Dr. Julie Fowler, Dr. Ebony Gaffney, and Laura Henthorn
Mary Black Foundation
The Mary Black Foundation welcomed Dr. Julie Fowler, Dr. Ebony Gaffney, and Laura Henthorn to its Board of Trustees. Together, they bring a wealth of experience and knowledge from the education, health care, and real estate development worlds. They share a vision of a welcoming and connected community where all residents can achieve health and well-being.
Dr. Julie Fowler is Superintendent, Spartanburg School District Three. She has been an educator for almost 40 years. She has spent her career serving as the deputy state superintendent of education for South Carolina and in school districts across the state. The foundation’s strategic focus on the young people in the community is aligned to her work in education, and she plans to share what she has learned through many years of leadership experience.
Dr. Ebony Gaffney, MD, PhD, MBA is Medical Director, Spartanburg Area Mental Health Center. She is a board-certified psychiatrist. The mission of the foundation aligns with her ideas of innovation and strategies to improve opportunities and access to health and wellness for all people. She is always looking for ways to challenge perception and ideology that is incongruent with a true sense of community. Dr. Gaffney is a scout mom/leader, sorority member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc, a church minister at Victory Cathedral Ministries, and a commissioner for Spartanburg Housing.
Laura Henthorn, Vice President, Mark III Properties, has been involved with the foundation for nearly 20 years, first becoming involved as a champion of trail development and Girls on the Run in the late 1990s. She is excited to see the mission continue to grow deeper and wider by considering health and well-being from a multi-generation perspective because it gives the most vulnerable in Spartanburg, South Carolina a safe space to be seen and heard.
Sam Jackson
The Healing Trust
The Healing Trust, a local grantmaking foundation, announced the appointment of Sam Jackson as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective January 1, 2025.
Mr. Jackson has been an integral part of The Healing Trust since January 2020, leading its grants and programming with dedication and vision since July 2021. Before joining The Healing Trust, he gained valuable nonprofit and development experience with the Middle Tennessee Council Boy Scouts and University School of Nashville, where he successfully led comprehensive fundraising initiatives and was the Executive Director of the Horizons program. His background in these roles has equipped him with the skills and insights needed to guide our organization forward.
To read the full announcement, click here.
Mina Pomante
Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation
Earlier this year, Mina Pomante joined the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation (PAHWF) as Controller. A native of Nigeria, Ms. Pomante went to school in Texas and has extensive experience in nonprofit work, finance, and agriculture. She is a certified public accountant, with specialized certifications on effective grant writing, participation infrastructure development and project finance, and financial modeling for infrastructure projects. Formerly, she has worked as a controller in corporate and academic settings. Her knowledge base aligns with the foundation’s mission to leverage funds to improve the Pottstown, Pennsylvania community.
She is excited about the foundation’s new status as a community foundation. Prior to joining the team, Ms. Pomante created her own private, nonprofit organization, which plans to do work in the area. This local work will aim to provide economic mobility for single moms of color through home ownership initiatives. Along with improving lives, the venture increases home and property values in the area, further indicating her passion for PAHWF’s mission.