ROANOKE, Va.--Freedom First CU recently held their annual membership meeting and announced the returning members of the board of directors. Filling the three open positions of the nine-member volunteer board are re-elected incumbent directors, John Budd, Jr., Wayne Strickland, and Melinda Payne.
In addition, nearly $10,000 in Scholarships winners were announced. The winners are Bethany Hsian, Jessica Plott, and Ryea Young (3-$1500 Charles Perkins Scholarships), Morgan Fisher ($1500 Fritz Kehn Scholarship), Caleb Todd ($1500 City of Salem/Frank Turk Scholarship), Lauren Young and Jacob Chandler (2-$1000 Torrie Phillips Memorial Scholarship).
Here are the re-elected incumbents:
Budd is the President & Managing Director of Budd CPA. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and a post graduate from Virginia Tech with work in Accounting, Auditing, & Taxation. He serves on the board of the Foundation for Roanoke Valley and the Grandin Theatre Foundation. John is a member of the VA Society of CPAs and the American Institute of CPAs.
Strickland has lived in the area for almost 40 years and is the Executive Director of the Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission and chairman of the Southeast Regional Directors Institute. He has served on the board at Freedom First in various capacities for the past 3 years as well as on the board of the Council of Community Services.
Payne is the Director of Planning & Development, City of Salem. She has lived in the Roanoke Valley her entire life, attended Hollins University for an undergraduate degree in English, and has dedicated a great deal of time to volunteer service. She has served on the Freedom First board for 3 years and on the boards of Richfield, United Way, Children’s Trust, Goodwill, Apple Ridge Farm, Salvation Army, and TAP to name a few.
“We are grateful to have a talented and dedicated Board of Directors that volunteer their time to the growth of Freedom First by always keeping the Roanoke & New River Valley community and members in mind.” said Paul Phillips, President and CEO.
The other six directors on Freedom First’s board include: Dan Merenda, Brent Cochran, Ron Williams, Michelle Davis, Judy Harrison, and Andrea Garland.