(SAVANNAH, GA) Leadership Southeast Georgia (LSEGA) is pleased to announce the election of its 2017 Board of Directors. Ruel Joyner will serve as chair, Lee Beckmann as vice chair, Sherrie Struble as treasurer and Margaret VanHouten as secretary.
Leadership Southeast Georgia is a regional five-month program designed to equip and empower community leaders to effectively work promoting positive growth while improving the quality of life in the Southeast Georgia Coastal region. The LSEGA executive board, representative of all of the program’s participants, live or work within Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh and Screven counties.
Joyner is a Savannah native who studied business at Georgia Southern University and later founded 24e Furniture, now 24e Design Co., at the same Broughton Street address where his parents once owned a business. As a long time champion of the Historic Downtown District, Joyner currently serves as the immediate past president of the Downtown Business Association and as a Board member of the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce, Visit Savannah, and Tourism Leadership Council. He is active in the Downtown Rotary and is a past recipient of ARTS Awards, Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce Helen V. Head Award Small Business Advocate, Buy Local Advocate of the Year 2013 and 2006 Small Business of the Year. He is also a Grey’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary Foundation Trustee.
Beckmann has been manager of governmental affairs with the Georgia Ports Authority since 2003. His responsibilities include managing governmental relations and a statewide outreach campaign.
Prior to joining the GPA, Beckmann served as a legislative assistant to Congressman Jack Kingston. Lee received his Bachelor of Arts in history from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He is a member of the Metro Savannah Rotary Club and a graduate of both Leadership Southeast Georgia and Leadership Savannah.
Also serving on the 2016 Board of Directors are: Brynn Grant (Chatham cnty); Frank Fortune (Bulloch cnty); Jeff Davis (Bulloch cnty); Jeff Grant (Bulloch cnty); Steve Liotta (Effingham cnty); John Henry (Effingham cnty); Jon Seagraves (Bryan cnty); Freddie Howell (Bryan cnty); Jason Coley (McIntosh cnty); Jared Downs (Glynn cnty); David Boland (Glynn cnty); Bill Gross (Camden cnty); Alyce Thornhill (Camden cnty).
Each year, alumni of the Leadership Southeast Georgia program, along with community business leaders in the coastal region, nominate new program participants. There are 28 participants in the LSEGA class of 2017, who will each spend one weekend a month in surrounding counties learning about topics that affect the region such as healthcare, education, economic development and transportation.
For more information, visit http://www.lsega.com/.
ABOUT LEADERSHIP SOUTHEAST GEORGIA
Leadership Southeast Georgia is a 501c(3) regional five-month program designed to equip and empower community leaders to effectively work promoting positive growth while improving the quality of life in the Southeast Georgia Coastal region. All of the participants live or work within Bryan, Bulloch, Camden, Chatham, Effingham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh and Screven counties. For more information, visit http://www.lsega.com/.
CONTACT
Lee Beckmann
Leadership Southeast Georgia
LBECKMANN@gaports.com
MEDIA CONTACT
Marjorie Young
Carriage Trade PR
marjorie@carriagetradepr.com
912.844.9075
http://www.carriagetradepr.com