Feb 3, 2020 | Press releases, Staying on Top
Ten at the Top is pleased to announce the addition of 20 new board members for the 2020-2022 term. Many of them (pictured at right) participated in the TATT New Board Member orientation on January 27th. They join existing members to form the governing board for the 10-county non-profit organization.
New Members to the TATT board are:
Justin Benfield, CEO, Prisma Health Laurens County Hospital
Derham Cole, Associate Vice Chancellor for Finance & Administration, USC Upstate
Dr. Galen DeHay, Preisdent, Tri-County Technical College
Jeff Field, Executive Director, Laurens County Water & Sewer Commission
David Hammond, Marketing Specialist, Laurens Electric Cooperative
Dr. Eli Hestermann, Executive Dir., Furman University Institute for the Advancement of Community Health
Missy House, City Administrator, City of Inman
Heather Jones, Chief Executive Officer, Greenwood Partnership Alliance
Mustan Kapasi, President, Kapasi Glass
Kyra Lobbins, Associate Deputy Chief of Staff, Clemson University
Mark McKinney, General Manager, Cintas Corporation
Adela Mendoza, President & CEO, Hispanic Alliance
Amanda Munyan, President, Laurens County Chamber of Commerce
Michael Nail, Attorney, Ogletree, Deakins Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.
Carlos Phillips, President & CEO, Greenville Area Chamber of Commerce
Tim Self, Executive Director, AnMed Health Foundation
Allen Smith, President & CEO, Spartanburg Area Chamber of Commerce
Annie Smith, Marketing & Development Director, USC Union
Wendy Walden, Associate Vice President for Executive Affairs, Greenville Technical College
John Wright Jr., Principal, McCoy Wright Commercial Real Estate
The TATT Board of Directors is composed of public, private and civic leaders from across the 10-county Upstate region. TATT board members are charged with representing the region and their community in fostering trust and collaboration across the region on issues of regional significance, serving as an advocate for regional thinking within their specific city or county, assisting TATT in engaging elected officials, business and community leaders, and supporting general organizational functions.
Jan 13, 2020 | Press releases, Staying on Top
During the final Ten at the Top (TATT) board of directors meeting of 2019, the board unanimously selected Terence Roberts to serve as the Chair of the Ten at the Top board of directors for 2020–2021. Roberts is a founding board member of Ten at the Top, is the Mayor of the City of Anderson, and also owns a State Farm Agency in the Upstate. Roberts replaces Sue Schneider, CEO of Spartanburg Water, who will move into the role of Immediate Past Chair.
David Feild, Market President for Colliers International, was selected to serve as Vice Chair. Feild has been on the board since 2016. Todd Horne, Vice President of Business Development for Clayton Construction Company, has been on the TATT board since 2014 and will serve as Secretary/Treasurer. D.J. Doherty, who joined the board in 2017, will serve as Chair of the Development Committee. Doherty is a partner in Mavin Construction.
For a complete list of Ten at the Top’s board of directors, click here.
Jan 7, 2020 | Press releases, Staying on Top, Uncategorized
Upstate, SC [January 6, 2020] – Ten at the Top (TATT) has announced the addition of Michael Hildebrand as the first Director of the Upstate Mobility Alliance, which has been created following the Connecting Our Future Mobility initiative.
A two-year effort coordinated by Ten at the Top that brought together transportation providers, business leaders, and nonprofit representatives around the issue of mobility in the Upstate, Connecting Our Future included the development of the Upstate Mobility Vision and identified a number of opportunities for collectively supporting mobility efforts across the region. Formation of the Upstate Mobility Alliance was a key recommendation provided during the process.
The Upstate Mobility Alliance Director will be a prominent voice illustrating the valuable role mobility plays in the overall success of the Upstate while also promoting collaboration and community investment around mobility initiatives. He will lead the daily operation of the Upstate Mobility Alliance, coordinate the efforts of the Alliance leadership team and strategic task forces, and work to advance the vision for improved transportation and mobility in the Upstate.
“We are excited to have Michael Hildebrand join our Upstate Mobility Alliance team,” says Keith Scott, director of Anderson’s Electric City Transit and co-chair of the Upstate Mobility Alliance’s leadership committee. “He will be a prominent voice illustrating the valuable role mobility plays in the overall success of the Upstate, while also promoting collaboration and community investment around mobility initiatives. Michael is highly motivated, engaging, and able to build connections with a wide range of stakeholders. The Upstate Mobility Alliance is looking forward to Michael helping us take our initiative to the next level of success.”
Though not a native of South Carolina, Hildebrand has spent his entire adult life in the region. He began a career in law enforcement with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, working from a beat cop to the Lieutenant of Public Affairs. After fifteen years of service, Michael transitioned into the healthcare field, working as the Chief of Staff and Communications Director for the Greenville Health System, later Prisma Health. Additionally, Michael served as the President of the Greenville Health Authority and is on the board of the International Ballet. Hildebrand holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and an MBA in international management from Columbia Southern University.
About the Upstate Mobility Alliance
The Upstate Mobility Alliance is a coalition of public, private, and community partners who are committed to fulfilling the Upstate Mobility Vision. This vision is that the Upstate will be a vibrant and connected region, where transportation policy and investments promote innovation, sustainable development, and economic prosperity for all residents and businesses. The ultimate success for the Alliance will be an Upstate region with greater access to transportation choices for all residents and easy movement of people and goods across the region. Membership in the Upstate Mobility Alliance is open to any individual or organization in Upstate SC that shares the vision of creating a more vibrant and connected region.
For more information please visit www.UpstateMobilityAlliance.org.
Nov 25, 2019 | Community Vibrancy, Press releases, Staying on Top
The Powdersville Business Council for their Rhythm on the River event and Main Street Laurens for the Piedmont Blues and Roots Music Festival were the $5,000 recipients of the 2019 Hughes Investments Elevate Upstate Grants as announced by Phil Hughes during Ten at the Top’s 10th anniversary event on November 20th. Hughes also pledged to give $1,000 each to the other three finalists if they complete their proposed projects.
Gordon Brush of the Powdersville Business Council accepts the Elevate Upstate Grant for Rhythm on the River from Phil Hughes of Hughes Investments
Rhythm on the River, a community event designed to bring families and businesses together in the Powdersville community, will take place on May 2, 2020, at Dolly Cooper Park with family activities, music, and food trucks.
Piedmont Blues and Roots Music Festival will take place in downtown Laurens on May 9, 2020, celebrating the Piedmont Blues music that has roots in Laurens.
The other three finalists were A Common Thread: Textiles Past and Present (Arts Center of Greenwood), Trains on Main (Main Street Clinton SC), and Peg Leg Bates Dance Showcase (City of Fountain Inn).
The five finalists were chosen from a total of 23 applications submitted for the two grants available in 2019. Hughes Investments contributes at least $10,000 per year to the program with two recipients each year receiving $5,000 to support a new vibrancy initiative in the Upstate. The program began in 2013 in conjunction with a series of Community Vibrancy Workshops hosted by Ten at the Top. Since the inception of the grants program, Hughes Investments has contributed a total of $93,000 to 29 community vibrancy initiatives across the Upstate.
Nov 22, 2019 | Press releases, Staying on Top
Dr. Fay Sprouse, Superintendent of the Ware Shoals 51 School District, received the Burdette Leadership Award for demonstrating “service over self” throughout her career.
During Ten at the Top’s Celebrating Successes Brunch on Wednesday, November 20, Ware Shoals School District Superintendent Dr. Fay Sprouse and BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina were recognized for contributions to enhancing the Upstate region. Sprouse received the Burdette Leadership Award while BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina was recognized with the Welling Award for Regional Collaboration.
This marks the fourth year of the Burdette Leadership Award and is given in recognition of Carol Burdette, the first female chair of Ten at the Top. It honors women who have both served and led across the Upstate. Previous recipients of the Burdette Award are Minor Shaw, Dr. Becky Campbell and SC Representative Chandra Dillard.
Scott Graves, President, Private Business Division at BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, accepted the Welling Award for Regional Collaboration on behalf of BlueCross BlueShield.
The Welling Award for Regional Collaboration, named after Ten at the Top founding chairman Irv Welling, recognizes individuals who have demonstrated longstanding involvement in encouraging collaboration across jurisdictional and stakeholder boundaries. Previous recipients of the Welling Award include Erwin Maddrey, Phil Hughes, GSP International Airport, Dean Hybl, Minor Shaw, Carol Burdette, Rick Danner, Terence Roberts and Bobby Hitt.
In addition, Ten at the Top recognized companies and organizations celebrating milestone anniversaries in 2019 as Max Metcalf from BMW Manufacturing, which is celebrating 25 years in the Upstate, provided a celebratory toast. These companies and organizations are an integral part of the Upstate’s rich history and have each played a role in making our regional community a great place to live, learn, do business, and raise a family.
Celebrating Successes is an annual event presented by BlueCross and BlueShield of South Carolina. Ten at the Top annually hosts public forums, workshops and other events across the Upstate on issues of regional significance with the overarching goal of building consensus, encouraging regional thinking, and enabling leaders to set aside parochial priorities in order to address critical challenges and visualize opportunities for the future.
This year’s event was particularly special for Ten at the Top as the non-profit celebrated 10 years in the Upstate. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster served as the keynote speaker for the event.
Nov 19, 2019 | Human Potential, Press releases, Staying on Top
November 19th, 2019 [Greenville, SC]—As part of an ongoing series addressing issues facing seniors in the Upstate, Ten at the Top will be hosting a workshop 
focused on non-medical home care needs on Tuesday, December 3rd from 9:30-11:00 a.m. The session, which is free and open to the public, will be held in the Park 37 Community Building located at 250 Executive Center Drive in Greenville. Coffee and light refreshments will be served.
With the number of Upstate residents over the age of 65 projected to rise from roughly 12% of the total population in 2010 to more than 25% by 2030, the Ten at the Top Senior Issues Committee is focusing on educating and raising awareness amongst community stakeholders around important issues facing our seniors today and into the future.
Surveys repeatedly show a majority of seniors prefer to live at home, even if that means living alone. In fact, the portion of homeowners across the country over the age of 65 has been increasing in recent years. Seniors who choose to age in their homes can face unforeseen challenges with home maintenance, isolation from the community, and vulnerability to fraudulent scams. The workshop panelists will cover a range of topics relating to these issues.
The panel will be moderated by James Bennett, Owner and Manager of Upstate Homecare Solutions. Panelists are Dorinne Dubois, Homecare Manager, Appalachian Council of Governments; Vee Daniel, President & CEO, Better Business Bureau of the Upstate; Annette Cook, Director of Senior Adult Ministries, Christ Church Episcopal; and Dayle Stewart, Assistant Director, Rebuild Upstate.
James Bennett, Owner of Upstate Homecare Solutions, hopes to encourage participation in this event and stresses the importance of this issue, saying, “Data has already proven that people are living longer than ever before. Aging in place is not only the most desired option for seniors but it’s also the most effective way for seniors to age in place with dignity and grace. Now is the time to think about and plan for long-term care as it pertains to your senior relatives. Join us as we take a deep dive and discuss the current issues surrounding home care for seniors and hopefully provide you with a game plan to help your senior family members live out the best of their golden years!”
This is the fourth and final senior issues workshop to be hosted by Ten at the Top in 2019. The workshop series is sponsored by Upstate Homecare Solutions and the Better Business Bureau of the Upstate.
Though there is no cost to attend the workshop, advanced registration is requested. You can click here to learn more about the workshop and register.
