Board of Directors

James Rumer, Chairman

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Jim is a retired Finance Executive with more than 37 years of finance and accounting experience with a Fortune 500 company.  After having assignments around the globe, Jim recently located to the Lowcountry area from Eastern Pennsylvania where he was very active in his local United Way.

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Angela Simmons, Vice Chair

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Angela serves as Vice Chancellor for Student Development at the University of South Carolina Beaufort. She began in this role in December 2019 and is responsible for co-curricular and student success initiatives, programs, and support at the university. She has served on several boards, including the New River Valley Women’s Resource Center board in southwest Virginia. Angela has a bachelor’s degree in educational psychology and a master’s degree in counselor education with a concentration in student affairs, both from Mississippi State University. She has a PhD degree in higher education from Florida State University.

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Tom Faas, Treasurer

 

Tom works part time as a Tax Managing Director at BDO USA, LLP and supports engagement teams in the Southeast with respect to accounting for income tax matters. Previously, Tom worked as a Tax Director for fifteen years with PwC. Prior to that he worked at KPMG for 15 years (eight years as a tax partner). Tom received his Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Cincinnati.

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Tom and his wife Margie relocated to Bluffton from the Boston area in 2018. They have two daughters. Margie had worked for years in Boston supporting victims of domestic violence, which included overseeing supervised visitations for non-custodial parents. 

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Sally McAlister, Secretary

 

Sally retired to Spring Island, Okatie, SC in 2014. Sally was educated at Georgetown University where she developed an interest in research. She spent her career as a health scientist working on bleeding disorders for over 35 years – first as a nurse at University of Michigan Hospital, then an Executive Director of a nonprofit health agency for hemophilia. While in MI, she was recruited to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention in Atlanta where she worked on rare blood disorders and AIDS for 15 years. She finished her career in biotechnology at Biogen, a biotechnology company in Cambridge, MA that developed new genetically produced blood products for hemophilia.

 

Sally was introduced to Hopeful Horizons through her role as co-chair of the Spring Island Friends of HH. She serves on the Spring Island Board of Directors and volunteers at Heroes on Horseback in Bluffton, SC. She has been a horse owner all her life and was a 4th level dressage rider. She trail rides and enjoys long walks with her husband and mini Aussie-Doodle Gracie.

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Kristin Dubrowski, CEO of Hopeful Horizons

 

Kristin has been working in the victim service field since 1999. Prior to her move to South Carolina in 2004, Ms. Dubrowski was the director of a domestic violence shelter in Denver, Colorado. She was hired by CODA (Citizens Opposed to Domestic Abuse) in 2004 and became the executive director in 2007. Upon the 2017 merger of CODA and Hope Haven into Hopeful Horizons, Ms. Dubrowski became the Chief Operations Officer. As of January 1, 2019, Ms. Dubrowski moved into Hopeful Horizons’ CEO position.

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She has a B.A. in Women's Studies from Cornell College, a Masters in Nonprofit Management from Regis University and she is a South Carolina certified Victim Service Provider. Ms. Dubrowski taught Leadership and Professional Ethics for the University of South Carolina, Beaufort, Human Services program from 2009 until 2012 and she currently serves on the Human Service Program Advisory Council. She is the past chair of the South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault’s board of directors and she also served on the board of the Lowcountry Homeless Coalition.

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Lindsay Gifford

 

Lindsay works as the Creative Director for Pink Magazine and has worked in marketing for 16 years. She received Beaufort Chamber of Commerce’s Lowcountry Young Professional of the Year in 2017 and has a passion for volunteering with non-profits. Lindsay served as a member of the Junior Service League of Beaufort for 10 years. During her time in the League, she served on the Board of Directors for 7 years in the roles of Communications Director (3), President (2) and Past-President (2).

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Renee G. Harley

 

Renee is a Manager at Delhaize Corporation and previously worked 10 years at Southeastern Groceries as a Co-Manager in Beaufort, SC. She is a member of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc – Kappa Upsilon Sigma Chapter where she serves as the Financial Advisor. Renee has partnered with several charities in the Beaufort and Bluffton area including City Year, Columbia, SC, Boys and Girls Club, Radiance Women Care, United Way, St. Jude and the March of Dimes.

She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor of Science and has her MBA in Human Resource Management from Strayer University. She is currently a Member on SHRM and National Honor Society. Renee is married to Shaun Harley and has three children, DeAndre, Simone and Shaun M. Harley. She was born in Hampton, SC, to Haiston and Bobbie Ann Priester and has two sibling Haiston Priester, Jr and Telley Priester.

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Hampton Long

 

Hampton is a financial consultant with Charles Schwab in Bluffton, providing wealth management and investing help and guidance to Schwab clients. Prior to joining Schwab, Long spent 12 years in the financial services industry, most recently as a financial advisor and consultant at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch. Long earned a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree from Harvard University and graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School. Long was raised in the Northeast, lived abroad on two separate occasions, and relocated to the Lowcountry more than 10 years ago. He and his wife have a young daughter and recently moved to Bluffton from Beaufort.

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With a deep commitment to service, Long serves as Board Chairman for the Beaufort Memorial Hospital Foundation, is a past board member for the Beaufort County Open Land Trust, and previously served as Chairman of the St. John’s Lutheran Church Endowment. In his spare time, Long enjoys fishing, history, and studying current events.

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Sabrina Milledge

 

Sabrina was born in New York, NY, and moved to Beaufort at the age of 13. Sabrina endured many troubled times as a child, leading her to be placed in the foster care system in NY. Sabrina says that it was God’s hands that removed her from the foster care system and placed her with her maternal grandmother in the Lowcountry. Sabrina has recently shared her story with the world through her newly published book titled His Beauty 4 My Ashes.

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Sabrina is married to Antwan Milledge of Burton. They have one son and four daughters, along with seven grandchildren. Sabrina and her husband own Unique Cuts Barbershop in the Burton area. Their shop provides affordable haircuts and natural hair care services to all in the community. They are proud to give back to the community by offering free haircuts to young boys at the previous Back-to-School outreach event.

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Jennifer Moneagle

 

Jennifer taught middle school language arts for three years before embarking on a 28-year career with Ford Motor Company as a sales and marketing executive. After moving to the Lowcountry in 2009 she joined Marine Corps Community Services (MCCS) as the Marketing Director.  She currently serves on the board of trustees of the Historic Beaufort Foundation and volunteers at Auldbrass and with the Friends of Hunting Island.

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Ken Van Dongen 

 

Ken currently works as a tax professional after a 37-year career in Financial Reporting at Prudential Financial.  During his tenure at Prudential, Ken was Vice President in the Chief Investment Office and the Individual Life Finance Department.  He and his wife Karen relocated from New Jersey to the Low Country in 2020.  Ken currently works seasonally as an income tax professional. Community and church outreach are a priority for Ken.  He serves as a Financial Empowerment mentor and mentors students at Montclair State University.   While in NJ, Ken led groups to help rebuild homes after Superstorm Sandy and also volunteered as both financial coach and legal advocate at the local domestic violence agency.

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David Ames, Chair Emeritus

 

David has a background in community planning and real estate development, plus 40 years of non-profit board experience where he participated in capital campaigns, branding and strategic planning. He is a former Hope Haven board member and chairman emeritus.

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Marianne Rothnie, Emeritus

 

Marianne worked in international education for 10 years and with a variety of organizations as a volunteer for 40 years. She was previously a Hope Haven board member and board emeritus.