Community Foundation of the Lowcountry Welcomes Four New Board of Directors Members

Laura A. Bush – Throughout an accomplished 40-plus year career in public service, Bush has been a fixture in her native Bluffton and continues to have a positive impact on generations of Beaufort County residents. Bush served 26 years as an elected member of the Beaufort County Board of Education and finished her tenure on the board as vice chair. She also spent 13 years as Emergency Assistance Coordinator for Beaufort County and created a countywide management system for local agencies and churches. Bush currently serves on multiple local boards, including Habitat for Humanity of the Lowcountry, and has served on several others. Bush has received numerous awards and recognitions, including from the South Carolina House of Representatives, Beaufort County Council, NAACP, South Carolina School Board, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Bluffton MLK Committee.

Faye Gooding – A lifetime resident of the Lowcountry, Gooding retired in 2019 from Le Creuset, the world’s leading cookware brand, where she worked for nearly 40 years in various executive leadership roles, most recently as CEO of Le Creuset North America. During her tenure as CEO, Le Creuset launched ecommerce in the USA and Canada and expanded to more than 100 retail stores in North America. Gooding’s footprint in Hampton County is vast: she served on the Board of Directors of Hampton Regional Medical center for six years and (two as chair) and currently serves on the Varnville town council. In 2021, Gooding created Hampton County Citizens for Active Restoration (HCCAR), a non-partisan citizens forum working to improve local government services, county facilities, schools, and work skills training. For her work with HCCAR, Gooding was honored with Rotary Club of Hampton County’s Citizen of the Year in June of this year.

Judi Levy – Born in Oceanside, CA and raised primarily in Norfolk, VA, Levy had a distinguished law career combined with a strong commitment to public service. Public service has always been a priority for Levy’s family. She began her law career assisting American industries impacted by foreign countries inundating the U.S. marketplace with their products. She established a scholarship fund at the Yale University Law School (with the sole requirement being a commitment to public service in their career) and took leadership roles with various organizations’ boards, including Juvenile Protection Association, Montgomery County (MD) Public Schools, Chicago Foundation for Women, and Montgomery County of Coalition for the Homeless. In 2011, Levy moved to Hilton Head and has volunteered for local community organizations, including Memory Matters and Volunteers in Medicine.

Jim Wagner – Wagner returns to the Community Foundation for his second term on the Board of Directors (after a four-year hiatus). Wagner began his distinguished career working for the U.S Food and Drug and Administration and successfully transitioned into collegiate academics. Wagner was an Assistant Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University (where he had earned his Ph.D. in the same discipline), and eventually elevated to professor and chair of the department. Wagner also spent time in senior leadership roles at Case Western Reserve University before becoming President of Emory University, where he spent 13 years before retiring in 2016. Wagner has served on over 20 boards, including Atlanta Committee for Progress, and 10 society memberships, including the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers.

Community Foundation of the Lowcountry would like to express our sincere appreciation for the four retiring board members and wish them the best in future endeavors: Shirley “Peaches” Peterson, David Rosenblum, Allen Ward, and Michelle Wycoff.

The 2023-24 board officers are Jackie Rosswurm (Chair), Sheila Mahony (Vice-Chair), Paul Moeri (Treasurer), and Al Panu (Secretary).