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CLEMMONS — The Shallow Ford Foundation announces the election of officers for the 2021-2022 year and two new directors serving a three-year term, also beginning in this month.

Officers elected

Tim W. Bell, chair

Tim Bell has been elected to chair the board of directors, having served actively with the foundation since July 2018. Bell is part of the Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center team where he has served for more than 18 years. He is currently the director of property management and operations for Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and oversees a $29 million operational budget. He is a veteran of more than 20 years of military service in the United States Air Force, where he served as a headquarters financial analyst. Bell is also an ordained minister and motivational speaker. He is married to Donyea (Dee) Dockery of Raeford and has two sons, Brandon and Jared, and two grandchildren, Brandon and Malia. Commenting on his role as first board chair of the newly-named Shallow Ford Foundation, Bell states, “I am extremely encouraged for our future because we are standing on the shoulders of giants, those that came before us and paved the way. As we embark on a new chapter of the foundation’s evolution, I enlist the prayers and counsel of our communities and partners as we take this journey together. I truly believe the best is yet to come.”

Ronnie Willard (Ron), vice chair

Ron Willard has been a resident of Clemmons since the late 1970s. He worked for Reynolds for 34 years, retiring as VP of R&D engineering and agribusiness development. He graduated from N.C. State University with a bachelor’s degree in engineering and is a member of the Leonidas Polk and Wallace Riddick lifetime giving societies for major benefactors to the university. He served as one of five people on the committee to incorporate Clemmons and served as the first mayor of its newly formed government. Willard directed the capital campaign to build the West Forsyth YMCA and led three additional capital campaign expansions. Willard is a 23-year member and past president of the Rotary Club of Clemmons. As a long-time resident of Clemmons, Willard was a strong advocate to bring the Novant Health Medical Center to Clemmons. He served as the first chairman of the Novant Health Clemmons Medical Foundation. Currently, Willard serves on the Forsyth Medical Center Foundation Board of Directors, is a member of the board and current president of Cancer Services, and is a member of Clemmons Moravian Church.  Willard lives in Salem Glen and has three grown children.

Holly M. Groce, JD, secretary

Holly Groce is an attorney and a founding partner in Clemmons Family Law, practicing primarily juvenile and family law. Groce has lived in Clemmons for the majority of her life. She earned her undergraduate degree from UNC and graduated from the Campbell Law School. Groce is an active member of Center Grove Baptist Church and served on the board at the Jerry Long YMCA. Groce and her husband, Michael, have three sons, Connor, Carson and Colby.

Donald S. Kinney, CPA, treasurer

Donald Kinney is a certified public accountant practicing in Winston-Salem and has been resident of Clemmons for more than 20 years. Kinney graduated with a bachelor’s degree from UNC Charlotte and a bachelor’s degree from High Point University. He is active in his church and serves on the board of Triad Family Network. Kinney and his wife, Carolyn, have two grown daughters and four grandchildren.

Maria Poindexter Vernon, immediate past chair

Maria Vernon is a resident of Lewisville. She is a part-time speech-language pathologist with WSFCS and works at Southwest Elementary in Clemmons. Vernon serves on the Appalachian State University Beaver College of Health Sciences Advisory Council and is a member emeritus and former board chair of the Appalachian State University Reich College of Education Advancement Board. Vernon also serves on the board of H.O.P.E. (Help Our People Eat) Winston-Salem, volunteers on various committees at River Oaks Community Church, where she is the volunteer coordinator for the ROCC 5K race. Vernon coordinates the Alex’s Lemonade Stand Fundraiser for pediatric cancer research at her school for the past nine years. Vernon and her husband Chris, live in Lewisville with their two children, Marissa and Garrett.

Newly elected to the board

Bradley O. Gray

Bradley O. Gray is the managing principal of the CPA firm Gray, Callison & Jones CPA, PC in Winston-Salem. In addition to the firm management, Gray also provides tax and accounting services to individuals, small businesses, and certain nonprofit organizations. A graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Gray is certified to practice in North Carolina and he is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Gray is involved with many civic and community groups, is a Paul Harris Fellow in the Clemmons Rotary Club, and lives in Clemmons.

Jennifer W. Johnson, CFP

Jennifer Johnson is a partner and financial advisor with Blue Rock Financial Management in Winston-Salem. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an master’s degree from UNC-Greensboro. In addition, she has completed the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation. Active in the community and in philanthropy, Johnson and her husband, David, have supported several organizations including Second Harvest Food Bank, Samaritan Ministries, and Matthew 25 Ministries. Johnson has served in leadership roles as a member of the Boonville United Methodist Church and Winston-Salem Financial Services Professionals. She also coaches youth softball coach in Yadkin County.  Jennifer and David reside in Boonville and have two daughters, Elizabeth “Libby” and Ella Caroline.

Continuing on the board, Michael Combest; John D. Crouch Jr., CPA, CVA with Crouch Joslyn Good PLLC; Kim Henson; Robert D. Hinshaw (Robin), JD; Brett W. Hoge, senior managing director and financial adviser at Truist Investment Services, Inc.; William T. Lawler; Robin Paul, Chris Paul Family Foundation; and Robert D. Sipprell Jr.