About Us

SVP, U.S. Operations, Kolaghassi Capital. Former president of Dinwiddie Enterprises, Inc, a single- family office dedicated to providing wealth management and estate planning services. From 2002 through 2010, she was the principal of Bowditch & Associates, LLC, an outsourced financial services company, providing CFO and management services to businesses, primarily in the family wealth management, real estate, and association industries. Prior to founding Bowditch & Associates, Ms. Bowditch was the chief financial officer of several companies in the real estate and construction industries. She has also been responsible for the financial oversight of nonprofit organizations and private charitable foundations. She began her career in public accounting, spending 12 years at Arthur Andersen in its Commercial Audit Division. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Indiana University and is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive).

The Honorable James M. Byrne is the Vice President of Ethics & Business Conduct at Lockheed Martin Corporation. He was appointed and later confirmed as the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs on August 28, 2018. He retired from federal service on February 3, 2020. As the Deputy Secretary, he led modernization initiatives and worked closely with the Secretary as the chief operating officer leading operations of the federal government’s second-largest Cabinet department, with some 385,000 employees in VA medical centers, clinics, benefits offices, national cemeteries, and other facilities throughout the country.

Previously, Mr. Byrne served as VA’s General Counsel, leading VA’s nationwide team of nearly 800 attorneys, paralegals, and staff who support VA’s mission and priorities by providing sound legal expertise, representation, and, as needed, critical problem-solving skills and risk-management advice to the Secretary and other senior VA leaders.

Before arriving at VA, Mr. Byrne served as Associate General Counsel and Chief Privacy Officer at Lockheed Martin Corporation, where he was also the company’s lead cyber and counterintelligence attorney. He served for several years on the board of directors for Pacific Architects and Engineers. Prior to joining Lockheed Martin, Mr. Byrne served in the career Federal Senior Executive Service as Deputy Special Counsel with the Office of the United States Special Counsel, and as both the General Counsel and Assistant Inspector General for Investigations with the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.

Soon after the invasion of Iraq in 2003, Mr. Byrne was recalled to active duty for 18 months with the U.S. Marine Corps in support of the Global War on Terrorism. Lieutenant Colonel James Byrne was assigned as the Officer-in- charge of the Marine Liaison Office at the then-National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Mr. Byrne led teams of Marines in DC-metro-area military hospitals and Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland, that were responsible for supporting injured and deceased Marines, Sailors, and their families.

Mr. Byrne has over 25 years of experience in the public sector, including service as a forward deployed Marine Corps Infantry Officer and a U.S. Department of Justice international narcotics prosecutor. Mr. Byrne’s professional honors include several DOJ awards and The Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator’s Award for Exceptional Service. He is also a recipient of the Secretary of Defense Medal for the Global War on Terrorism and several military decorations, including the Meritorious Service Medal.

Volunteering in his community, Mr. Byrne has extensive experience on several non-profit and advisory boards. Until August 2017, Mr. Byrne’s most recent professional engagements included service on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Board and the International Association of Privacy Professionals Board of Directors. For ten years, Mr. Byrne volunteered on the Executive Board of Give an Hour, a non- profit organization that has developed national networks of volunteer professionals capable of providing complimentary and confidential mental health services in response to both acute and chronic conditions that arise within our society, beginning with the mental health needs of post-9/11 veterans, service members and their families.

Mr. Byrne is a Distinguished Graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, where he received an engineering degree and, ultimately, held the top leadership position of Brigade Commander. Mr. Byrne later earned his J.D. from Stetson University College of Law in St. Petersburg, Florida, and started his legal career as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Malcolm J. Howard, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of North Carolina.

Sean Howard, Global Managing Director, WPP Government & Public Sector Practice: Give an Hour Chairman of the Board. He responsible for identifying and pursuing government business worldwide within WPP. The WPP Government and Public Sector Practice works with governments and public sector organizations around the world, pioneering the application of excellence in public communications to the challenges of public policy delivery. He advises WPP agencies on federal, national and provincial, or statewide bid opportunities and manages the acquisition process that is specialized for successfully placing WPP agencies with government agencies in need of their services.

Sean also acts as the WPP Team Lead for the U.S. Navy business and regularly meets with senior Navy personnel to advise them on non-traditional marketing programs to further define the Navy brand and ultimately drive to the Navy’s annual recruiting mission.

Sean has worked across the marketing spectrum from small digital agencies to global digital, CRM, and traditional agencies and networks.

Antonio Puente, PhD is Professor of Psychology at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.
He was born in La Habana, Cuba and emigrated to the US in 1960. Puente received his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia. He has taught at University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) since 1981 and prior to that at St. George’s University School of Medicine. His primary teaching activities include Brain and Behavior, Clinical Neuropsychology and History of Psychology. Puente is founding director of UNCW’s Centro Hispano and his research focuses on the interface between culture and neuropsychology. Puente founded and edited the journals Neuropsychology Review and Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice as well as a neuropsychology book series.
Puente also maintains a private practice in clinical neuropsychology is the founder and co-director of mental health services at the Cape Fear Clinic, a bilingual multi-disciplinary health center serving the indigent. He received the APA’s Distinguished Professional Contributions to Independent Practice in 2011.
Puente has also served as president of the N.C. Psychological Association, N.C. Psychological Foundation, the Hispanic Neuropsychological Association, National Academy of Neuropsychology, and Society for Clinical Neuropsychology (Division 40 of APA) as well as President of the American Psychological Association.

Edward Schiff is currently Senior Counsel at the law firm of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in its Washington, D.C. office.

Ed was born and raised in New York City, starting his educational career at Pennsylvania State University, where he was a member of the Skull & Bones Honor Society and Chairman of the Student Judiciary Board. He continued his education at the School of Law at Washington and Lee University, where he earned his law degree, Magna Cum Laude, Order of the Coif. In addition to being the Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review, he was also President of the Law School Student Body. After graduating from law school, Ed clerked for the Honorable John Minor Wisdom, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans, La. Ed led the opening of the Washington, D.C. office of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP, a 700 person international AM LAW 100 law firm with offices in California (7), New York, Illinois, Washington D.C., London, Brussels, Shanghai, Beijing, and Seoul. Mr. Schiff served as the Managing Partner of the Washington, D.C. office for its first ten years. Prior to joining Sheppard Mullin, Ed was a partner in the Corporate Practice Group of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld in its Washington, D.C. office and then, after leaving that firm, was Managing Partner for the D.C. office of Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis, a Philadelphia-based law firm. Mr. Schiff is a frequent guest speaker and panelist on finance structuring, mergers and acquisitions, and negotiating strategies.

Pam Swan is the Senior Director of Military Relations and Business Development for Veterans United Home Loans. As the spouse of a retired United States Army soldier, Pam develops training for all Military Relations team members. In addition, she creates certification programs to ensure employees are properly trained on all products and services, as well as develops content for internal publications and serves as the media spokesperson for Veterans United.

In addition to working on internal programs, Pam is continually active with the military community. She has utilized her financial background to construct programs that educate military families on their current and future financial stability. She regularly presents to military audiences around the world, with more than 52,000 Service members directly benefiting from her knowledge and expertise in the financial arena. Her personal desire is to enhance the quality of life for all men and women that serve.

Pam is a nationally recognized expert on military personal finance, having authored several articles pertaining to financial successes for military members and appearing on MSNBC to discuss identity theft issues. She is a Certified Identity Theft Risk Management Specialist, Certified Credit Report Reviewer (CCRR), and an Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC). She is a recipient of the prestigious Dr. Mary Walker Award, the highest honor given to military spouses for their support and service, and has been inducted as an honorary SGM at Fort Leavenworth, Kan. Pam has also received the Citation for Exceptional Service in support of National Defense from AUSA Headquarters.

In her spare time, Pam enjoys running or taking a motorcycle ride through the beautiful scenery of Mid-Missouri and spending time with her husband, John, and two kids, Trece and Erin.

Rob Scott joined Birdon America in November 2021 as the President of their operations in the U.S. Prior to that he held a variety of executive management and operational roles with Bechtel Group Inc. In his last role with Bechtel, Rob helped set up and lead Bechtel’s Operational Technology Cybersecurity Business Unit. In addition, during 2020 he also led Bechtel’s COVID-19 Crisis Response Team answering a national call for help in planning and responding to the pandemic through Alternate Care Facilities.

Prior to joining Bechtel in 2011, Rob had a distinguished 21-year career in the United States Marine Corps. Rob graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science, from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. He is also a certified Project Management Professional from the Project Management Institute and served as a Commandant of the Marine Corps Fellow (Executive Fellowship) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Rob has also received numerous honors and awards including the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star medals. Rob volunteers to help transitioning veterans find apprenticeships in the construction field.

Rob currently lives in Houston, TX with his wife Gabriela and together they have four children.

Patricia Toledo built her career at the intersection of product innovation, business development, leadership, and tech at financial services, education technology, and social impact companies.

Successfully launching and managing for-profit businesses, and non-profit organizations of $10M – $1B+ P&L, in the US, Europe, and Latin America. She brings 20 years of experience as a strategic & operational leader with a demonstrated track record of building successful products and high caliber teams. Patricia is a lifelong learner. A self-starter with an entrepreneurial mindset, ability to scale businesses, and great passion for mission-driven organizations.

In 2022, she believes we will see a larger focus on ensuring quality mental health care reaches all populations in need, with greater emphasis on access and cost-effectiveness. Now is a good time to expand GAH’s program portfolio, reach, and social impact.

Ross Whitmore (Lt. Colonel, USAF, Ret.) was the first openly gay Commander at the Air Force Special Operations Headquarters. He faced many personal and professional challenges because of this deliberate decision, but still successfully fulfilled his duties as a Commander. His openness provided a safe space for many colleagues to share their own struggles and led to a public speaking invitation by the Gay-Straight Alliance to share his struggles of living under the “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy.

During his career as an officer in the Air Force Medical Corp, Ross provided Command level leadership, policy development, and disaster intervention. Ross has served as Medical Commander in the 1st Special Operations Wing, additionally, he created the 27th Special Operations Wing Clinical and Operational Psych Support Program and was the first-ever Air Force Social Worker selected for both the elite Survival Evasion Resistance Escape training and the Special Operations Combat Rescue Officer Selection Cadre. Overseeing screening and selection of elite operators to rescue US service members stranded behind enemy lines.

As a member of the Surgeon General’s staff for the largest Major Command, Ross was responsible for all mental health services for 13 Bases. Concerned with the rising suicide rate within the Air Force, Ross assembled a task force to develop policy and protocol for the command to care for suicidal and other high-risk service members and their families. This policy mandated close coordination with the base mental health clinic, civilian medical resources, and the supervisor and Commander of the service member. This policy and protocol were then adopted as the standard of care for the entire Air Force in managing high-risk service members.

Ross holds a bachelor’s degree in Educational Psychology with a Major in Special Education from Brigham Young University and a Master’s degree in Social Work from The Ohio State University. After joining the Air Force, he continued his education with Graduate Level Senior Professional Education at the Squadron Officer School, Air Command and Staff College, and Air War College. Ross retired from active duty in 2016. He is the proud father of two daughters.

Alena Antonowich is a Master of Public Policy candidate at the Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy. Prior to beginning graduate school, Alena worked for the NYC Department of Education in the Office of Policy and Evaluation. There, she conducted qualitative research on proposed changes to local school accountability metrics and quantitative analyses to support students with disabilities and English language learners in receiving necessary academic services. She received a Fulbright grant to research intercultural bilingual education policy in Salta, Argentina and presented her research at the University of Buenos Aires. Alena has also worked at the Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning, focusing on expanding access to childcare subsidy grants for low-income families.

At Duke, she is the recipient of the Helen F. Ladd Fellowship in Education Policy and the founder and President of the Sanford Urban Policy Club. Alena graduated with honors from Washington University in St. Louis with degrees in International and Area studies and Educational Studies. While in college, she served on the Missouri Charter Public School Board, tutored elementary school students, and taught at the Washington University Nursery School.