Ben Markham:              President, Director and Chairman

Qualifications:                  Ben Markham spent 31 years with ExxonMobil in various technical and executive positions. Before retiring, Ben was vice-president of engineering for ExxonMobil Research and Engineering. During this time he managed an internal organization of over 1,000 engineers and five satellite organizations in four countries. During his recent 18-month stay in Ghana, he and Julie Markham developed the concept behind Empower Playgrounds.

Duties:                             •   Develop and retain a team of key employees with the collective skills and experience to accomplish the Foundation’s strategic goals.   •  Lead the staff by example and continuously motivating them to improve their performance and to develop their skills for the benefit of the organization.   •  Work with the Board of Directors and staff to develop a clearly understood—and commonly shared—vision of the Foundation’s mission and how it will be accomplished.   •  Function as the ultimate executive authority in day-to-day business affairs.   •  Provide regular reports to the Board about the overall performance of the organization.   •  Work with the staff and Board to establish and manage an appropriate annual budget.

Julie Markham:             Director and Vice-President

Qualifications:                  Julie Markham has been a life-long educator of art, music, and other topics in professional, church, and home settings. She is also an accomplished pianist and organist. She has broad global experience having traveled extensively in Asia, Europe, and Africa. During her recent 18-month stay in Ghana, she and Ben Markham developed the concept behind Empower Playgrounds.

Duties:                             Carry out duties and responsibilities as directed by the President. Guide and direct Foundation executive officers in its work and mission. Regularly attend and participate in meetings. Serve on executive and audit committees.

Brent McQuarrie:         Director, Secretary, and Treasurer

Qualifications:                  Brent has extensive business experience as a commercial and residential developer, having developed over a dozen different developments. For over 20 years, Brent has sat on the Executive, Audit, and Corporate Governance Committees of Downey Savings,  the largest thrift headquartered in Orange County with assets in excess of $15.5 billion with over 170 branches in California and Arizona. He has worked extensively with other nonprofits, including his own family foundation. He holds a bachelor’s in Business Finance.

Duties:                             Guide and direct Foundation executive officers in its work and mission. Regularly attend and participate in meetings. Serve on executive and audit committees. Maintain oversight of corporate minute book and financial accounting.

Jeffrey Markham:          Director

Qualifications:                  Dr. Jeffrey Markham has a B.S. in human biology and an M.D. He is currently completing a subspecialty in diagnostic radiology at the University of Texas Southwestern. In the past he managed a biophysics research laboratory at Brigham Young University. Dr. Markham has previous experience working with West African refugees living in Germany.

Duties:                             Guide and direct Foundation executive officers in its work and mission. Regularly attend and participate in meetings. Serve on executive and audit committees.

Mitchell James:             Director

Qualifications:                  Mitchell James, an engineer for L-3 Communications, has 25 years of extensive experience developing and deploying high risk, technically challenging products, including military flight applications. He has also managed multiple engineering teams, developing and teaching various system engineering processes.

Duties:                             Guide and direct Foundation executive officers in its work and mission. Regularly attend and participate in meetings. Serve on executive and audit committees.

Geoffrey Germane:        Director

Qualifications:                  Geoffrey Germane has a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering and taught engineering as a Brigham Young University professor for over 20 years. He currently owns and operates Germane Engineering, which provides accident analysis services to auto manufacturers and insurance companies. Geoff coached a team of BYU engineering students that developed the Empower Playgrounds merry-go-round prototype.

Duties:                             Guide and direct Foundation executive officers in its work and mission. Regularly attend and participate in meetings. Serve on executive and audit committees.