Board of Directors
|
Scott TaylorChairman of the Board of Directors, Vice President Scott Taylor is vice president and chairman of Abbey's Hope Charitable Foundation. Scott and his wife, Katey, are parents of four daughters, one of whom is Abbey Taylor. On June 29, 2007, 6-year-old Abbey was disemboweled by a faulty drain in a wading pool. Over the next nine months she would endure 16 surgeries and a triple-organ transplant, before finally losing her battle in March 2008. Abbey's hope was that what happened to her would never happen to another child. In her name, the Taylors formed Abbey's Hope Charitable Foundation in July 2008. Scott has worked in the financial communications industry for more than 19 years. Currently, he is vice president, sales for the Merrill Corporation. Previously, he worked as a sales executive at R.R. Donnelley. Prior to that, he served as the senior vice president of sales for Bowne & Co. He worked at Merrill in an earlier stint as an account manager and project manager. Scott attended Minnesota State University at Mankato, studying business marketing and industrial psychology. Scott has volunteered with several local nonprofit charitable organizations, including Children's HeartLink, Child Guidance Program at Washburn Center for Children, and Saint Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church. Additionally, he has been very active in local fundraising by attending and donating to several charitable events each year, including Children's Cancer Research Fund, and the Children's Miracle Network among others.
Katey TaylorPresident Katey Taylor is president and co-founder of the Abbey's Hope Charitable Foundation. Katey had been a "typical" stay-at-home mom until June 29, 2007. It was on that summer evening that one of her four daughters, 6-year-old Abbey, was disemboweled by a faulty drain in a wading pool. Over the next nine months Abbey would endure 16 surgeries and a triple-organ transplant, before finally losing her battle in March 2008. Abbey's hope was that what happened to her would never happen to another child. In her name, the Taylors formed Abbey's Hope Charitable Foundation in July 2008. To fulfill Abbey's legacy, Katey and her husband, Scott, work to advocate for children and to educate parents, community leaders and others of the dangers in and around pools. Katey has a Bachelor of Science degree in family education, child protection and public health from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. In December 2008, Katey received her Certified Pool/Spa Operator (CPO) certification from the National Swimming Pool Foundation. She serves on the Advisory Board of Minnesota SafeKids, is a member of the National Drowning Prevention Alliance, and a member of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits.
Kim EssTreasurer Kimberly Ess is the Treasurer and a director of the Foundation. She is currently the Chief Operating Officer of Halleland Lewis Nilan & Johnson P.A., a mid-sized law firm in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For more than ten years, Kim has been in charge of the everyday operations of the firm, including the areas of Finance, Human Resources, Information Systems, Marketing, Office Services and Research Systems. She is directly involved in strategic plan development and implementation, short and long-term financial planning, and hiring decisions. Prior to joining Halleland Lewis, Kim was a Certified Public Accountant in the Audit and Small Business Services Departments of Boulay, Heutmaker, Zibell & Co. PLLP in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Her experience includes rendering interim accounting and tax planning for various sized businesses, providing controllership services on a short-term or transitory basis specializing in general ledger management, internal accounting procedures, payroll, employee benefit plan administration, financial statement preparation and analysis, and coordinating various attestation engagements for non-profit companies. Kim received her Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Minnesota State University at Mankato and graduated Magna Cum Laude. She became a licensed CPA in 1993, although her CPA license is currently inactive.
|
Andy OlsenBoard Member Berthel A. Olsen (Andy) is a director of the Foundation. Andy is a cofounder of Carlson Olsen Financial Partners, a financial and investment planning firm. He has been in the financial services industry since 1997, beginning his career with RBC Wealth Management. Prior to 1997, Andy spent three years with Arthur Andersen & Company in the small business consulting division and 14 years with Kimberly Clark Corporation in finance and brand management/marketing. His 25-plus years of diverse business and life experiences give him the ability to look at issues differently, ask the right questions and ultimately provide a well-rounded approach to creating the "right solutions" for clients based upon needs in a given situation. His philosophy is built around doing the "next right thing" for his clients, acting with independence and integrity always. Andy has earned designations as both a Certified Financial Planner and an Accredited Asset Management Specialist. As a believer in ongoing continued life learning, he has recently begun working on his Certified Management Investment Consultant designation through The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Lee CoddingBoard Member As a northern California native; Lee Codding grew up enjoying the San Francisco Bay Area as well as visiting vineyards and wineries with family. After studying Agricultural Business at Cal Poly it was natural to find a path to the wine business in San Francisco. There, he learned the fine wine trade and met his future wife Kristin, a native Minnesotan. After many years in marketing and sales with a distributor, importer, online retailer, and then vintner with Talbott Vineyards in Carmel Valley California, a young family meant it was time for a change. Codding moved with his family to Kristin's home state of Minnesota and settled in Edina. There he returned to the wine distribution business, managing World Class Wines, Inc. sourcing wines from around the globe to sell to retailers and restaurateurs in MN. Upon the acquisition of that firm by the newly formed Southern Wine & Spirits of Minnesota, Codding joined the new company as Director of Portfolio and Trade Development. Codding joined the board of Directors for Abbey's Hope Foundation in 2011. He lives in Edina, Minnesota with his wife and three boys where he is involved in a number of community and charitable groups as well as Cub Scouts. He enjoys travel with and without the kids, community, cooking, skiing, football, reading, and of course wine.
Senator Geoff MichelBoard Member Senator Michel is currently serving his third term in the Minnesota Senate. Geoff is the current chair of the Senate Jobs and Economic Growth Committee, Chair of the Subcommittee on Redistricting, Vice Chair of the Taxes Committee representing District 41 (Edina), and a member of the Rules Committee. He is also a Co-Chair for the Early Childhood Caucus and the Cancer Caucus. |
Rebecca Sandberg
