Board of Directors

Kent Forsgren is the Chief Financial Officer of Spring Communications and Simply Mac. His career includes an extensive background in accounting, budgeting, forecasting, M & A strategy and integration, and financial management.  Most recently, Forsgren served as Chief Financial Officer for a Sorenson Capital portfolio company where he played a key role implementing key bank and board reporting metrics, implementation of aggressive Venture Capital strategies and procedures, and meeting financial growth goals and expectations.

Prior to that, Forsgren was Chief Financial Officer of Forsgren Associates, Inc., a regional consulting engineering and construction management company located in seven Western States; and as Vice President / CFO for Reagan National Advertising. He is also very involved in the local community where he served as a Director and President of the Oakridge Country Club, and as a member and Chairman of the Farmington City Planning Commission. Kent is a CPA and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accounts and the Utah Association of Certified Public Accountants.  Mr. Forsgren received a BS degree in Accounting from Brigham Young University and has been involved in numerous continuing education activities throughout his career.  He also enjoys developing residential real estate in his spare time.  He is married, has four children and enjoys skiing, golfing, and spending time with his family.

Hope has been a member of the Board of Directors since 2008 and currently serves as the Treasurer. Hope is a Vice President at Zions Bank where she has worked since 2000. She has over 20 years of banking experience with 12 years as a Private Banking Officer and in 2010 joined the Commercial Real Estate Group at Zions Bank. Hope has a Commercial Lending Degree from the American Institute of Banking in Salt Lake City, Utah and graduated from Pacific Coast Banking School in Seattle, Washington.

Hope has been active on several civic and charity boards, volunteering with organizations such as the MS Society, Utah Boy’s Ranch, and Ballet West Ambassadors. 

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CEO and President, Innovative Staffing

Michelyn joined the Foundation in 2010. She has been a business owner since the age of 23, working in real estate and the evolving human resource outsourcing industry. Currently, Michelyn manages a portfolio for both commercial and residential private holdings. She is also the CEO and President of Innovative Staffing Inc., a professional employer organization, serving nearly 200 clients, over 3,500 employees and celebrating 10 years in business!

In addition to Michelyn’s achievements, she is the proud mother of three beautiful daughters and married to her best friend.

Chief Executive Officer, Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah        

Before joining the the Make-A-Wish staff Shar served as the Executive Director of the Utah Commission on Volunteers, a Governor-appointed position. She has worked with nonprofit, charitable and community organizations for over 17 years holding management positions with the American Cancer Society, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Children’s Miracle Network. Previously, Shar worked as the Community Affairs Director for ABC4 Television and produced and hosted the community affairs program, Spotlight Utah, on their sister station CW30. She enjoys being actively engaged in the community, has served on numerous national and local boards and volunteer committees, and is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Utah Nonprofits Association. Shar has a post graduate certification in Integrated Marketing Communications from the University of Utah, a Leadership and Management certification from the Nonprofit Academy for Excellence, a Project Management certification from Franklin Covey, and is currently in the Salt Lake Chamber’s Leadership Utah Academy Class of 2012. She has received numerous awards for her work and leadership including a national “Telly Award” for the American Cancer Society’s 60th anniversary video production, Utah Broadcasters Association Silver UBEE Award for Best Volunteer Special, National media awards for both The Susan G. Komen Foundations Race for the Cure and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training, and a national “Climb & Belay Award” for outstanding teamwork from the American Cancer Society. Shar has run five half marathons for charitable causes and went to Kenya on a humanitarian service project with her oldest son. She is the proud mother of three children who remind her daily that life is a gift and every moment a treasure.

VP Sales, Winder Farms                               

Brent Bingham currently serves as Vice President of Sales for Winder Farms. Prior to this position he was the Founder and CEO of Eclipse Marketing for 17 years, taking the company from a start-up in 1991 to a two-time Inc. 500 company. Brent was one of the original founding members of the Utah Chapter of the Young Entrepreneur’s Organization and served as its first president for two years. His specialties are in sales, marketing and new product development with over 20 years of experience leading and directing high performance individuals and teams.  

Brent is married with 4 children and a graduate of Brigham Young University.

David holds a BS in Business Management and an MBA from BYU. He has several years of commercial and investment banking experience and has started several companies. He’s currently working on a new startup and is helping to bring the Utah entrepreneurial community together through facilitating collaboration within the business ecosystem. He is an active volunteer and board member of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Utah and the B. Attitudes Foundation. He is (and will always be) a wish child. As a teenager, he received a wish to meet Dave Matthews of the Dave Matthews Band.

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Director Utah Market, Robert W. Baird & Co.                         

Dean has been a member of the Board of Directors since 2007.  He is the Senior Vice President, Utah Complex Manager at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney. Before the two companies merged he worked for SmithBarney since 1993. Dean has an MBA from Utah State University and a BS from Weber State University.

Publisher, Utah Business Magazine

As publisher of Utah Business magazine, Tyler Dabo leads the monthly business publication in its mission to educate and connect Utah’s business executives. Originally from California, Dabo moved to Utah to play college football and baseball. After earning a marketing and advertising degree from Brigham Young University, Dabo owned a successful sales and marketing company. He later joined Utah Business as advertising director, leading the magazine to its highest revenue years to date. Named publisher in May of 2008, Dabo has since used his keen leadership skills and innovative strategies to keep the publication strong during difficult economic times. His main focus has been to find innovative ways to enhance the publication in the ever-changing publishing industry. Under his leadership, the magazine launched an iPad app in January of 2011, the first publication in Utah to do so. Dabo’s business philosophy is centered on learning, growing, competing and bringing passion to everything he does. “Excellence,” he says, “takes constancy of effort and recognition that there is always room for improvement.”

Utah Business magazine is Utah’s only monthly statewide business publication. Under Dabo’s leadership, the company also produces the state’s only annual Book of Lists, which includes comprehensive information and rankings about the state’s industries; Business in Utah, the official publication of Utah’s Governor’s Office of Economic Development; the quarterly Wasatch Digital iQ, Utah’s only technology-focused magazine; and the UB Daily, a daily e-mail news briefing.

CEO, Wealth Navigation, LLC 

Owen J. Fisher, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, born in 1974, is an alumnus of Utah State University and received his bachelors degree from Weber State University in 1997.  Mr. Fisher earned the Certified Financial Planner^® designation in 2002 and has been involved in The Strategic Coach^®, a national entrepreneurial coaching program since 2004.  Mr. Fisher’s own pursuits include ownership and involvement in different companies that have focused on real estate, business development and franchising.  Mr. Fisher founded and has been the CEO of an Investment Advisory representative with Wealth Navigation since 2006.   Mr. Fisher is also a managing member of Strategic Capital Partners and Henry Walker Homes, both Utah based businesses focusing in real estate acquisition and home building.  His passion is his family which consists of his wife and three boys.

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Shareholder and Board Member, Griffin Enterprises and Griffin Fast Lube Companies

Joye Griffin is currently Vice President of Griffin Enterprises, a company doing business as Griffin Fast Lube, a Jiffy Lube Franchise in three states, Utah, Nevada and Colorado. Joye, with her husband Dave, have been successful business owners for the past 30 years. In 2008, their franchise was approached by Jiffy Lube International to test a new process in the franchises relationship with its customers, called Operational Excellence. They tested this procedure in their Utah stores for six months, and then it was rolled out to the entire Jiffy Lube system nationwide. In 2008 they also expanded their footprint and acquired 15 Jiffy Lube franchises in the Reno Nevada area. In 2009 they expanded their organization again; purchasing 13 Jiffy Lube stores in Denver Colorado and 12 in Colorado Springs. They currently operate 52 Jiffy Lubes, with three new sites scheduled to open in late 2011.

Joye currently serves on the Customer Experience Committee for Jiffy Lube International. This committee is made up of franchisees from around the country that work to enhance and insure the customer’s satisfaction and comfort. They also test and research different products and approaches around the customer experience at Jiffy Lube. Although she has been an influential volunteer with PTA, this is Joye’s first nonprofit board experience.

President & Co-Owner, McVeigh Performance Group                                    

Randy has held management and ownership positions in both public and private companies in a variety of industries. He is a co-founder and co-owner of the successful airline, Morris Air, which was sold to Southwest Airlines. It was Morris Air that introduced “e-ticketing” to the airline industry. As an owner and executive officer overseeing corporate and incentive clients, he also assisted Utah-based Morris Travel and Morris Meetings & Incentives in growing from $13MM to over $150MM in sales between 1983 and 1995. While outside the travel industry, Randy was involved in consulting, with emphases in strategic planning, risk assessment, exit and succession planning, channel development, incentives and recognition programs, and mergers and acquisitions. While at Columbus Groups + Incentives as Vice President - Sales & Service, Randy was responsible for doubling the size of that division in three years. He recently made the switch to McVeigh Performance Group where he is President & Co-Owner.

Randy received his BS degree with honors from Utah State University. During his 30-year career, Randy has been active on several civic and charity boards,  volunteering with youth organizations such as Salt Lake Boys & Girls Clubs, Junior Achievement, and Prevention of Child Abuse. He is a 27-year resident of Farmington, Utah, where he and his wife Bonnie have raised five children. Randy enjoys his grandkids (The Seven from Heaven), meeting unique people from around the world, fly fishing, ATV’s, and of course, golf.

Co-Founder and Private Fund Manager, Real Estate Opportunity Capital Fund LP 

Mr. Hutchinson offers 16 years of real estate investment, fund management and capital markets experience. Prior to co-founding the ROC Fund, he was a co-founder and Managing Partner of Bridge Loan Capital Fund LP, which specializes in the extension or acquisition of short-term notes backed by commercial property, raw land developments, late-stage entitlements and other real property, where he has been involved in all phases of the investment decision-making process and managed investor relations. Over the years, he has developed excellent relationships with regional and national loan and real estate brokers.Before embarking on his real estate career, Mr. Hutchinson built several successful businesses including a marketing company with over 200 agents. He also was the founder, President, and CEO of Midwest Center LLC, a company specializing in the direct response industry providing clients with sales, customer service, quality assurance, customer retention, and employee management.

Mr. Hutchinson completed two years of pre-med undergraduate studies at the University of Utah before finding his calling as an entrepreneur and expert in marketing principles and practices. He is a frequent key-note speaker at business events on the topics of financial management, business development, training, and organizational leadership.

Attorney, Durham Jones and Pinegar

Richard (Rick) M. Hymas, born in Ogden, Utah, is a shareholder of his firm. Mr. Hymas graduated cum laude from Brigham Young University in 1976 (B.S., Business Management). In 1979, he received his juris doctor degree cum laude from the J. Reuben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University, where he was a member of BYU’s National Moot Court Team.

Mr. Hymas was an associate at the Salt Lake City law firm of Boyden, Kennedy & Romney from 1979 to 1984. From 1984 through January 2006, he was a shareholder at the Salt Lake City firm of Nielsen & Senior. He joined Durham Jones & Pinegar in February 2006.

Mr. Hymas’ practice emphasizes employment law and business litigation. He has vast experience in representing employers in cases involving claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation, violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the Americans with Disabilities Act, claims for wrongful discharge, breach of employment contracts, misuse of trade secrets, and breach of covenants not to compete. His practice also involves advising and training employers on employment-related matters and preparing policy manuals, employment agreements, and separation agreements.

Mr. Hymas currently is the Chair of the Firm’s Litigation Section. He previously served as the Chair of the Firm’s Employment Law Group. He is a member of the Employment Law and Litigation Sections of the Utah State Bar and a member and past president of the A. Sherman Christensen American Inn of Court I.

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Vice President and Relationship Manager, KeyBank

Jann is a Vice-President with KeyBank in Utah, and has responsibility for providing Commercial Banking operations to her portfolio of clients. As a Commercial Relationship Manager Jann has lead a team of seasoned bankers to deliver relevant ideas, solutions, and financial expertise to Utah business’s to help them achieve their company goals.

Jann has over 22 years of business and banking experience. She has worked as a manager locally and nationally. Jann joined KeyBank as a member of the Commercial Banking team in Salt Lake City in 2008.

Jann has been very active with United Way, and co-chaired the 65 Roses organization in Michigan for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Jann currently serves on the board of the Salvation Army.

Jann is a native of Utah who grew up in Logan, and graduated from Utah State University.

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President/Securities Principal, Investment Management Consultants 

Dave joined the Foundation in 2006.