Governor Perdue Announces Executive Appointments

ATLANTA - Governor Sonny Perdue announced today the following executive appointments.

Board of Community Affairs

Walter "Walt" R. Huntley, Jr., 56, Atlanta, GA, Fifth Congressional District Representative (REAPPOINTMENT) - Huntley is president of Huntley & Associates, L.L.C., a community and economic development firm specializing in public/private development projects.  He is the former president of the Atlanta Economic Development Corporation (now Atlanta Development Authority) where he served for 10 years.  He is a member of the Atlanta Rotary Club and the Regional Leadership Institute. He earned a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's degree in urban studies from Trinity University . Huntley has been honored as a Brisbane Fellow at Morehouse College , a Brackenridge Fellow at Trinity University and a Community Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  Huntley and his wife, Lynn, have one child.

J. Billy Croker, 69, Cedartown , GA , At Large Representative (REAPPOINTMENT) - Croker has served as chairman of the Polk County Board of Commissioners for nine years.  He has also served as the chairman of the Coosa Valley Regional Development Center and as chairman of the Council of Chief Elected Officials of northwest Georgia for four years.  He is the current president of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia where he has also served on the Board of Managers.  Croker is a member of the West Georgia Regional Water Authority, the Polk County Chamber of Commerce and a past member of the Polk County Water Authority.  Croker and his wife, Pat, have two children.

Board of Directors of the Georgia Technology Authority

J. Tillman Douglas, Jr., 38, Atlanta , GA , Member - Douglas is president of Douglas Sales Company, Inc.  Previously, he worked in the fields of marketing and sales for The Robinson-Humphrey Company and assisted in establishing the retail investment-banking program of BankSouth.  He has extensive experience with technology start-ups, having worked with Interweb, Cammunity.com and iTendant.  He is a member of the Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and serves on its Small Business Council.  He is a graduate of Leadership Midtown and a member of the Midtown Alliance.  Douglas was honored as one of the Atlanta Business Chronicle's “50 under 40.” He earned a bachelor's degree in marketing from the University of Georgia .  He and his wife, Holly, have one child and one on the way.

Children and Youth Coordinating Council

Barbara Woods Strain, 52, Cornelia , GA , At Large Representative - Strain serves on the board of directors of Regions Bank.  She is retired from Shield Reality where she served as a co-owner and broker.  She has extensive experience in the education field, including several years working with the Ninth District Headstart program.  Strain is a member of the board of directors of the Habersham County Chamber of Commerce and chairman of the Chamber's governmental affairs committee.  She is also a member of board of directors of the Habersham County Rotary Club, and serves as the program chairman.  In 1999, she started Project R.E.A.L., an education project for inmates incarcerated at the Lee Arrendale State Prison.  Strain has won several awards for her service, including the Lee Arrendale Vocation Excellence Award from the Habersham County Rotary Club and the International Community Service Award for Project R.E.A.L. from Rotary International.  She and her husband, Edward, have one child.

Georgia Medical Center Authority

Patrick "Pat" G. Blanchard, 62, Augusta , GA - Blanchard is the president and chief executive officer of Georgia-Carolina Bancshares, Inc. and serves as the vice chairman of its subsidiary, First Bank of Georgia .  Previously, he served as president of Georgia Bank & Trust Company of Augusta and was recognized as a founder and principle organizer of the bank.  Blanchard serves as chairman emeritus of the Business Advisory Council at Georgia Southern University's College of Business Administration and has served as chairman of the board of directors of the Georgia Southern University Foundation, Inc. He is a former chairman of the board of the Richmond-Columbia County Unit of the American Cancer Society and has served on the state board of directors of the American Cancer Society.  He is also a past president of the Richmond-Columbia County Division of the American Heart Association and the East Central Region of the American Lung Association.  Blanchard is a member of the Augusta Rotary Club and was honored as a “Paul Harris Fellow” by Rotary International.  He earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Georgia Southern University and was later inducted into the College of Business Administration 's Hall of Fame.  Blanchard and his wife, Gwen, have two grown children.

William "Bill" G. Brundage, Ph.D., 70, Savannah , GA - Brundage is an economic development consultant currently working with the Herty Foundation.  He previously served as commissioner of Kentucky 's Office for the New Economy, where he helped to create a partnership between business, academia and government for the purpose of making strategic investments in target opportunity areas that could be restructured to meet modern economic needs.  Brundage also founded the consulting firm American Innovation, Inc. as a vehicle to assist the Kansas City Area Development Council with its SmartTec Initiative.  Brundage served as an associate professor in the Department of Veterinary Science at Louisiana State University and in the Department of Microbiology at the University of Southern Mississippi .  Brundage earned a bachelor's degree from Northwestern State University and a doctorate in microbiology from Louisiana State University .  Brundage and his wife, Glenda, have two grown children and a granddaughter.

State Board of Barbers

Virgil D. Ergle, 60, Lilburn, GA, Barber Representative (REAPPOINTMENT) - Ergle is the owner and operator of Master of Styles.  He is a licensed barber and currently serves as the vice-chair on the State Board of Barbers.  Ergle and his wife, Debbie, have two children.