Board Members

President, and Chair of the Planning and Personnel Committee

Dave MacDonald has more than 30 years of management experience at medical device and technology companies. Prior to joining K2M in 2004, Mr. MacDonald was Vice President of Gould Optronics, Inc., a subsidiary of Japan Energy Corporation, where he had total P&L responsibility. He was also the Director of Operations/Administration for various divisions at both Kirschner Medical Corporation and Biomet. Mr. MacDonald holds a BS degree from James Madison University and an MA in Management from The College of Notre Dame of Maryland. He is a member of the Health Sciences Advisory Board of The George Washington University. Mr. MacDonald also serves on the Economic Development Advisory Commission of Loudoun County, Virginia.

TJ De Litta has 30 years of law enforcement experience beginning his career In Brevard County, Florida as a dispatcher and then serving as a patrol deputy.  In 2000, he moved to Virginia and started as a patrol deputy at the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office.  Since then he has been promoted to the rank of Captain and is currently the Western Loudoun Station Commander.  He worked his was through the ranks of the Civil Disturbance Unit to become the commander of the unit. In addition, he attended the last 5 presidential inaugurations assisting the US Marshall Service with security on the inauguration parade route. He served as a field training officer, as lead instructor for both Radar/Laser speed enforcement, and as a lead instructor for the “less than lethal munitions” discipline.  In 2019, TJ  graduated from the FBI National Academy for Law Enforcement personnel at the FBI Training Academy in Quantico, VA.  TJ served as the liaison to Special Olympics for the Sheriffs Office for a decade, including fundraising for and organizing department participation in the Dulles Plane Pull and the Law Enforcement Torch Run.  For over a decade, TJ has served as a Special Olympics coach for the Loudoun Division 14 bowling team and has escorted teams to the Virginia Special Olympics State games in Richmond, Winter Games in Virginia Beach, and a national competition in Reno, Nevada. 

Secretary, and Chair of Board Development Committee

Paula Harper has worked in higher education administration for more than 20 years, most recently as the Executive Director of Program Development and Management at George Washington University’s Virginia Science & Technology Campus located in Ashburn, Virginia. In this role, she served as a member of the senior management team for the campus working with the Dean, faculty and senior leadership in strategic planning and identifying on-going academic, research, and community engagement programs to serve the Northern Virginia region and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Ms. Harper was the founder and Co-Director of the GW Teachers in Industry Project, a unique industry-education partnership including more than a dozen regional business leaders and several school districts, that served middle school and high school core content teachers in Northern Virginia. She led numerous educational outreach, program development, and workforce development efforts with Loudoun County Public Schools and Northern Virginia Community College.

Prior to her role at the Virginia Science and Technology Campus, Ms. Harper served as the Director of Medical Center Faculty Affairs where she was responsible for the administration, coordination, and oversight of academic, professional development, legal, and personnel issues for faculty in the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences and the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health and Health Services.

Ms. Harper actively participates in regional economic development as an appointed representative to the Loudoun County Economic Development Advisory Commission (EDAC). Her roles include serving as a member of the EDAC Executive Committee, Chair of the Commission’s Committee on Education and Workforce and Co-Chair of its Housing Advisory Group under the Nighttime Economy Advisory Committee. She is honored to have also been a member of the LCPS School Business Partnership Executive Committee and a participant in Leadership Loudoun. Currently Ms. Harper is working on several GW grant programs that address such areas as business engagement in community health and cyber security workforce development.

Ms. Harper received a BA in Economics from the University of California, San Diego and resides in Loudoun County with her husband and two children.

Chair of Fundraising Committee

Mr. Summers is an employee of Patriot Disposal and is Vice President of Production & Licesing for Lazoo Worldwide, an innovative company making creativity-inspiring animations and products to deepen children’s engagement with entertainment. Prior to joining Lazoo, Mr. Summers was Director of Production & Licensing for the National Wildlife Federation. Previously he was Director of Cause Marketing and led the strategic process to raise millions of dollars in unrestricted funds. Mr. Summers’ background in mulit-media production also includes a position as Director of Marketing Capital Film Studios, a $24 million production facility in Manassas. He has also worked at National Geographic Society, and at Twentieth Century Fox in Los Angeles. Mr. Summers holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Guilford College. In his spare time he enjoys playing soccer and hockey, hiking and fishing, photography and exploring the great outdoors.

Marantha Edwards is a successful business development executive. She recently retired as the Town of Leesburg Economic Development Director after 18 years with the Town, She has more than 30 years of experience in marketing, sales, investor relations and customer service including her own consulting practice; Marketing Extras, US Order, Presidential Airways and Delta Airlines. She is a creative, professional with a strong commitment to continual learning and relationship building. Edwards created and implemented strategic planning efforts for departments, town commissions, committees and partner organizations that resulted in significant improvements in programs and ultimate outcomes.

Edwards has lived in Loudoun County since 1969, graduated from Broad Run High School and James Madison University. She and her husband Leon reside in Leesburg and have two adult married children, Ethan Edwards in Vancouver Washington and Noel McLister of Leesburg Va.

Richard Jollon works for Morgan Stanley as a Financial Advisor in the Leesburg Virginia office. His practice is focused on addressing the needs of families, executives, and companies through the use of investments, insurance, and careful financial planning. Prior to going to work for Morgan Stanley Richard was a Vice President at a small government contractor for five years. He went on to open his own company and pursue his MBA from Virginia Tech. Currently Richard lives with his wife Megan, and their four children in Purcellville Virginia.

Vice President

Ryan M. Miller has more than a decade of experience providing executives, business partners, and human resources personnel with pragmatic and strategic legal and business counsel. Prior to joining Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. in 2019, Mr. Miller served as Deputy General Counsel at K2M, a global medical device company, where he was responsible for ensuring efficient and legally compliant operations in all global markets. He is an employment and litigation attorney with AmLaw 100 and in-house (public and private) experience focused on delivering effective advocacy to his clients – from small businesses to Fortune 50 companies. Mr. Miller holds a B.S. degree in Business Administration from Christopher Newport University and an J.D. from Texas A&M University School of Law. He is a Board Certified Labor and Employment Attorney by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

Mr. Weidner is retired and has lived in northern Virginia for the past 29 years. Mr. Weidner worked for 44 years in the field of flight simulation. Including both Military and commercial applications but primarily with airlines and commercial flight training centers. His experience covers all aspects of flight simulation including maintaining, hardware and software engineering, management of large simulator support and engineering organizations, technical proposal development, sales, marketing, and product pricing.

He worked for USAir for over 15 years as the Director of their simulator operations and was the Vice President of Technical Services for SimuFlite Training International in Dallas, Texas which was the largest flight training center startup in aviation history. He was recruited by British Aerospace to implement and run their North American training center which brought him and his family to northern Virginia. He has served on the board since 2004 and is presently the Vice President.

Mr. Evans is the Senior Manufacturing Supervisor at Stryker, one of the world’s leading medical technology companies offering innovative products and services in Orthopedics, Medical and Surgical devices, and Neurotechnology.

A graduate of North Carolina A&T State University with a B.S. in Electronics Technology, Mr. Evans expertise includes manufacturing/production and process engineering. He was previously employed at TTM Technologies as a Process Engineer from 2010 -2014 prior to joining Stryker/K2M in 2014.

Treasurer

Mr. Lee is an Analyst at Invictus International Consulting, a market leader in full-spectrum cyber technology solutions. A graduate of The George Washington University with a B.S. in Computer Engineering. Mr. Lee expertise includes processing engineering, continuous improvement, project management, and strategic planning. He was previously employed at Stryker as a Senior Operations Supervisor from 2015 – 2019 prior to joining Invictus. Mr. Lee calls Loudoun County, home with his wife Anh, and two sons, Elijah, and Owen

Mr. Haywood, a native of Gloucester, Virginia, is a seasoned, high-energy public sector business development executive currently serving as the Director of Public Sector Capture Management at TTEC, a publicly-traded customer experience technology and services company.

He is an expert in complex deal negotiations, relationship management, and large-scale contract initiatives within multi-faceted environments.

Before TTEC, Ryan held various sales and contract management roles after graduating from Hampden-Sydney College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with a Double Minor in History and Military Leadership and National Security Studies in 2010. He calls Leesburg, Virginia, home, with his wife, Mindi, and two dogs, Milli and Adeline.

Sarah Price is the Director of Economic Development for The Golden Triangle Business Improvement District in Washington DC – leading efforts to reimagine and transform the Nation’s central business district for the future. She has a master’s in Economics and over 15 years of experience in Economic Development helping communities secure their future through strategic planning and implementing dynamic business solutions for residents and business owners.

Sarah managed practices for Price Waterhouse Coopers, Ernst & Young, CB Richard Ellis, the Home Depot and most recently with Loudoun County Economic Development, where she spent 5 years leading efforts to attract and grow the Health Tech sector – creating an initiative to harness the computing power and speed of Loudoun’s Data Center Alley (the largest on the planet). Sarah’s time in Loudoun helped her established solid business relationships in the County.

Sarah’s data driven approach and unique experience in developing communities make her an asset to the ECHO Board of Directors.

Cliff Weeks is an Associate Broker with Century 21 providing real estate services in Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland. Prior to his career in real estate, Cliff worked for the Defense Intelligence Agency in a variety of roles including multiple deployments and a rotation in the White House Situation Room. Cliff is also a veteran of the US Army and served with distinction in the 82d Airborne Division. He has a degree in International Studies with a Business Focus from Virginia Tech and a Master’s of Science in Business Analytics from the University of Notre Dame.