Amber Alverson
Amber offers a unique perspective serving on the board of MBMS, having gone through the foster care system from the age of 15 until she aged out of the system in Missouri at 21. She has a heart and passion for youth in the foster care system, to help them see the bright future they can achieve, despite the challenges and struggles they have been up against. She believes in the mission of MBMS having experienced what it is like to not have basic necessities. She also understands the impact of receiving her first piece of luggage, while in the foster care system.
Susan O'Connell
Susan grew up in West Tn and attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. She built a successful career in sales spanning from the pharmaceutical and technology industries to currently serving as LBMC’s Growth Director for their healthcare practice.
Susan has been married 26 years and have 2 children (a daughter who graduated from Clemson that lives in Nashville and a son who is a Junior at UTK).
Sara Olson
Sara Olson is an experienced nationwide development leader across business, nonprofit, and education sectors. She creates strategic ways to advance her organization's mission and forge new national partnerships; as a result, her development career demonstrates significant team and fundraising growth. Sara recently accepted a role as Executive Director of Donor Relations at Hope Media Group, with a focus on stewarding some of Hope’s most treasured relationships.
Based in Houston, HMG has media assets across the country that drive a simple but profound mission: “Love Jesus. Serve others. Spread Hope.” With deep roots and
affections in DC, Sara spent the past decade working at the intersection of policy and faith as the Chief Advancement Officer for two nonprofit organizations: Intercessors for America (IFA) and Concerned Women for America (CWA), where she was affectionately known as “Thanker-in-Chief.”
Sara’s early career was in sales and sales management with The Southwestern
Company. This is where she met her handsome husband, “JT”, eventually stepping out of the workforce to embrace motherhood when the first of their five children was born. As the children grew, she and her husband, JT, co-founded an executive search firm, Haystack Associates, and later started a nonprofit, Both Hands, that serves widows and orphans. This nonprofit startup brought her back into the workforce to support her family during the startup years, and it was there that she cut her teeth in development as the Director of Parent Engagement at Belmont University in Nashville.
Sara and JT reside in Brentwood, Tennessee. Their favorite roles are “Lovie and Papa” to Otto (5), Olson (3), and Jack (2)!
Chad Powers
Chad Powers was born and raised in Middle Tennessee. After attending college at Samford University in Birmingham Alabama, he returned to Nashville where he met his wife Birdie. After working in several roles in finance, and in the music industry, Chad returned to law school. He clerked for a local judge, then worked for a small law firm, and ultimately ended up working for a Healthcare Revenue Cycle Management company, where he is now serving as Chief Legal Officer. Chad has two daughters, ages 17 and 15. He and his family, are active members at Fellowship Bible Church in Brentwood, Tennessee. Chad and his family have walked through several foster situations with close friends which has sparked his passion to ensure that children placed in the foster system are given every opportunity to succeed and feel dignified.
David Whitfield
David Whitfield was born and raised in Nashville, TN. He attended Lipscomb University receiving a BS in Accounting and Finance/Economics and a MBA. David is a CPA and spent the first 12 years of his career at Ernst & Young serving as a Senior Manager for public and private healthcare companies. Currently, David is the Vice President of Accounting for Premise Health, the world’s leading direct healthcare provider.
David and his wife Sara have been married for 20 years and have 3 children ages 17, 14, and 12. David and his family have been working with foster children and their families for many years as foster parents. Understanding and witnessing the challenges that face children in foster care has shown the increasing need to support them in many different ways of which MBMS is uniquely positioned to provide these children with dignity and a sense of belonging. David has also served in board leadership roles over the past 15 years for other not for profit organizations serving in the mission field in Haiti focusing on medical missions and education.