Who We Are
Meet the Creative Team
Roswell Arts Fund Staff
Aaron James has had a diverse and successful career serving medium to large sized community-based non-profits in Atlanta for the past 10 years, most recently as the Director of the St. Mary’s Foundation in Athens, Georgia. He also has served in executive-level philanthropic roles with Rheumatology Research Foundation, Growing Leaders, East Lake Foundation; and Georgia Aquarium. “Roswell Arts Fund has grown in both scope and impact over the past few years,” according to Hitch. “The City of Roswell is an extremely supportive partner, both financially and in terms of encouragement to grow the arts as an economic development initiative for our area. Aaron’s focus will be on building stronger private sector involvement in RAF.”
James’ primary duties will include developing, implementing, and monitoring a comprehensive fundraising plan to expand philanthropic support of the organization – including identifying and strengthening relationships with community stakeholders, actively pursuing, and managing corporate and individual leads, foster strong donor and sponsor stewardship, and seeking, applying for and managing grant funding.
Becky Peters Kile is a nonprofit marketing professional with a deep passion for the arts and their ability to allow for moments of connection, conversation and change.
She is an alumni of Kennesaw State University where she received her B.A. in theatre and communications. Before transitioning to the administrative side, Becky lived the life of an actor working with a variety of companies across the US. This period further motivated her desire to discover ways the arts can extend beyond the stage or inside a museum and provide new ways to engage with the community around us. This exploration led her to ultimately founding a theatre company dedicated to social outreach in Washington, DC.
During her tenure in DC, Becky served as the Director of Community Outreach and Digital Media for Theater J where she was instrumental in developing a creative network for mid-budget theatre companies, led digital engagement and established community partnerships to implement unique lobby experiences for waiting audience members to heighten the overall experience.
Becky brings to the nonprofit world an empathetic approach to community building, an expertise in marketing and arts management, a passion for digging deep into the data and a project management eye for keeping the “big picture” on track.
She and her husband Michael live in Woodstock with their Avenger Pup, Tony Stark.
Roswell Arts Fund Board
The Roswell Arts Fund volunteer board consists of community leaders who provide direction and oversight, act as advocates and who are excited about our current and future programming. If you are interested in applying, we invite you to CLICK HERE to learn more.
Scott Hitch is a business attorney experienced in navigating legal issues arising in environmental, land use, energy, corporate governance, and commercial real estate matters. He also represents clients working in the music, film, television, theater, and publishing industries and in connection with estate planning strategies.
In addition to chairing Roswell Arts Fund’s board, Scott serves as Vice Chair of the Friends of Mimosa Hall and Gardens, Inc. His prior service on boards of directors includes the Green Chamber of the South, the Georgia Environmental Policy Institute, Rivers Alive, and Keep Roswell Beautiful. Scott is a volunteer attorney for Georgia Lawyers for the Arts. Prior to opening Hitch Law LLC in Roswell, Scott practiced with several Am Law 100 firms in Atlanta. Scott received a BS in ecology from the University of Georgia and his law degree from the UGA School of Law.
Scott is the lead singer and guitarist in the band Along for the Ride, which regularly performs in venues throughout the Atlanta metro area. Scott and his wife, Angie, have lived in Roswell since 2000, and are the proud parents of two budding musical theatre triple threats.
Scott’s expertise are in law and legal issues, environment and sustainability, and music and performances.
Susan Rumble is a real estate professional with expertise in all aspects of residential real estate transactions. Susan is proficient in the latest industry technology, market research, contract expertise and business strategies with an emphasis on exceptional service and successful closings. Susan is dedicated to her clients with a constant focus on positive results to meet each of her client’s unique goals.
Susan is very active in the Roswell community, and she was involved with the public art project for the Sculpture Garden at Roswell Area Park.
For many years Lawrence was in a number of roles at the Stagedoor Players mostly as Managing Director and later as Chairman of the Board. Lawrence was instrumental in facilitating SDP’s move into a permanent home in the Dunwoody Cultural Arts Center.
Lawrence is a Georgia Tech graduate and serial entrepreneur and futurist, and is currently at AssertiSoft as CEO. He is also an Advisory Board Member for the Georgia Tech School of Biology, as well as a member of the Roswell Recreation commission.
Lawrence’s expertise includes start-ups, finance, product management, Information technology, high tech strategy, biomedical technology, software development, and leadership.
Eva has been a community service-oriented Roswell resident for the past 26 years. She was the Founding President of Centennial Young Men’s Service League. She has also held leadership positions with Fulton County Schools Governance Council and Local School Advisory Committee, Friends of East Roswell Library, and local elementary, middle and high school PTA organizations. She has dedicated her time to advancing a number of educational and philanthropic causes in our community.
Eva is a former elementary music teacher and private piano instructor, with Bachelors and Masters degrees in piano performance from the Eastman School of Music and The University of Texas at Austin.
Bio coming soon
Will is a managing partner of Polara Capital. He is responsible for capital relationships and commercial real estate equity investments. He is a principal in Red Door Revivals, an award winning commercial contractor and developer.
Will has 30+ years experience as a real estate and finance entrepreneur. Will was Executive Vice President of Coldwell Banker Commercial Metro Brokers and the firm’s practice leader of the Bank Asset Team. Will founded ERA United Realty where he was named as Top 500 Power Broker by RISMedia. He also was a commercial real estate lender for Wachovia Bank.
Will received a Bachelor of Business Administration from University of Georgia and a Master of Science in Real Estate from Georgia State University. Currently, he serves on the University of Georgia Terry College of Business Emeritus Alumni Board and is a member of Roswell Rotary
Ashley moved back to Roswell in 2017, and now works as office manager at New Kent Capital.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Vocal Performance from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music and won numerous awards and competitions while traveling the world working as an opera singer from 2010-2017.
She is now happy to be back in her hometown and is thrilled to be on the board of Roswell Arts Fund and also serves on the Board of Georgia Ensemble Theatre.
Bio coming soon
Bio coming soon
John Harris earned his Bachelor’s degree in Applied Mathematics from the University of Missouri – St. Louis and a dual Master’s degree in Management and Computer Science from Webster University in Missouri. His reputation for creative thinking combined with his technical background served him well during an extensive, 35-year career with United Parcel Service; with the majority of those years in their esteemed Engineering department at the director level.
After UPS, he continued to run his own consulting company focusing on identifying opportunities for business to improve their processes.
As a fan of all types of music, John has a true appreciation for musical artists and live-music venues. Having developed a simple, streamlined booking process and sponsorship strategy, he continues to help artists effectively work with venues across the US. He has learned to appreciate the difficulties and challenges today’s presenters face.
Bio coming soon
Mac brings over twenty years of working with small to midsize organizations, start-ups and not-for-profits. Mac brings a passion for the arts in Roswell and is devoted to expanding our city brand and quality of our offerings.
Mac’s expertise includes broad skills and experience in finance and tax management and reporting for not-for-profits organizations including 501(c)(3) classification, budgeting and accounting, and collecting and managing Board financial commitments.
Roswell Arts Fund Advisory Board
Rochelle Mucha is founder of Roswell Arts Fund and served as Chair from 2014-2018. She is a Consultant, Speaker, Educator, and Author and formerly founded and led Business as Performance Art, an independent consulting company that focused on Organizational Behavior (leadership, culture, and change). A sample of clients includes Turner Broadcasting Company, The Home Depot, Cigna Group Insurance, The Coca-Cola Company, Dell Corporation, Porter-Novelli Public Relations, Rock-Tenn Corporation, Russell Corporation and TYCO International. Prior to independent consulting, Rochelle served as Regional Director of Training for Marriott Corporation and was affiliated with several global management consulting firms. Rochelle served as adjunct faculty for Terry College of Business and Coles College of Business. Her most recent book, Aesthetic Intelligence, explores the intersection of Business and the Performing Arts and the various ways these powerful disciplines can learn from each other. She is a graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Fielding Graduate University.
Rochelle brings a passion for Roswell and the arts, and has served on several Theatre Boards as well as working on the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival Committee. She served on the Arts Advisory Committee for the Atlanta Regional Commission as they incorporated the “Arts” into their regional landscape and she successfully completed the Metro Atlanta ALMA program ( Arts Leaders of Metro Atlanta) in 2013. Rochelle was appointed and served on the Fulton County Arts Council in 2015.
Most recently Debra Ewing served as the Business Development & Outreach Coordinator and the primary business contact for Roswell Inc. overseeing new business outreach, relationship building with current business owners, sponsorship development and helping local businesses work with City of Roswell staff on items related to city ordinances and regulations pertaining to business operation and site development.
Before joining Roswell Inc, she worked as program manager for the education center at the City of Roswell’s Johns Creek Environmental Campus, where she developed a comprehensive environmental education program for elementary, middle and high school students and managed campus tours for visitors, businesses, school and the public.
Prior, Debra worked as assistant to Fulton County Commissioners Robert Fulton and Lynne Riley. In this role, she represented the Commissioners at public meetings and helped to evaluate and solve problems for constituents in those districts – with specific responsibility for the county’s public works, community development, library services, parks and recreation, and tax assessor and tax commissioner departments.
She began her professional career as a contract administrator for the Fulton County Public Buildings Department, where she managed renovation and repair contracts for county facilities and coordinated projects from bids to project and contract management.
Debra has a B.S. in Public Administration from Georgia State University’s College of Public and Urban Affairs. She lives in Roswell with her husband and has two sons and three granddaughters.
Nancy Diamond is a community-focused entrepreneur with a life-long love of the arts. In between building her diverse career, raising her family and supporting local non-profits, Nancy has championed the arts in Roswell at every available opportunity, including the development of the Roswell Arts Fund.
She leverages her wide range of experiences as a project manager, mortgage originator, business owner, communicator, city councilwoman, non-profit board chair, strategic planner and more to provide a holistic and detail-oriented lens to any task or challenge at hand.
Nancy is a long-time resident of Roswell, where she raised two daughters and still lives with husband, Glenn and dog, Gracie.
Monica Hagewood, CRE is principal and founder of Strata Real Estate Alliance, LLP, a commercial real estate advisory firm that has been providing real estate strategies and solutions to public and private clients since 1996. Monica has over 25 years of experience in the industry ranging from asset management, risk assessment, development strategies as well as feasibility and market analysis. Monica is Chair of the Roswell Downtown Development Authority and brings extensive experience City leadership and with economic and land development. Monica serves on the Arts Study Implementation Committee and is committed to growing the Arts strategically in Roswell.
Monica’s expertise includes leadership, strategic planning, real estate, financial oversight, and marketing.
Tony Martin has been a Roswell resident since 1998. Tony is a co-founder of Medlytix, LLC, a healthcare technology company based in Roswell since 2006. When he is not helping solve provider reimbursement issues, you can find him working on and enjoying the farm, Martin’s Garden, which he started with his wife, Shari, in 2015. Martin’s Garden exists to connect with the Roswell community, provide a farmer with a platform to succeed and to give back to the charities our family supports.
Tony’s drive to “give back” has brought him to serve on other boards, including the Atlanta Community Food Bank and Songs for Kids Foundation Advisory boards. He is excited to connect with and join The Roswell Arts Fund Advisory Board and work to keep the arts alive and well in Roswell.
While loving many forms of art, music is the medium that Tony gravitates towards and in 2014, while on a family vacation in the BVI’s, Tony met Philicianno ‘Foxy’ Callwood and a music school was born on the small BVI island of Jost Van Dyke.
Tony’s is a lucky husband, the father of three amazing children and the T-Pop to two beautiful granddaughters. His life if filled with love for and from family, friends, music, travel and community.
Lisa Steinmetz Morchower is an attorney and is Of Counsel with the law firm, Berman Fink Van Horn P.C. Lisa concentrates her law practice in state and local government law, with a particular emphasis in the areas of alcoholic beverage licensing and hospitality law, zoning and land use matters, business licensing and permitting and general litigation. Lisa’s practice includes representation of individuals and business owners regarding alcoholic beverage licensing; business licensing; police power licensing; and a myriad of issues related to land use and zoning matters, including obtaining requisite zoning approvals and rezoning of land for specific uses. Lisa also previously served as Senior Assistant City Attorney for the City of Atlanta, and throughout her career she has represented several other Georgia local governments regarding their respective licensing laws.
While Lisa has always been a patron of and has enjoyed the Arts, her interests in both visual and performing arts peaked when she discovered that both of her daughters are extremely artistic. Her oldest daughter enjoyed dabbling in visual arts as a child but found that her passion is in the performing arts, and she holds a Bachelor in Fine Arts degree in Musical Theater from Shenandoah University’s Conservatory for Performing Arts. Lisa’s youngest daughter is an aspiring visual artist and is currently working toward obtaining a college degree in Visual Arts at this time.
Lisa is very excited and honored to have been chosen to serve on this Advisory Board particularly since her family is so artistic!
Alex co-founded Randall-Paulson Architects in 1993. He is a graduate of Ga Tech and has over forty years of experience in design, production of contract documents, and administration of construction contracts focusing primarily in hospitality, retail, office, mixed use, and special commercial projects, and has been responsible for the design and renovation of several award-winning commercial projects. His high energy, passion and attention to detail brings a fresh and exciting approach to all aspects of design and running an architectural business. He enjoys connecting people and making new relationships.
Alex is a member of the American Institute of Architects, International Council of Shopping Centers, the Urban Land Institute, Roswell CVB, and Roswell NEXT. He is very involved in the community and has locally served on the Roswell Historic District Preservation Commission, the ArtAround Roswell Selection Committee, the Roswell Branding Creative Committee, the Historic Roswell Merchants Association, the Roswell Strategic Economic Plan Committee, Together Roswell and Alive After 5 in the Square. He is also proud to serve and support several local nonprofit organizations including Sunshine on a Ranney Day, Roswell Arts, The Drake House, CHOA, the Ronald MacDonald House and Open Hand Atlanta.
Outside of work, you will find Alex enjoying life with his friends and family and traveling.
Marie Willsey is principal of MW Creative, a small business providing marketing, creative, copywriting, social media, and communications collaboration to leading companies and consultancies. Her expertise spans technology, financial services, life sciences, and consumer industries. She also focuses on thought leadership for her clients related to purpose; the human experience; environmental, sustainability, and governance (ESG); as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
Marie served on the City of Roswell’s City Council from 2018 – 2021, serving as Mayor Pro Tem in 2018, and during her term, as council liaison to public safety, environmental and public works, and administration and finance. During her tenure, she was a strong advocate for the arts and her efforts helped to secure arts funding and led to the adoption of a citywide public art selection process, as well as policies for maintenance and gifting.
Marie currently serves on the Fulton County Arts Council and served as chair of the Public Art Committee during the selection of public art for the Atlanta-Fulton Central Library. She is also a member of the North Fulton Community Charities Advisory Board. A Roswell resident since 1993, Marie is actively involved in improving the community. Marie’s involvement and experience includes five years as president of Horseshoe Bend Community
Association. She served on the board of the Roswell Arts Fund and was very involved in ArtAround Roswell, the city’s first sculpture tour, during its initial planning and first seasons. She served as a community representative to Centennial High School Governance Council, and completed Leadership North Fulton in 2018. She has also served the city of Roswell as a member of the Planning Commission and the 2035 Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee. A native of Georgia, Marie is a graduate of the University of Georgia with a master’s degree in business and a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She and her husband Glen have one son, Parker, a 2020 engineering graduate of UGA. Marie enjoys and appreciates the arts in all forms, especially the visual arts and music—and dabbles in piano and photography.
Sponsors and Community Partners
Without generous support of our sponsors and community partners, our work would not be possible.
