Organization welcomes seven new board members
FORT WORTH (July 6, 2021) –United Way of Tarrant County today announced Melinda M. Johnston as the new Chair of the Board of Directors. She succeeds James Powell, who now serves as the Immediate Past Chair of the Board. In addition, seven individuals were named as new members of the Board of Directors.
“As we move toward our centennial year in 2022, we are excited to welcome our new board members and work with Melinda as we move forward and continue to serve the community,” said Leah King, president and CEO of United Way of Tarrant County. “Our board members are dedicated and passionate about Tarrant County and provide United Way with great leadership and guidance.”
Melinda M. Johnston
Senior Financial Advisor
M2J Wealth Management at Merrill Lynch
Melinda M. Johnston is Senior Financial Advisor for M2J Wealth Management Group at Merrill Lynch. A distinguished community volunteer, Johnston served as chair of the United Way Steering Committee for Women United and as a member of the board of directors and chair of the Heart Ball for the American Heart Association. She has also been recognized as a member of the Circle of Champions at Merrill Lynch. Johnston also will serve on the Executive Committee of the United Way of Tarrant County Board of Directors.
We are proud to welcome the following new board members to their first year of service:
Tara L. Hogan
General Manager
Union Pacific Railroad
Tara Hogan is the General Manager of the Texoma Service Unit, leading a staff of 1,700, located in Fort Worth, Texas. The Texoma Service Unit expands over 2,300 miles, including areas in Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma and New Mexico. Hogan’s team is responsible for servicing over 460 customers of Union Pacific and the No. 1 interchange location to Mexico in El Paso. Tara serves on the Diversity and Inclusion Council, along with four employee resource groups at Union Pacific.
Bal Joshi
Senior Vice President
Hancock Whitney Bank
Bal Joshi is a Senior Vice President at Hancock Whitney Bank. Joshi is a multi-award winner, offering a 12-year track record of consistent top performance in challenging roles with several of America’s largest financial institutions. He is an industry thought leader and top-performing professional with extensive experience in servicing financial needs and management of banking relationships for mid-size and large corporations. Joshi achieved a certificate from Moody’s Analytics in commercial credit.
Chandler Merritt
Assistant County Administrator
Tarrant County, Texas
Chandler Merritt serves as an Assistant County Administrator for Tarrant County, the 3rd largest County in Texas. Merritt assists the County Administrator with developing, planning and implementing policies, goals and objectives of the County as well as representing the County and the County Administrator to County management staff, elected officials and outside agencies.
Jeff Postell
Founder, Post L Group, LLC and Chairman
DFW Chapter National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC)
Jeff Postell, Founder of Post L Group, LLC and Chairman of the DFW Chapter National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC), has worked in the construction sector since 1998. He entered the industry as an assistant superintendent, moving forward as a general superintendent, assistant project manager and project manager throughout his 23-year career. His project portfolio includes healthcare, municipal, correctional, retail, heavy highway (vertical), education and hospitality.
Kellie Richter
EVP, Chief Marketing and Client Experience Officer
First Command Financial Services, Inc.
Kellie Richter joined First Command Financial Services, Inc. in 2016 as the Chief Marketing Officer, bringing over 25 years of industry experience. As Chief Marketing and Client Experience Officer, Kellie is responsible for leading the strategic direction of the company’s marketing efforts to drive growth across all platforms, including brand development and communications, market awareness and designing new programs and systems to improve the client experience, deliver client value creation and increase client satisfaction and retention.
Kenneth Washington
Engineer II
Atmos Energy
Ken Washington is an Engineer II with ATMOS Energy. He has over 27 years of experience as a project manager and leader. With a passion for helping and serving the communities we live in, he specializes in creating innovative outcomes-based projects that provide developers the options of expanding assets and providing new homeowners gas service. Previous positions include Project Manager, Project Specialist and GIS Operator II.
Corey Wilson
Chief Operating Officer
Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth
Corey Wilson is Chief Operating Officer at Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth. Prior to joining Texas Health, he was Vice President, Ancillary & Support Services, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals in Oakland, CA, where he was responsible for the operational, financial and strategic activities for the hospitals’ ancillary services departments and the hospitals’ support services departments, comprising 246 full-time employees.
Dedicated members joining the Board of Directors for a second term include:
• Brian Coltharp, P.E., President and CEO, Freese and Nichols
• Melinda M. Johnston, Senior Financial Advisor, M2J Wealth Management at Merrill Lynch
• Carlo Capua, President, The Meeting Squad
• Dr. Pat Linares, Former Interim Superintendent, Fort Worth and Crowley ISDs, and Education Consultant
Members of the current Executive Committee and Board of Directors are:
Executive Committee
• Board Chair: Melinda M. Johnston, Senior Financial Advisor, M2J Wealth Management at Merrill Lynch
• Immediate Past Board Chair: James Powell, Assistant General Counsel, North Central Texas Council of Governments
• Chair of Compensation and Benefits Committee: Jill Lyttle, Executive Vice President of Human Resources and Leadership Development, First Command Financial Services, Inc.
• Chair of Governance Committee: Justin R. Chapa, Of Counsel, Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP
• Chair of the Audit & Finance Committee and Compliance Officer and Treasurer: Josh McNamara, CPA, CVA, Partner, Hartman Wanzor LLP
• Chair, Investment Committee: Josh McNamara, CPA, CVA, Partner, Hartman Wanzor LLP
• Chair, Strategic Planning Committee: Cheryl Mobley, CEO, reCalibrate LLC
• Chair, Diversity Committee: Carlo Capua, President, The Meeting Squad
• Chair, Community Investment Committee: Kristy Odom, Community Volunteer
• Co-Chair Annual Campaign: Hadley Woerner, President, Tarrant Region Frost Bank, and
• Co-Chair Annual Campaign: Brian Coltharp, P.E., President and CEO, Freese and Nichols
• Non-Voting Member: Leah M. King, President and CEO, United Way of Tarrant County
• Non-Voting Member: Beverly Boyd, Corporate Secretary, United Way of Tarrant County
Directors
• Dr. Keon Anderson, Dentist, JPS Correction Center
• Stevan (Steve) B. Bobb, EVP and Chief Marketing Officer, BNSF Railway Company
• Sean Donohue, Chief Executive Officer, DFW International Airport
• John A. Flack, Partner, KPMG, LLP
• Dalton (DJ) Harrell, Director of Development Services, City of Fort Worth
• Tara L. Hogan, General Manager, Union Pacific Railroad Texoma Service Unit
• Jarrett (Jay) Jackson, Precinct Administrator, The Office of Commissioner Devan Allen
• Bal Joshi, Senior Vice President at Hancock Whitney Bank
• Dr. Pat Linares, Former Interim Superintendent, Fort Worth and Crowley ISDs, and Education Consultant
• Chandler Merritt, Assistant County Administrator, Tarrant County
• Allison Mullis, Executive Vice President, Human Resources, Bell Helicopter
• Martin Noto, Executive Vice President & Chief Lending Officer, Inwood National Bank Fort Worth
• Brian D. O’Neill, Principal, Pacheco Koch
• H. Richard Payne, Partner, EY Assurance Services
• Jeffery Postell, President, Post L Group
• Kellie Richter, Executive Vice President, Chief Marketing and Client Experience Officer, First Command Financial Services Inc.
• James Sharp, AICP, LEED Green Associate, VLK Architects
• Dr. Abbie Shipp, Professor of Management & Leadership Dept, TCU Neeley School of Business
• Tom Stallings, Founder, Firm Strategist, Mosaic Strategy Partners
• Gloria Starling, Managing Partner, The Capital Grille Fort Worth
• Kenneth Washington, Engineer II, Atmos Energy Corporation Mid-Tex Division
• Jeff Whitfield, Partner, Kelly Hart
• Jennifer Wichmann, Deputy City Manager Shared Services, City of Arlington, Arlington City Manager’s Office
• Barbara M. Williams, Capital Partner, Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson
• Corey Wilson, Chief Operating Officer, Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth
Ex-Officio Voting Directors
• Chair, Area Agency on Aging Advisory Council: Tito Rodriguez, retired Deputy Mayor Pro-Tem, City of North Richland Hills
• Chair, Arlington Steering Committee: Michael “J. G.” McLaughlin, Director of Development, College of Engineering, University of Texas at Arlington
• Chair, NE Steering Committee: Adrianna Watson, Community Volunteer
• Chair, Women United: Cathy David, Chief Merchandising Officer, Cost Plus World Market
• Brian Golden, President, Tarrant County Central Labor Council
Rolling off the Board:
• Earnest Boone, Secretary/Treasurer, District Lodge 776, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
• Joseph DeLeon, President, Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth
• Shannon Fletcher, Chief of Staff, Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office
• Scott Hickson, Partner, EY Fort Worth
• Dr. Melody Johnson, Scholar in Residence, Texas Christian University
• Daniel Torres, General Superintendent, Texoma Service Unit, Union Pacific Railroad
• Darwin Winfield, Manager of Public Affairs, Atmos Energy
• Co-Chair, Women United: Susan K. Medina, Principal, SKM Communication Strategies, LLC
• Co-Chair, Women United: Brooke Goggans, Mosaic Strategy Partners
• Chair, NE Steering Committee: Kristin James, Assistant Director of Neighborhood Services, North Richland Hills
• Chair, Arlington Steering Committee: Patra Stroemer, Retired Engineer, Lockheed Martin
About United Way of Tarrant County
United Way of Tarrant County has worked to improve the lives of those in our communities since 1922. As a nonprofit leader, we bring together individuals, groups, donors and service providers to help solve some of the toughest social issues affecting Tarrant County. Each year, United Way of Tarrant County helps more than 550,000 people through its resources. United Way of Tarrant County has no fees on donor designations, with 100 percent of the donations going to the selected agency or cause.
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