meet the board
Our Board of Directors is comprised of diverse, experienced, and service-driven individuals
committed to bettering the lives of all those in our community through kindness, dedication,
and individualized support.
Our HUGCLT Executive Board isn't just a group of like-minded individuals with mutual goals;
We're a family. And together, we know in our hearts that there is nothing we can't accomplish.
Paul's pronouns are he/him/his. He currently leads a consulting practice at his company Praesulis where he is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer. He is also a Global Director of Technical Solutions Engineering at Tanium, where he is an expert at helping information technology and security teams understand and prioritize the risks and threats facing their organization.
He serves communities in different ways and does everything in his power to make a huge impact through volunteering and material support. He brings decades of governance and board experience to organizations including the Boy Scouts of America and Farewell to Summer Foundation.
Paul currently resides in Eugene, OR and Charlotte, NC spending about half the year in each residence. Paul attended the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He is the Dog Dad to Gretchen Wieners - a long haired miniature dachshund.
PAUL KELLY
CO-CHAIR
Greg (He/Him/His) is one of the founders of Legacy Real Estate Advisors, LLC. He is actively involved in the Mecklenburg County Architectural Review Committee, to which he has been appointed to annually since 1999. His duties include selecting and reviewing Architects and Engineers for city-council projects.
Greg has recently concluded his 3-year term on the RAIN Board; however, he still plays an integral role for the Regional Aids Interfaith Network as one of the main advisors and board members overseeing The Havens – a housing complex providing access to safe and affordable housing for people experiencing homelessness who are living with HIV or other disabilities.
Greg currently serves as the HUGCLT Co-Chair, and he is incredibly proud and excited to lead this organization into the future with it’s unlimited potential!
GREG GODLEY
CO-CHAIR
Tracee is a CPA and was appointed to the HB1 Executive Board of Directors as Treasurer in April 2021. Outside of her HB1 responsibilities, she is a VP of Finance in the Healthcare IT industry and has over 15 years of Accounting and Finance experience, 7 of which are with nonprofits.
She is passionate about giving back and serving the underserved. Her favorite role with the foundation is spending time with the encampment hotel clients and getting to know them and their story. There is no greater reward than seeing their smiling faces and giving them comfort in knowing someone cares.
Tracee hails from Georgia and is a huge UGA football fan. She moved to Charlotte with her husband, Thomas, in 2011 and they have two boys, Jakob (13) and Simon (8), and a morkie named Stanlee, who was named after the late Stan Lee.
TRACEE KARLSSON
TREASURER
Moving to Charlotte from Vermont in 2002, Bethany has called the Queen City home for the past 19 years. Also known throughout the Queen City as DJ Little Betty, she’s taken pride in using her connections and experiences to help provide resources, develop programs, and raise funds & awareness for numerous causes.
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Bethany was recently appointed as the Vice-Chair of the Homeless Services Network (HSN), and has held titles and regularly volunteered for numerous organizations such as the Special Olympics, the Humane Society of Charlotte, RAIN, Time Out Youth, HRC, United Way, and countless other groups. She is incredibly proud to join Randall Hitt and the Homeless Services Network as Vice-Chair and is eager to continue the work of this amazing organization providing education, support, and resources to those that support our incredible community of houseless brothers and sisters.
BETHANY MCDONALD
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Chad Turner serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer at Carolinas LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce, formerly known as the Charlotte LGBT Chamber of Commerce. Prior to that appointment, he served as chair of the board of directors for seven years. Under his leadership the chamber has seen exponential growth by regionalizing through North and South Carolina, adding more than five hundred members, forty corporate partners and opening offices in Charlotte.
Chad also serves as co-founder of the Charlotte Small Business Coalition, which represents more than thirty-five thousand small businesses throughout the region. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resources Management and is designated as a Senior Professional of Human Resources (SPHR).
Prior to becoming the President of CLGBTCC, he worked in the corporate sector as a VP of Human Resources and Human Resources Business Partner. For more than fifteen years Chad worked closely with companies to assist them in meeting their DEI and supplier goals. Today, Chad frequently provides training as a facilitator, speaker and clinician in diversity, equity, inclusion, LGBT+ issues and organizational development. Chad lives in Charlotte with his husband, Nate.
CHAD TURNER
VICE CHAIR
Steven has always found people’s journeys intriguing. He believes your story is worth telling and worth being heard. Steven has always had a “crush” on humanity and he believes the diversity of culture, customs and lifestyles are what make life great.
Steven also firmly believes in using his personal journey - the ups and downs of life, from religion to spirituality, and the wisdom nuggets he has gained from being fascinated by sitting with the humanness of people - as a guide to leave people and places better than he found them. There is a deep calling within his soul to help people heal, and break destructive life cycles. Steven believes in connecting community with the intention of making this world a more beautiful place.
Love always wins.
STEVEN TILLEY
ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
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Jessica Lefkowitz is the Executive Director of Hearts for the Invisible Charlotte Coalition. In this role, she is responsible for strategically coordinating homeless street outreach practices, case management, and housing navigation for individuals who are currently unhoused.
In addition, she case manages previously homeless residents in three shared living Hearts Houses. Her mission is ending socio economic and racial inequities to housing for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Jessica Lefkowitz received her Bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.