Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Coastal Empire

Our Board of Directors

	Dr. Malik Watkins – Board Chair Carl Vinson Institute of Government University of Georgia Dr. Watkins provides technical assistance and applied research for a wide variety of constituents. He manages the Public Policy Notes series, which provides independent and objective analysis in a wide range of policy arenas. Watkins’s primary focus is on planning, program/policy evaluation and analysis, program development, affordable housing, operational audits and project management. He currently serves as an academic advisor to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, and chair of the Historic District Review Board (city of Savannah), along with volunteering on several other local boards and committees. Dr. Watkins earned a Ph.D. in City & Regional Planning from The Ohio State University and his M.B.A. from the University of Notre Dame. He is a graduate of the Paul Coverdell Leadership Institute.

	Otis Brock – Board Vice Chair Operations Officer - Savannah-Chatham County Public School System Otis Brock is a native of Savannah and a graduate of the Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools and Savannah State University. An active member of the Savannah community, Otis has been involved with many community organizations such as the 100 Black Men of Savannah, Boys and Girls Club of Savannah, West Broad Street YMCA, Step Up Poverty Initiative and Rotary International. As the Chief Operations Officer for Savannah-Chatham County Public Schools, Otis is committed to making Savannah-Chatham County a great community to live in.

	Susan Hancock – Board Secretary Abshire Public Relations Susan is a graduate of Georgia Southern University with a degree in Public Relations. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for Savannah Christian Preparatory School, the Advisory Board for Armstrong Atlantic State University’s Emerging Leader Program, the Historic Savannah Foundation board, and a graduate and past Board Member of both Leadership Georgia and Leadership Savannah. She is a member of the Junior League of Savannah and a member of Wilmington Island United Methodist Church, where she serves as Chair of the Communications Committee and teaches children’s Sunday School. Susan and her husband, William, are the parents of three teenage daughters-Taylor, Leigh and Spencer.

	Kay Ford – Board Treasurer President, SunTrust Bank Savannah A 35-year SunTrust veteran, Mrs. Ford most recently served as senior vice president and Wealth Services manager for SunTrust Bank, Georgia. Prior to being named to that position in 2005, she held numerous senior level positions within Retail Banking and Private Wealth Management. Mrs. Ford currently serves on the board of directors of the United Way, the Memorial Hospital Health Foundation, the Memorial University Medical Center, the Savannah Fund for Excellence in Education and the St. Mary’s Home, in which she is also the Finance chairperson. She is a graduate of the 1990 class of Leadership Savannah, and the 1997 class of Leadership Georgia.

	Tom Barton Editorial Page Editor, Savannah Morning News Tom Barton is the editorial page editor of the Savannah Morning News, a position he has held since 1993. He has worked at the newspaper since he graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism in 1978. He is a former editorial writer, government reporter, police reporter, and health and medical reporter. He has won numerous awards for reporting, opinion writing and column writing from various journalism organizations, including the Georgia Press Association and Georgia Associated Press. He is a native of Ohio and has two grown children. He serves on the boards of the Salvation Army and Second Harvest Food Bank.

	Bill Cathcart General Manager – WTOC A native of Rochester, New York, Bill Cathcart has been in Savannah with WTOC-TV for twenty-three years, the last eighteen as the station’s Vice President & General Manager. He received his undergraduate degree from Hope College in Holland, Michigan, his Master’s and Ph.D. degrees from The Ohio State University, and he then spent ten years as a college professor at Western Illinois University. Bill’s current community involvement includes service on the Armstrong Atlantic State University Foundation Board and the USO/Savannah Board. He is also Chairman of The Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum Board of Trustees, and serves as Honorary Wing Commander of the Georgia Air National Guard’s 165th Airlift Wing. He is a past- Chairman of the Chamber Board, and is currently chair of the Chamber’s Military Affairs Council, as well as a continuing member of the Chamber Board.

	Richard D. Eckburg Retired UPS Executive Dick rose through the ranks of United Parcel Service to become the vice president in charge of public affairs. Since his retirement, Dick has adopted Savannah as his home and engaged in a wide variety of charitable and philanthropic endeavors including The Salvation Army, The Savannah College of Art & Design Visitors’ Board, The Lucas Theater, The Bethesda Home for Boys, The Telfair Museum of Art, The Savannah Music Festival, and St. Paul’s CME Church and School. He also serves on the Board of Trustees of the Media Research Center in Alexandria, VA, and on the Board of Directors of the SunTrust Bank, Savannah. Dick and his wife, Judy are the proud parents of two daughters and four grandchildren.

	Linda Evans Retired School Teacher A retired high school science teacher, Linda moved to Savannah from Michigan in 2001.She is a licensed real estate agent, the curator for a private collection of African American fine art and, along with husband Walter, is involved in a number of historic restoration and redevelopment projects in Savannah. She serves on the boards of several community, civic and charitable organizations. Linda’s personal interests include reading, traveling, sewing, enjoying films and live musical performances, puzzling, cooking, fine dining and friendship-building. Linda understands, from personal experience, the importance of dedicated mentors in a child’s life.

	John Kane Retired Cardinal Health Executive As part of the management team, John help Cardinal Health develop from a regional drug wholesaler with $1.8 billion in revenue to an integrated healthcare provider with over $40 billion in revenues with yearly earnings growth of +20%. John also served as an executive advisor to several venture/equity groups including KBL Healthcare, Wind Point Partners, and Ariel Savannah Angel Partners. He is also very civic-minded having served as the Campaign Chair for the United Way in Columbus, Ohio and as President of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. Since moving to Savannah, he continues his civic involvement serving on the board of directors for the United Way of the Coastal Empire, Bethesda Home for Boys, Savannah Foundation, Skidaway Community Institute, and the State of Georgia’s Department of Human Resources. John is a graduate of West Chester State University in West Chester, Pa. and served in the United States Navy.

	Van R. Johnson, II Vice Chairman, Savannah City Council Van is currently employed by the Chatham County Government as the Employee Services and Training Manager and serves as the Director for the Chatham County Youth Commission and the Savannah Youth Council. He is also active in the community and serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Chatham County Department of Family and Children Services, Chairman of the Board of the Wesley Community Centers, and founding President of the Savannah metropolitan Chapter of the National Forum for Black Public Administrators. He also serves on the boards of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Offices, King-Tisdell Cottage Foundation, and the Goodness and Mercy Foundation. Van is native of Brooklyn, New York and holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees from Savannah State and Georgia Southern Universities.