SBDC

Dave Terry is a serial entrepreneur who has organically grown and sold two professional service companies. Currently, Dave is the President and Founder of Terry Commercial Realty, LLC (TCR), which focuses on sustainable development, investment properties, downtown districts and mixed-use community centers in the North Georgia area.

In his prior venture, Dave was the Co-Founder of Mediacurrent, one of the leading Drupal-based digital agencies in the world. Dave has a wide acumen of operations related experience including business development, company culture, marketing, hiring, managing profit/loss, and goal setting. 

Additionally, Dave was Co-Founder and President of Invesearch, an Atlanta-based financial staffing firm. Dave was one of the youngest sellers of a multi-million dollar staffing firm in the history of Georgia.

Dave graduated from Valdosta State University (VSU) with a Major in Political Science and Minors in History and International Studies. Currently, Dave is a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI), CCIM Institute, Main Street America, Georgia Downtown Association, and the Fannin and Pickens County Chamber of Commerce.

Owner of Dos Margaritas Mexican Restaurant. Ambercompleted her Masters in accounting and undergraduatedegree in business at Georgia State University. Currentlyowns and operates 2 full service restaurants and 2 mobilerefreshment trucks. She is an ambassador for the PickensCounty Chamber of Commerce, serve on the TourismCommittee, and belong to the Small Business Council ofPickens County.

Her career in the restaurant business started as a youngchild when her parents opened their first restaurant. After college she worked for Longhorn Steakhouse for 10years. Her roles at Longhorn were: sales manager, staffingand training manager, and Managing Partner. Amber hasexperienced the challenges and gratifications first hand ofoperating a small scale restaurant all the way to openingseveral multimillion-dollar corporate restaurant. At herrestaurants, she provides a space for inclusion that servesthe community as a vital place for connection. She believesbecause food is universal, it provides a commonality forpeople to prepare, eat and enjoy food with friends andfamily. Her goal is to provide an experience that can be thehighlight of someone's day or week. She believes innourishing and delighting every guest with every bite.

Tanner Brumby grew up in Jasper, GA where he was amulti-sport athlete at Pickens High School. He earned a fullscholarship as a student athlete (football) to continue hiseducation at Mercer University, where he successfullydouble majored in Finance and Management.

Tanner began his financial planning practice withNorthwestern Mutual immediately upon graduating from Mercer and has built expertise aroundserving business owners with their personal and corporateplanning. His practice has grown primarily in the real estateand technology sectors.

Tanner has demonstrated success in expanding his practice, attracting and retaining team members, andadvising and mentoring new business owners throughoutthe country. Tanner now resides in Buckhead with his wife,Emalyn, where they are members of Atlanta Westside Presbyterian Church. In their free time, they enjoy fellowshipwith family and friends and the occasional lake day.

Chris is a retired executive with over 36 years of experiencein Sales, Marketing, Strategic Planning, Pricing Strategy and General Management. He started his career as a National Account Executive at Royston Corporation and then movedto Coca-Cola in 1995 where over a 23 year career he heldvarious sales, marketing and strategy roles including VPSales and Marketing and VP of Revenue GrowthManagement. He finished his career in 2023 at theTropicana Brands Group as VP Revenue GrowthManagement and Demand Creation.

Chris earned a BS in Industrial Engineering from Grove City College and an MBA from Emory University Roberto Goizueta School of Business. He currently is a Board Member at the Boys and Girls Club of North Georgia and a Member of the Pickens County Chamber of Commerce. Hispassion is mentoring young adults through the careerplanning process. He provides assistance to them indiscovering their passion and guides them through the jobsearch process. He has created Mentor programs atReinhardt University and Grove City College.As part of the Small Business Development Council Chris isuniquely qualified to assist Small Businesses in thedevelopment and execution of their Business Plan.

A native of Cherokee County, Randy Gravley graduatedfrom Cherokee High School and Reinhardt University(formerly Reinhardt College) prior to completing hiseducation at Kennesaw State University. He is currently President & CEO of Tri-State Communications, Inc. whichincludes divisions of radio, magazine and digital. Involved in a variety of organizations,

Randy serves on the Pickens Chamber of Commerce Boardof Director’s, Sequoyah Regional Library Board of Director’s,History Cherokee Board of Director’s and is the Co-Chair ofthe National Association of Broadcaster’s Political Action Committee. Randy’s past service includes serving asChairman of the Cherokee County Elections Board, member of the A Day for Reinhardt Advisory Board. He is a Past Chair of the Georgia Association of Broadcasters aswell as Past Chairman of the National Association ofBroadcaster’s Radio Board of Directors.

Randy is a proud graduate of both Leadership Pickens and Cherokee as well as a graduate of Leadership Georgia andrecognized by Georgia Trend Magazine as one of Georgia’s40 Under 40.

Amy Leake is the owner of Salon 84. Amy has enjoyed afulfilling career for almost 30 years. She demonstrates apassion for educating the next generation of stylists byoffering a mentorship program within her company. Hercompany has twice received the Small Business of the Yearfrom the Pickens County Chamber of Commerce.

She is eager to share some of the fundamentals andovercoming obstacles with employing Millennials and Generation Z while bridging the gap between the localtechnical college and the work force.

Jim has contributed his expertise to multi-nationalcorporations, local manufacturing firms, and the state of Georgia, primarily specializing in accounting. During histenure as Division Controller at The Georgia Marble Company, John embarked on a parallel path of education,teaching evening classes in accounting, business law, andmanagement at the local technical institute.

With over 18 years of global supply chain experience,Tanner has a proven track record of creating organizationalproductivity and operational efficiencies through optimizingplanning and supply chain fulfillment capabilities. He leadswith integrity and is recognized as a leader, always excitedto build strong teams through collaboration, professionaldevelopment and performance optimization.

Those professional experiences have proven vital in theentrepreneurial space as well. A proud multi-unit operatorwithin the Jersey Mike's Subs platform, they pridethemselves on providing great subs, great customerservice and relentless consistency!

Carissa Parker currently serves as the Career, Technical,and Agriculture Education (CTAE) Director for Pickens County Schools. She also coordinates the Workbased Learning and Youth Apprenticeship programs for the district. She is a proud native of PickensCounty and has been educating students at Pickens High School for over 22 years. Throughout hercareer she has also taught Business Education, Marketing Education, and Special Education. Carissa holdsa Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Kennesaw State University, a Master’s Degree in Special Education from the University of North Georgia, and Specialist Degree in Curriculum and Instruction fromPiedmont College.

Carissa is passionate about preparing students for theirfutures by providing them with opportunities to explore career options and develop both technical and softskills.

Before becoming an educator, Carissa worked in both therestaurant industry and retail sales. While incollege at Kennesaw State University, she was a member ofan award-winning team that created a strategic marketing plan for Carl Black Chevrolet Buick GMC located in Kennesaw, GA. She is excited to use her knowledge and experience to help support smallbusinesses in Pickens County.

John Luke was born and raised in Jasper, Georgia. Aftergraduating from Pickens County High School, he attendedBerry College where he graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in History and Government.

While attending law school at The University of Georgia,John Luke was on the Executive Board of the Mock Trial Team and served as the Closing Argument Coordinator. Healso founded and served as President of the Rural Law Society, a group dedicated to bringing quality legalrepresentation to rural Georgia. He also took part in the Law School’s Prosecution Clinic Program where he worked at the Cobb County Solicitor's office prosecuting DUIs and othermisdemeanors. John Luke has coordinated various politicalcampaigns, including the get-out-the vote effort for a 2008presidential campaign in Arkansas. He has worked internationally interning for the Irish Government in Dublin,Ireland. Locally, John Luke worked many years for hisgrandfather as an installer at Denson Heating and Air. Healso called basketball games for the Pickens Dragons onWYYZ radio in Jasper.

He currently serves as the Vice-President of the Appalachian Bar Association, and as a board member ofthe Development Authority of Pickens County as well as thePickens County Chamber of Commerce.

He attends First Baptist Church of Jasper, and is active invarious community groups across North Georgia.