Operation Homefront Elects New Board Members and Leaders

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 19, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Operation Homefront, the national military support nonprofit, has elected three new members to its national Board of Directors and elevated incumbent members to new leadership positions on the Board.

Operation Homefront provides emergency financial and other assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors.  Assistance is in the form of grants to meet the most basic of needs like rent, utilities, food and housing.

The newly-promoted or continuing Board leaders are:

Chair: Catherine Blades, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Aflac Incorporated. Catherine Blades has served on Operation Homefront's Board of Directors since 2009. She has more than two decades of communications-related leadership experience to draw upon. In her current role as Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications at Aflac Incorporated, Blades is focused on defining, leading and integrating Aflac's communications strategy to proactively and effectively promote internal and external communications.  Aflac is the number one provider of voluntary insurance at the worksite in the United States and the number one life insurance company in terms of individual policies in force in Japan.  Her extensive communications background also includes leadership positions with Flextronics, Raytheon Company's Space and Airborne Systems business, and Lockheed Martin Aeronautics.

Vice Chair: Lt. General Brian Arnold, USAF, Ret.  General Arnold served with distinction for more than 34 years in the Air Force, followed by nearly a decade of corporate leadership as Vice President and General Manager of Space Systems at Raytheon Company's Space and Airborne Systems business.  Prior to joining Raytheon, Arnold served as Commander, Space and Missile Systems Center, Air Force Space Command, Los Angeles Air Force Base. He spent the majority of his military career serving as a pilot in FB-111 and B-52 aircraft; as a squadron commander, wing commander and subunified commander; and as the Director of Space and Nuclear Deterrence for the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition.  

Secretary (continuing): Laura Fredricks, CEO and Founder of Expert on the Ask.  Laura Fredricks is CEO and Founder of Expert on the Ask, a boutique consulting company that provides hands-on expert philanthropic advising and best practices to a select number of nonprofits, businesses and entrepreneurs.  Formerly, Fredricks was Vice President for Philanthropy at Pace University in New York, N.Y., where she raised over $92 million in six years.  She is the author of The ASK: How to Ask for Your Nonprofit Cause, Creative Project, or Business Venture and The ASK: How to Ask Anyone for Any Amount for Any Purpose.

Treasurer:  Michael C. Carnuccio, President & CEO of The Liberty Foundation of America.  Michael Carnuccio is the President and CEO of the Liberty Foundation and serves as President of the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs. In addition, he serves on the Board of Directors of Opportunity Ohio and Roosevelt Leadership Academy. Previously, Carnuccio served as senior advisor for Oklahomans for Responsible Government, director of public affairs for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and director of public affairs for Saxum Strategic Communications (now Saxum PR). He also was an Adjunct Faculty member lecturing in courses on American Government with the Department of Political Science at Oklahoma State University.

Newly elected Board members are:

Lara Ashmore, Ph.D., Principal, Inspire Brilliance.  Dr. Lara Ashmore provides consultation services for strategic planning, project optimization, grant management and targeted research for corporations, private foundations, individuals and non-profit organizations. She advises clients for a variety of projects related to philanthropy, technology and innovation.  Dr. Ashmore's experience includes working with The George W. Bush Institute's Military Service Initiative; La Quinta Inns & Suites; The Baron & Blue Foundation; Pat & Emmitt Smith Charities; The Larry Hagman Foundation; America Online; and The University of Virginia Advanced Technology Group. She currently consults for The Brain Performance Institute at the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas at Dallas.

Frank Paras, National Pro Director, The Home Depot.  Frank Paras is a National Pro Director for The Home Depot, leading the company's business development with organizations, strategic accounts, and other construction professionals.  Paras rose through the organization's ranks, starting as an associate in 1995.  He served on the Board of Directors for Rebuilding Together-Houston from 2010 to 2011 and created the Home Depot Veterans Project and raised $300,000 in support of product needs.  With his partnership, The Home Depot made a $1 million contribution for "Building for America's Bravest" home remodels to the Tunnel for Towers Organization in 2014.

Concluding their service on the Board are Jeff Cathey, Ralph Meoni, Rick Moore, Sarah Farnsworth and Joe Kilkenny.

"We are very pleased to add these directors to our Board," said Blades, the incoming Board Chair.  "They have a great mix of backgrounds in the business, military, and philanthropic sectors, and that experience is going to be of great value to our military families.  Operation Homefront is committed to assisting our service members and their families well into the future.  While the needs of military families are changing with the drawdown from Afghanistan, we know that our service members continue to be deployed to hotspots around the world, and that we have a large generation of new veterans who need our assistance. "

"The entire Board salutes our outgoing Chair, Mark Foster, for his leadership through the past year," Blades continued.   "The most recent Board term has been marked by growth and change, and we expect 2015 to bring new challenges and opportunities in serving those who have served."

About Operation Homefront:  A national nonprofit, Operation Homefront leads more than 2,500 volunteers with nationwide presence who provide emergency and other financial assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors. Operation Homefront has provided assistance to thousands of military families since its inception in 2002. Recognized for superior performance by leading independent charity watchdog groups, nationally, 93 percent of total donations to Operation Homefront go directly to programs that provide support to our military families. For more information, go to www.OperationHomefront.net.

SOURCE Operation Homefront

Related Links

http://www.operationhomefront.net