on Education, a director of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, trustee and chair of the College Entrance Examination Board, commissioner of the Education Commission of the States, member of the Board of Control for the Southern Regional Education Board, commissioner of the New England Board of Higher Education, and chair of the Association of Governing Board’s council of presidents. From 1991 to 1993, he chaired the National Board on Oceans and Atmosphere.

In 1997, Mr. Casteen completed a term as chair of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) as well as a term as president of SACS. In 2000-2002, he chaired the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). He chaired the Association of American Universities (AAU). He is currently serving on AGB’s National Commission on College and University Board Governance and the Academy of Arts and Science’s Lincoln Project: Excellence and Access in Public Higher Education.

Mr. Casteen’s business career has included service on corporate boards including the Wachovia Corporation, Strayer, the Altria Group, Sage Publications and Echo360. He serves as a Director of the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education, The Mariner’s Museum, Virginia Intermont College, the Leifur Eiríksson Foundation and the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia. He served as chair of Universitas 21 and was a member of the Board of Directors of U21 Global Pte Ltd. From 2005-2013, he was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

Mr. Casteen was named the Outstanding Virginian of 1993. The state conference of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) presented its Jackson Davis Award to him in December 1993. In February 1996, he received the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa from the University of Athens (the National and Kapodistrian University). In 1998, he was named the University of Virginia’s outstanding alumnus of the year. In December 1998, he received the Gold Medal of the National Institute of Social Sciences. In November 2002, Mr. Casteen was selected as the inaugural recipient of the Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention’s Presidents Leadership Group Award. The Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects awarded him its Architecture Medal for Virginia Service in 2004. He is a Fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Mr. Casteen recently received the University of Virginia’s Thomas Jefferson Award, the Charlottesville Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Paul Goodloe McIntire Citizenship Award, and the 2010 Virginia Press Association Virginian of the Year award. In July 2011, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. In March 2013, he received the John Hope Franklin Award from Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. In 2014, he received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Celebration Award. 

A collection of his short stories received the 1987 Mishima Award for fiction. His current writing has had to do with public policy issues affecting universities and colleges.

Mr. Casteen is a University Professor. His current courses include intellectual history courses on Venice, a multiyear series of graduate seminars on governance of colleges and universities, and introductory courses in Old English and Old Icelandic literature.

Mr. Casteen holds three degrees in English from the University of Virginia (B.A., high honors, 1965, M.A., 1966, Ph.D., 1970.) His wife is Betsy Foote Casteen. They have five (5) children and four (4) grandchildren.

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Charles Cabell is a partner in the Real Estate Section at Williams Mullen, where he concentrates his practice in commercial real estate.  His experience includes the acquisition, development, zoning, financing and leasing of commercial property with an emphasis on mixed use projects containing office, light industry uses, residential units and retail shopping centers.  His business background facilitates his practice in construction finance and loan workouts for the lenders and borrowers.



Education

College of William & Mary, J.D. – 1977

Hampden-Sydney College, B.A. – 1974



Professional Affiliations

American Bar Association, Real Property and Business Law Sections

Richmond Bar Association, Real Property Section

Virginia State Bar 


Community Involvement

Brookfield Home for Girls, Board Member and Treasurer

The Cabell Foundation, Board Member and President

Ducks Unlimited, Board Member

Hampden-Sydney College, Board Member

Riverside on the James Condominium Association, Board Member and Counsel 

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John F. Biagas started his career as an electrician trainee about the same time he started elementary school. The youngest of 14 children, John joined his brothers and sisters working in the family’s business, Biagas & Sons’ Electric, owned and operated by his father, Alvin Biagas, Sr. After studying business management and accounting and playing on the college baseball team at McNeese State University, he joined three of his older brothers in Maryland. There they formed their own Electrical and General Contracting business, AVA Electric. At AVA, he not only fine tuned his skills as an electrician, but he also learned to manage a fast-paced contracting company. In 1997, John purchased Bay Electric Co., Inc. and moved his family to Newport News, Virginia, home of Bay Electric.

As a compliment to Bay’s humble beginnings, John remains a very strong advocate of the Small, Women & Minority Owned business program. Bay Electric continues to demonstrate support by providing an amplitude of subcontracting opportunities to fully qualified small businesses in all categories. Additionally, Bay Electric extends mentorship programs and sponsors events and conferences that open a plethora of varied opportunities to Small, Small Disadvantaged, Women-Owned, HUBZone, Service Disabled Veteran Owned, and Veteran Owned business concerns.

Currently, John serves on numerous boards both local and statewide such as An Achievable Dream, Boys and Girls Club, Virginia Apprenticeship Council and the York Foundation for Public Education. John is a founding Member/Board Director of Virginia Company Bank and the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) Virginia Chapter, and serves on the Board of Visitors for Old Dominion University.

John lives in Yorktown, Virginia, with his wife Tricia and their two daughters.

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John F. Biagas started his career as an electrician trainee about the same time he started elementary school. The youngest of 14 children, John joined his brothers and sisters working in the family’s business, Biagas & Sons’ Electric, owned and operated by his father, Alvin Biagas, Sr. After studying business management and accounting and playing on the college baseball team at McNeese State University, he joined three of his older brothers in Maryland. There they formed their own Electrical and General Contracting business, AVA Electric. At AVA, he not only fine tuned his skills as an electrician, but he also learned to manage a fast-paced contracting company. In 1997, John purchased Bay Electric Co., Inc. and moved his family to Newport News, Virginia, home of Bay Electric.

As a compliment to Bay’s humble beginnings, John remains a very strong advocate of the Small, Women & Minority Owned business program. Bay Electric continues to demonstrate support by providing an amplitude of subcontracting opportunities to fully qualified small businesses in all categories. Additionally, Bay Electric extends mentorship programs and sponsors events and conferences that open a plethora of varied opportunities to Small, Small Disadvantaged, Women-Owned, HUBZone, Service Disabled Veteran Owned, and Veteran Owned business concerns.

Currently, John serves on numerous boards both local and statewide such as An Achievable Dream, Boys and Girls Club, Virginia Apprenticeship Council and the York Foundation for Public Education. John is a founding Member/Board Director of Virginia Company Bank and the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) Virginia Chapter, and serves on the Board of Visitors for Old Dominion University.

John lives in Yorktown, Virginia, with his wife Tricia and their two daughters.

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After attending Chowan College, Mr. Bayne went to work for Credit Control Corporation. Since 1983 he has served as President/CEO of Credit Control Corporation which is located in Newport News, Virginia. Credit Control Corporation provides healthcare clients on a regional basis and telecommunication clients nationally with a host of receivable management services. His primary responsibilities include overall operations and planned growth of Credit Control Corporation into new markets. Professional Associations: Healthcare Financial Managers Association American Collectors Association Boys and Girls Club Virginia Peninsula Foundation Board Member Virginia Collectors Association Board Member Past Board Member State Fair of Virginia and SouthTrust Bank Mr. Bayne currently resides in Poquoson with his daughter Hunter Elizabeth an upcoming freshman at Virginia Tech and daughter Jessica Michelle a second year kindergarten teacher in Newport News. He enjoy sport fishing up and down the east coast on his boat and spending time at his farm house in Charles City.

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Mr. Host has been on the board since January of 2008. During that time he has served on several board committees and accepted the position of Board Chair in January 2014.

Mr. Host is a Newport News native. He graduated from Hampton Roads Academy, and Hampden Sydney College. Mr. Host has been with T. Parker Host, Inc. since 1977 serving in the following capacities: President and CEO (2002 – Present); Executive Vice President (1993-2002); Assistant Vice President Operations (1982-1993); Export Manager (1979-1982); Agent (1977-1979) and in 2011 he became Chairman and CEO.

Mr. Wornom was elected to the Board in January of 2008. He has served on the Executive, Collections, Library & Program, Marketing & Development, and the Ad Hoc Land Committees. Mr. Wornom is the President of the Abbitt Group, LLC. and its subsidiaries. The Abbitt organization has significant involvement in Real Estate Brokerage, Land Development, Real Estate Investment Acquisitions, and Property Management. Abbitt Management, Inc. is a multi-state operation.

He graduated from Randolph Macon College in 1964. Upon leaving Randolph Macon, Charles worked as a chemist for the State Department of Agriculture in Richmond for two years. He then joined the United States Air Force and went through the Officer’s Training Program. He served four years and was discharged with the rank of Captain. After leaving the Air Force, he attended The College of William & Mary and obtained his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree. Upon completing this program, he joined the Abbitt Organization.

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A native of Norfolk, Virginia, Mr. Hall joined Landmark Communications, Inc. in September 1970 after having worked for the company as a summer intern in 1969. He began in broadcasting at WTAR-TV and Radio, then joined the Landmark corporate staff in 1971 as financial analyst, was promoted to director of management information in 1973 and was named treasurer in 1975.

In 1977, Mr. Hall joined The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star division of Landmark as vice president and business manager, and later became vice president/circulation director. He then was appointed vice president for operations. In 1981 he rejoined the Landmark corporate staff as vice president/human resources and was named executive vice president and chief financial officer in 1985. In 1989 he was named president of the newly formed Landmark Target Media, Inc.

On April 1, 1991, he became president and chief executive officer of Trader Publishing Company. On September 10, 2006, he became President and Chief Executive Officer of Dominion Enterprises, a new company formed from a reorganization of Trader.

Mr. Hall currently serves on the Board of Directors of Landmark Communications, Inc., ACCESS where he serves as secretary and treasurer, The Greater Norfolk Corporation, The Norfolk Academy, and the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters. He is a past president of the VMI Foundation, Inc. where he continues to serve as a Trustee and chairman of the VMI Investment Committee.

Hall’s education includes a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the Virginia Military Institute and a Master of Business Administration from the Darden School of the University of Virginia. He served as an artillery officer in the United States Army from 1966 to 1968.

Mr. Conrad Hall was appointed to Old Dominion University’s Board of Visitors on July 1, 2003, and was reappointed to a second four-year term on July 1, 2007. He currently serves as Chair of the Administration & Finance Committee and as a member of the Audit, Institutional Advancement, and Executive Committees.

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Captain Steven Barnum retired as the Director of NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey, where he served as the nation’s chief hydrographer, responsible for overseeing NOAA’s hydrographic services, including the mapping and charting of all United States navigational waters. Barnum began his career with NOAA, in 1980 and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Louisiana Tech University, a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from University of Maryland, and a Master of Science degree in software engineering from Johns Hopkins University. Barnum has received numerous awards which include two US Department of Commerce silver medals, the NOAA Corps commendation medal, the US Coast Guard achievement medal, and several NOAA sustained superior achievement medals. 

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