RICK FRENCH | CHAIRMAN, PRESIDENT & CEO
Rick is arguably one of the nation's highest profile public relations counselors and is a frequent speaker at industry conferences. He is regarded within the industry as a leading expert in consumer marketing, crisis communications and corporate branding, and recently co-authored a book detailing "best practices" in public relations. Prior to forming FWV, Rick served in senior management positions with several large public relations firms, and also worked on the corporate side for both an international chemical company and a national bank holding company. He began his career in Detroit as a print and television journalist. Rick is a graduate of Oakland University and holds a B.A. degree in journalism. He is past vice chairman of the board of directors of Special Olympics North Carolina and helped lead the successful bid to bring the 1999 World Special Olympics Summer Games to the Triangle region. He has held more than a dozen other civic and community board positions and currently serves on the board of directors of the Triangle United Way; the Downtown Raleigh Alliance; and The Greater Raleigh Sports Council, of which he chairs its board of directors. He also sits on the international board of advisors for the Global Water Foundation, a global charity that is committed to helping bring clean water and proper sanitation to underdeveloped parts of the world. Rick is a member of the board of trustees of the internationally renowned Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. In addition, Rick is a national member of the board of directors of The Council of PR Firms, the trade association for the U.S. PR industry, and is past subcommittee chair of the Board of Ethical and Professional Standards for the Public Relations Society of America's 30,000 members worldwide. Rick's other business interests include his participation as a partner and member of the board of directors of Reagan Williams Licensing Group, a $100 million home furnishings and fine arts company headquartered in High Point, N.C.; a partner and member of the board of directors of Vincent Shoes, an international children's shoe company; and owner of the historic Tucker Furniture office and retail complex in downtown Raleigh. In 2001, Rick and a small group of investors bid for and were awarded a South Atlantic League expansion franchise. That minor-league baseball club, a Class A affiliate of the LA Dodgers, played one season in Wilmington, N.C. before it was moved to South Georgia, where it continues to operate today.
JACK GLASURE | CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
Jack is responsible for agency business development, and also provides strategic counsel to a number of clients on a broad range of topics. Prior to helping establish FWV in 1997, he spent 15 years in the oil and gas sector for industry giants Mobil, Chevron, Ashland and Clark. Jack gained valuable corporate experience managing an array of large-scale projects incorporating civil engineering, contract law, construction, retail automation and point-of-sale systems, training, business operations, environmental policies, public affairs, crisis communications and brand management. For the last 12 years, he has been instrumental in developing and executing programs to drive brand awareness for hundreds of products - from boats, blue jeans, rum and restaurants, to race cars, golf clubs, island resorts, home furnishings, books, celebrities, real estate and tourist attractions. He's actively involved on a number of boards and advisory panels, including the University of Florida College of PR, Eckerd College's President's Associates, the University of South Florida, Florida International Museum, Florida Sports Hall of Fame, Raleigh Jazz Walk, the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association. He was recognized in 2006 as a "Who's Who in Travel & Tourism" and in 2007 as "One of Tampa Bay's Ten Most Charitable and Fashionable Men." In 2002, Jack spearheaded and underwrote the first post-9/11 effort to bring Tall Ships from around the world to the United States, attracting over 150,000 people and a flotilla of 3,000 vessels. In his spare time, Jack co-created and executive produced three National Lampoon comedies and published two books on professional and college football.His travel column "One Tank Trips"appears monthly in the Raleigh Dowtowner newspaper that has a readership of over 20,000. He graduated magna cum laude from St. Leo University with a B.A. in business administration and international marketing, and earned an MBA from Nova University. He is currently teaching an evening course on the business of marketing at the North Carolina School of Communication Arts.
DAVID GWYN | EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT & GENERAL MANAGER
David combines extensive consumer promotions, lifestyle public relations and event marketing experience with a broad range of account management skills. He oversees all of FWV's lifestyle and consumer product accounts including Wrangler Jeans, GeneralSports Venue, AstroTurf, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association, Ford Motor Company, Justin Boots, Coca-Cola's tea brand portfolio (Nestea and Gold Peak) and orange juice portfolio (Minute Made and Simply Orange), Gatlinburg, TN, Poyner & Spruill LLC, the North Carolina Beer and Wine Wholesaler's Association and Tweetsie Railroad, among others. As General Manager of the firm's home office in Raleigh, David spends a great deal of time working closely with young associates and effectively managing the office work flow and intra-office activities. Prior to joining the agency, he was a founding partner in a marketing consulting firm that developed and executed programs for Pepsi-Cola Company, BellSouth Mobility, Heinz Pet Foods and BB&T and a $200 million Nabisco Foods Group promotions account. He began his marketing career with Intervisual Communications in New York City, and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master's degree in business from Wake Forest University, and a master's degree in sports and special events marketing from New York University.
LAUREN TAYLOR | EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
Lauren brings 20 years experience in television news and public relations to her position at FWV. In addition to leading the agency's New York office and being a co-founder of FWV, Lauren oversees management of a number of practice areas such as home, fashion, apparel and accessories. She has supported several accounts including VF Corporation, Wrangler, Riders, Wrangler Home, Kasper A.S.L., Diana Vincent Jewelers, Lily of France and Vanity Fair. Lauren has received the prestigious Peabody Award for excellence in television news reporting and is a graduate of Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Communications.
NATALIE BEST | SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT & DIRECTOR OF CLIENT SERVICES
Natalie joined FWV in 2002 with over seven years of public relations and marketing experience including six years in the National Basketball Association. Working for the NBA league office in New York first, and then with the Charlotte Hornets, she handled the day-to-day public and media relations efforts for the Hornets including national media relations for over 100 games per year at venues across the country. Natalie has developed and executed marketing and public relations programs for a wide variety of FWV clients including The Coca-Cola Company (Minute Maid, Nestea, Dasani, Simply Orange), SunTrust Bank, Oakland County, Michigan Office of Economic Development, the Gatlinburg Department of Tourism and GeneralSports Venue. She also served in media relations roles for clients including Wrangler, Ford Motor Company, the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Bureau. Natalie was named by the Triangle Business Journal as a "40 under 40" business leadership award winner in 2007 and was a member of Leadership Raleigh's Class of 2008. She has a B.A. in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. 
CHARLES UPCHURCH | Senior counselCharles has more than 20 years of experience as media relations and brand marketing strategist. A Journalism School graduate of the University of North Carolina, he began his career with GSD&M in Dallas as a writer and PR representative for Southwest Airlines. His résumé includes work for Dallas-based Club Corporation, Perry Ellis Menswear and Thompson Financial in New York. At FWV, he has spearheaded national initiatives on behalf of VF Corporation, Wrangler, Slim Jim, Diageo, Jack Daniels, Astroturf, MarineMax and numerous other corporate and consumer brand clients. Charles works closely with the leading media outlets in the U.S., and has successfully generated coverage for his clients in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, with the Associated Press and on CBS, ABC, MSNBC, CNBC and Fox News, among others.
BARRIE HANCOCK | VICE PRESIDENT
Barrie is responsible for the strategy and oversight of multiple FWV accounts within the consumer marketing practice area. Barrie is instrumental in developing earned media strategies for a number of agency clients including the International Gemological Institute, North Carolina State University and Campbell University School of Law. Barrie has been with FWV since 2000 and prior to joining the agency, was a marketing and communications manager for Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, responsible for developing, implementing and evaluating Fuqua's marketing and communications strategies. A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Connecticut, Barrie completed Duke's Program for Manager Development in 1999.
CHRIS SHIGAS | VICE PRESIDENT
Chris has 15 years of experience in public relations and television broadcast news. He has provided media training and drafted and implemented strategic communication plans for an impressive list of clients including Waffle House, GlaxoSmithKline, RBC Centura, Progress Energy, the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes, the Canadian Postal Service, North Carolina State University and the Triangle Transit Authority. As a television news producer for WRAL-TV in Raleigh, Chris won an Associated Press award for best newscast and has the distinction of producing the first high-definition newscast in the country. He has also worked as a television news producer at WVTM-TV in Birmingham, AL and WSFA-TV in Montgomery, AL. His newscast covering a women's clinic bombing was carried live nationwide on MSNBC. He has also received awards for newscasts covering an F-5 tornado, Hurricane Opal, Hurricane Floyd and a 20-inch blizzard that buried central North Carolina. Chris has a B.A. in Speech Communication from the University of Georgia.
JACQUELINE BURTON | VICE PRESIDENT
With her 20+ years of experience in the home furnishings, construction and lifestyle industries, Jacqueline Burton is known among journalists for her creative leadership and innovation in delivering the right message to the right audience in the most effective way. As the former head of her own agency, she developed a client list of sophisticated products from around the world and continues to be called upon to give foreign companies a dynamic start in the U.S. marketplace. She has developed long-range public relations strategies for giant names such as Bosch, Marimekko, Sony and 3M, handled significant product launches, and has a considerable track record revitalizing brands, including Armstrong Floors and Scotchgard.
WENDY MCCARTHY | VICE PRESIDENT
Wendy's diverse professional experience extends across all aspects of marketing into the consumer products, healthcare, lifestyle, and entertainment industries for clients including Procter & Gamble, Universal Studios, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, St. Joseph's/Candler Health System and more. Previously, she served as marketing director for Integrative Therapeutics, a manufacturer of more than 250 nutritional supplements distributed exclusively through physicians. Wendy helped the company grow into the nation's largest physician-distributed nutritional supplement company in less than two years. During her 10-year career, Wendy has also served in account management roles with Edelman Worldwide and Porter Novelli in Chicago and Curley & Pynn, the Orlando, Fla. Manning, Selvage & Lee affiliate. Wendy graduated magna cum laude from Central Connecticut State University with a B.A. in politics and journalism.
JESSICA O'MAHONY | VICE PRESIDENT
Jessica's diverse career in public relations began more than seven years ago with Ketchum (Atlanta) where she worked primarily with The Home Depot and Georgia-Pacific Building Products. She managed the national long-lead and women's magazine media relations program for both clients, and also served as the account lead for The Home Depot's Southern Division and EXPO Design Center. In these roles, Jessica managed public relations programs and product launches designed to raise company visibility and drive product sales. Her media relations efforts have earned placements for clients with a host of national outlets including The Wall Street Journal, CBS "Early Show" and Associated Press as well as top regional outlets nationwide. Since joining FWV in 2006, she has been responsible for developing and executing marketing and public relations programs for a variety of agency clients including Minute Maid, Wrangler, North Carolina State University and TrustAtlantic Bank. Jessica graduated from Wake Forest University with a major in Communications and a minor in Journalism.
JODY DONOHUE | SENIOR COUNSEL
Jody founded her own New York City PR agency 25 years ago, specializing in fashion, beauty, lifestyle and special events. She has advised and served high profile clients in New York, Paris and Milan. Her clients have included many of the world's top manufacturers and designers - Givenchy, Ferragamo, and Escada - as well as celebrities - Jacqueline de Ribes, Charlotte Ford, and Gloria Vanderbilt. Jody has also worked with mass brands, including Speedo, Swatch and Spiegel, providing expertise in PR and marketing, with a definite focus on fashion. She is a published author, listed in Who's Who, and is a two-time board member of The Fashion Group of New York. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin and has done graduate work at Columbia
GREER BEATY | PUBLIC AND COMMUNITY AFFAIRS DIRECTOR
Greer has extensive experience in North Carolina community and public affairs. As a former public information officer for several state agencies, Greer has worked with media and community organizations in all 100 counties and over 500 municipalities. She joined FWV in 2006 after her tenure with the North Carolina Partnership for Children (NC Smart Start - State Office). Prior to joining Smart Start, Greer was with the North Carolina Department of Commerce for more than six years. During her time at Commerce, she coordinated the Hurricane Floyd Housing Recovery Call Center, and worked on projects such as the Rural Prosperity Task Force and Governor Hunt's Council on Growth public forums as well as Main Street and 21st Century Communities Task Force. Greer is known for successfully reaching North Carolina citizens through media, community organizations, and nontraditional communications channels. She is the former public relations director for the North Carolina Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development and a former staff member with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service. Raised in Rocky Mount, Greer is a former reporter and later managing editor of the Williamston Enterprise and Robersville Weekly Herald, and holds a degree in Communication and Broadcasting from East Carolina University.
CARRIE GRANDITS | GROUP ACCOUNT DIRECTOR
A dynamic public relations specialist, Carrie Grandits has 11 years experience with fashion, beauty and lifestyle media. Her clients have ranged from fashion and accessories to brands within the Procter and Gamble beauty division. She currently manages the Speedo swimwear and activewear account. Carrie has planned high-profile product launches, worked with celebrities and Olympians and has executed successful national and regional retail programs such as opening stores for catalog giant, Coldwater Creek. Carrie's work on behalf of her clients has garnered media placements both nationally and in top markets across the country.
ERIC MINUSKIN | GROUP ACCOUNT DIRECTOR
Eric is a seasoned public relations professional with more than seven years experience focused in brand marketing, media relations and account management, and currently manages multiple clients within our sports and entertainment marketing group. Eric has worked on a wide range of clients including Michelin, Johnson & Johnson, Colgate and Kodak. His experience also extends to a number of celebrity-focused campaigns featuring athletes and entertainers such as Troy Aikman, Walt Frazier and Earl Monroe. Eric previously worked in communications and marketing roles for the New York office of AARP and the University of Delaware. Eric earned his undergraduate degree from the State University of New York at Binghamton and also holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Delaware.
PAIGE PARKER | GROUP ACCOUNT DIRECTOR
Paige is responsible for planning and implementing public relations programs for healthcare and technology clients at FWV. Her account experience includes management of multiple healthcare clients including bioMérieux, New Hope Fertility Center, Pfizer, Structure House, Triangle Orthopaedic Associates and Wellspring. Additionally, Paige oversees media programs for the charitable organization, Global Water Foundation. She has particular expertise in healthcare and trade media relations, physician outreach programs, trade show planning and crisis communications. Paige's work on behalf of her clients has resulted in high-profile media placements in top national outlets including The New York Times, Newsweek, Glamour, Reader's Digest, the Associated Press and "The Today Show." Throughout her career, she has been awarded industry accolades for public relations writing and campaign management. Prior to joining FWV, Paige worked for a business-to-business marketing communications agency, managing technology accounts such as AVX/Kyocera, Siemens and Honeywell. Paige graduated magna cum laude from Appalachian State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications and a minor in Music.
