Audra Bullock – TFFC Board Chair & CEO
Audra Bullock is founder and President of Tidewater Friends of Foster Care. She received her BS, MS and PhD from the College of Engineering at Old Dominion University in ’96,’ 97 and 2000, respectively. She has worked for the University of Hawaii as an Assistant Professor of Engineering and for NASA as an Engineer and Mission Manager. In February 2015, Audra and her husband Richard became foster parents for the City of Norfolk and since then have become increasingly more involved in the realm of Foster Care and Adoption, culminating in the founding of Tidewater Friends of Foster Care. Audra has devoted her professional life to TFFC and is committed to engaging the community to make a meaningful difference in the lives of Foster Children in Hampton Roads.
TaShara Bailey – TFFC Director
Dr. TaShara C. Bailey is Research and Education Scholar-Practitioner of the Center for Bioelectronics at Old Dominion University. She hails from the University of Maryland, Baltimore where she served as Director of STEM Curriculum and Director of Programs for the CURE Scholars Program. Developing STEM curricula and related materials for student success, and coordinating activities for middle and high school scholars, were among her responsibilities. Prior to this role, TaShara was a Coordinator for the CURE Scholars Program and Adjunct Faculty in the Graduate School at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. Dr. Bailey is a native of Grand Rapids, Mich., and a proud alumna of the Grand Rapids public schools. She pursued graduate studies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where she earned a PhD in higher education with a concentration in organizational behavior and management as well as a master’s degree in education studies with elementary teacher certification. Bailey earned a BS degree, cum laude, in agricultural and biosystems engineering with waste management certification from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.
Sarah Morin Bishop – TFFC Director
Sarah Morin Bishop earned her Master of Social Work degree in 1978. She is currently the Manager of Special Projects at The Up Center, aka Child and Family Services of Southeastern Virginia. Sarah has worked as the Director of Education Initiatives & United for Children for the United Way of South Hampton Roads and has served on many prestigious boards, including Eastern Virginia Medical School, Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters, and the Virginia Symphony. Sarah is the wife of 50 years to Bruce Taylor Bishop. She is the mother of two adult daughters and Grandmother of two granddaughters.
Mary Bonsby-Brock – TFFC Director
Mary Bonsby-Brock came to the Norfolk area from Silver Spring, MD in 1989 when she married her then sailor husband Mark. Like so many others in Hampton Roads, they made the area their permanent home when they transitioned to civilian life. They have two adult daughters. They adopted their youngest daughter from Foster Care when she was 6 years old. Mary began working for a small bank in 1994 that through a series of mergers became Wells Fargo Bank. The majority of her career has been in Financial Crimes Investigations. Mary received her BS in Criminal Justice from Old Dominion University and later received her AA in accounting from TCC. She is a Certified Fraud Examiner and Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist.
Karen Campbell – TFFC Director
Dr. Karen Campbell is a dedicated and results-oriented higher education professional with a progressive career in student affairs administration. Dr. Campbell serves as the Vice President for Student Affairs at Tidewater Community College in Norfolk, Virginia. Dr. Campbell holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education, with a research focus on the effects of self-regulated learning on community college students’ metacognition and achievement in developmental math courses. She also holds a Master of Education in Counseling Psychology and College Student Personnel Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Dr. Campbell and her husband have also served as foster parents.
Chuck Gray – TFFC Director
Chuck Gray is a native of the Hampton Roads area. He was born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. Chuck attended the public school system of Norfolk and he graduated from Lake Taylor High School in 1987. After graduation, he attended Howard University in Washington, DC. He is married to Melissa Gray of Chesapeake VA, and together they have three bright children. Jalen Gray, who attends the University of Virginia; Aiyana Gray, who attends Virginia Commonwealth University; and Chase Gray, who attends Montessori Academy of Virginia. He always knew that he would return to his hometown and find a way to help the youth. In May 2011, he established Youth Solutions, Inc. Founder and President Chuck Gray had a strong desire to provide outreach and assistance to families in crisis. His hope was to provide a support system in which families experiencing issues related to multi-generational substance abuse, ineffective parenting, physical and sexual abuse and mental health issues can find effective methods to cope with and overcome these issues. Mr. Gray wanted to provide these services within the community and determined the best way to do this would be through the provision of Intensive-In-Home Services and Adult Mental Health Skill-Building Services. To this end, Youth Solutions Inc. was established. He wanted to be able to give back to the community and make a difference in the lives and futures of young children and young adults in the area where he grew up.
Cheryl Jones – TFFC Director
Cheryl Jones is the Vice-President for Programs at Access College Foundation. She holds an Associate’s Degree in Business Management from Tidewater Community College and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Virginia Wesleyan University. She also has earned a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Academy of Nonprofit Excellence. In 2013, she was awarded the National College Attainment Network College Access Staff Member Award of Excellence, and in 2017 Cheryl participated in the Bank of America Neighborhood Builders Emerging Leaders training. Cheryl is a member of the National College Attainment Network’s (NCAN) National Rapid Response Team on College Access and is an Alumna of the CIVIC Leadership Institute, Class of 2020. Cheryl’s passion for higher education extends to all sectors, including foster youth.
Tracy Keller – TFFC Director
Tracy Keller is the Chief Executive Officer for the Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast, a regional nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of girls. She is lifetime Girl Scout who as an adult member, has been recognized with the Girl Scout Thanks Badge, the highest adult honor. Tracy is a foster/adoptive parent, who has fostered 9 children and adopted 4 children. Tracy graduated from Virginia Wesleyan College in 2004 with a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics. She received a certification in nonprofit management in 2007 from the Academy for Nonprofit Excellence and during that year was selected from an elite group of Girl Scout CEOs to attend a Strategic Leader Seminar at the United States Army War College sponsored by the Columbia University Business School. In 2009, she graduated from the Lead Hampton Roads executive program and in 2010 joined the ranks of the prestigious Civic Leadership Institute alumni. She was awarded the 2018 Women in Business Award by Inside Business. Tracy is a member of many local charitable organizations and is passionate about serving those in need.
Lakysha Laing – TFFC Director
Lakysha Laing is Director of Customer Care at Cox Communications in the Technical Support call center in Hampton Roads, VA. Lakysha holds a Bachelor’s degree in Information Systems Management and an MBA in Business Administration. Lakysha serves in capacity as President and one of the founding members of the Virginia Chapter for the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) serving the Hampton Roads and Richmond, VA areas. She is a member of the Women in Cable Telecommunications Virginia Chapter and she is a mentoring circle lead for the Women’s ERG at Cox Communications, very active with the company Employee Resource Groups, and sits on the National Diversity & Inclusion Council for Cox. Lakysha is foster care alumna, who is very involved in the community and is passionate about giving back to foster care causes. She enjoys whale watching, spending time with her husband Cliff, their children Alysha and Khalil, and her Lhasa Apso dog, Cassius.
Richard Litton, Jr. – TFFC Director, Secretary & Treasurer
Richard Litton is the President of Harbor Group International, LLC, a commercial real estate investment company, with corporate headquarters located in Norfolk, Virginia and offices in New York, Baltimore and Tel Aviv. He is a member of Freddie Mac’s Investor Advisory Council and serves on the Board of Directors of the ACCESS College Foundation. He has served on the Board of Directors of Children’s Health Foundation of the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters, and the Board of Trustees of the Virginia Athletics Foundation. Before joining Harbor Group, Mr. Litton was a corporate law partner at Kaufman & Canoles in Norfolk, Virginia. Richard earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1992. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Virginia with a bachelor’s degree in 1989. Richard is a father of four children and a dedicated foster parent. He and his wife Audra have adopted 2 children from foster care.
Robert E. McCartney – TFFC Director
Rob McCartney MSW, is the Chief Executive Officer for The Barry Robinson Center, a behavioral health system in Norfolk, Virginia, anchored by a 72-bed residential treatment center. Over the past six years, Rob has led The Barry Robinson Center’s residential program’s transition from a typical residential treatment center to a premier program whose primary mission is to help military-connected children and their families heal. Rob has an undergraduate degree from Michigan State University, and a Masters in Social Work from Michigan State. Rob is the father of two boys and stepfather of two girls the same age as his sons. He and his wife Shirley describe their family as “The Brady Bunch without Alice”. Rob is a compassionate leader who puts the needs of the children and families first.
Douglas Mitchell – TFFC Director
Dr. Mitchell is Professor of Pediatrics and Pediatric Infectious Diseases. He attended medical school at The University of Michigan Medical School and received his pediatric training at Wright State University. He completed Infectious Diseases Fellowship at the University of Texas and Eastern Virginia Medical School. He arrived in Norfolk in 1992 and spent 12 years at EVMS in academic medicine. He was with been with CHKD Medical Group at General Booth Pediatrics in general pediatrics from 2004 to 2020 and then moved to Norfolk Pediatrics – a foster care center of excellence. He has been medical director of CHKD Medical group since 2014. Dr. Mitchell is also director of the International Adoption and Travel Medicine Clinic at General Booth Pediatrics and is an adoptive father.
Kate Powell – TFFC Director
Kate Powell is an arts administrator who discovered her love for organizational development in 2015. Since then, she has served as the Development Manager at the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, Director of Fundraising and Grants at PORTCO, Inc., and Director of Development for Tidewater Arts Outreach (TAO). She took over as Executive Director of TAO in November 2020. Kate received her Bachelor of Music in Music Industry from James Madison University (Go Dukes!) and her Master of Public Administration from South University. She earned her Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) credential in June of 2019. Kate believes strongly in community involvement. She is a board member of the Hampton Roads Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Treasurer of the Norfolk Task Force on Aging, and commissioner on the Norfolk Commission on Aging and Long-Term Care. Kate can still be spotted playing music with her husband Marc. When not playing music together, they enjoy adopting senior pugs, serving as foster parents, hiking trails, and exploring Hampton Roads’ amazing food scene.
Ken Shewbridge – TFFC Director
Ken Shewbridge is a community leader in children’s causes. He and his wife, Windsor, were raised in Richmond, and moved to Virginia Beach in 1973. They have 4 children and 6 grandchildren, who all live in Virginia Beach. In 1983 Ken started a technology company, TCI Voice and Data Networks. After 33 great years, he sold the company and retired. Ken’s wife of 45 years, Windsor, was an elementary school teacher for 20 years. Approximately 27 years ago, Ken and Windsor became foster parents for the City of Virginia Beach – a calling they couldn’t resist. Today Ken serves on 4 non-profit boards, ranging from domestic violence, child abuse, education, and foundations. Ken says “I have had an incredibly blessed life, and I know what it means to give back.”
