Board of Directors

Christin Waters is originally from Franklin, TN, and graduated from the University of Mississippi. In 2008, she moved to Meridian, MS after marrying her husband, Josh Waters. The couple has a daughter named Callie who is currently nine years old. Christin has held employment at Benefits Management Group, American Cancer Society, Anderson Regional Health System,

Melanie Powell is the Executive Director of the Women’s Foundation of Mississippi. With over 25 years of experience in nonprofit management, Powell offers a unique blend of leadership, vision, and knowledge. In 2022, she was selected as the Executive Director of the Community Foundation of Washington County. She previously served as Executive Director of the

Keith Fulcher is the President of the Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi, where he is spearheading the Foundation’s bold initiative to grow its assets to $50 million by 2028. He joined the Foundation in 2019 following a distinguished 23-year career at Delta State University, where he held key leadership roles including Director of Development, Executive

Vickie Powell is the Senior Vice President of Foundations at the Mississippi Economic Council (MEC), bringing over 25 years of experience in proposal development, grant writing, program management, and implementation. Her career also spans human resources, business development, and corporate affairs, making her a versatile and accomplished leader in both the nonprofit and private sectors.

Michael Dixon serves as the Executive Director of the Pinebelt Foundation, a community foundation that has distributed more than $25 million in grants to support philanthropic efforts across the region. Prior to this role, he served as Director of Extra Table, a nonprofit dedicated to fighting hunger in Mississippi. In 2007, Michael founded Ekklesia Hattiesburg,

Marcus Ward is the Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Alcorn State University and Executive Director of the ASU Foundation, Inc., where he leads fundraising, alumni relations, and government affairs for the nation’s oldest historically Black land-grant university. Since 2010, Marcus and his team have raised more than $15 million in scholarships, programmatic, and operational

Dr. Portia Ballard Espy is President and CEO of the Mississippi Urban League, Incorporated, an organization with a mission to help African Americans and others in Mississippi’s historically underserved communities to gain their highest true social parity, economic self-reliance, power, and civil rights. The MS Urban League achieves its mission via programs that focus on health, justice, jobs, education, and housing.

Dr. Espy has vast executive-level experience in manufacturing, energy, aerospace, and nonprofit sectors. She has worked as an executive in human resources management, grants management, and external affairs for several companies, including Pellerin Milnor Corporation, subsidiaries of Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell Offshore, Inc.; Shell Chemical Company; and Shell Corporation), Entergy (Entergy Corporation and Entergy Mississippi, Inc.), and Raytheon Aerospace.

She later entered the nonprofit sector to serve as Associate Director at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Mid-South Delta Initiative, Chief Administrative Officer at the Children’s Defense Fund – Southern Regional Office, and both Director of Community Building and Executive director of the William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation (now known as the Alluvial Collective). Dr. Espy was instrumental in the Winter Institute’s transition from its original home at the University of Mississippi and led the effort to establish the organization as an independent 501c3 located in Jackson, Mississippi.

Dr. Espy is a native of Franklinton, Louisiana, and a graduate of Franklinton High School. She obtained a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration from Jackson State University and a certificate in nonprofit management from Harvard Kennedy School in May of 2021. Dr. Espy also holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications from Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and an M.B.A. from Loyola University of New Orleans.
After receiving a B.S. Degree from Mississippi State University, Mike then graduated from the Institute for Organization Management at the University of Georgia, and the National Planned Giving Institute at the College of William & Mary.

During his twenty four years as President of CREATE, over $196 Million in contributions have been made to the organization. This represents 94% of the total contributions in the organization’s 48 year history. Total assets have increased from $13.9 million to over $146 million during this same period.

Charles Lindsay, CPA, Shareholder and namesake of Matthews, Cutrer & Lindsay, P.A., brings more than 40 years of public accounting experience to the firm. He provides tax, audit, and advisory services to a diverse client base, including individuals, closely held businesses, and nonprofit organizations. As leader of the firm’s nonprofit practice, Charles has extensive experience

Lloyd Gray serves as Executive Director of The Phil Hardin Foundation, a statewide education philanthropy based in Meridian, Mississippi. Since joining the foundation in 2015, he has led its efforts to improve educational outcomes and expand opportunities for Mississippians across the state. Prior to his work in philanthropy, Lloyd spent four decades in journalism as