Meet the Team
Our team brings a unique set of experience, talent and passion for the communities we serve. Our values align with the strategic imperative of enabling sustainable, honoring impact.
Our Board of Directors
Bob Scharf, Chairman – Mr. Scharf has been a member of the Board of Directors since 2014; and was elected Chairman in 2020. Bob and his wife Gayle live in Gretna, Nebraska, and have four adult children and several grandchildren.
Ian Vickers, CEO – Mr. Vickers is a co-founder and the Chief Executive Officer of Global Partners in Hope. Ian and his wife Joanna live in Omaha, Nebraska and have three adult children and three grandchildren.
Eric Frohardt – Mr. Frohardt is the newest member of the Board of Director. Eric stands as the Chief Operating Officer of Defy, where he focuses on giving back to the veteran community. He is coming from an extensive background of business and non-profit work.
Donald Berglund – Mr. Berglund served as the Chief Executive Officer for Innovative Blood Resources until his retirement in 2018. Don and his wife Cindi live in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, and have four grown children.
Crystal Bayliss – As a Strategy and Engagement Director at the US Plastics Pact, Mrs. Bayliss draws upon a background in supply chain management to foster collaboration. Her transition from business-driven results to sustainability emerged from a passion for addressing environmental challenges. Specializing in uniting diverse talents, she drives strategies for sustainability, propelling the transition to a circular economy while safeguarding the planet for future generations.
Linda Scholting – Mrs. Scholting had been serving as the volunteer controller for GPiH since its formation, and officially joined the Board in 2019. Linda and her husband Chris live in Springfield, Nebraska and have three adult daughters. Linda is currently serving as Treasurer for GPiH.
Mark Hunter – Mr. Hunter is a speaker, author, and founder of The Sales Hunter. Mark and his wife, Ann Marie, currently reside in Garland, Texas and travel frequently to visit their two children and four grandchildren. Mr. Hunter officially joined the GPiH Board in 2019.
Emily Lange – Dr. Lange is an OB/GYN with Methodist Physician’s Clinic in Council Bluffs, Iowa. She currently lives in Omaha, Nebraska with her husband, Arnaldo Ovalles, and her four children. Dr. Lange officially joined the Board in 2019.
Coleen Stice – Dr. Stice is a retired plastic surgeon and founder of the International Medical Exchange (IME) and Salama Stoves. She was the first board-certified female plastic surgeon in the State of Nebraska and is highly respected and regarded by her peers. Dr. Stice and her husband, Dr. Robert Wells, live in Omaha, Nebraska, and have three adult daughters. Dr. Stice officially joined the Board in 2020.
Steve Perry – Steve looks to utilize his engineering experience, community development knowledge, and administrative abilities to help GPiH achieve its Vision and Mission for access to clean water and sustainable health care for the underserved worldwide. Steve is Vice-President of OLMSTED & PERRY CONSULTING ENGINEERS INC., which has been providing civil and municipal engineering services in eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa for the past 43 years. Steve has been married to his wife Kris for 44 years. He has two grown daughters, Heidi and Claire, and five grand-children.
Chip Chaon – With 15+ years of success in business development, operations, and strategy, Mr. Chaon excels in leadership roles, particularly in exceeding sales goals in the insurance sector. As a seasoned executive with CEO and COO experience, he brings a strategic vision and keen ability to simplify intricate challenges into effective action plans, ensuring alignment with the company's overall vision.
Emeritus Board Members: Roger Atwood (former Chairman), Don Swanson, Kirk Murray, Mark Warner, Kevin Murphy, Dr. Trent Wachner, and Dr. Wesley Grigsby
Our Medical Committee
Coleen Stice, MD - Chairwoman – Description Above.
Emily Lange, MD – Description Above.
Brett MacLean, MD – Dr. MacLean is the Chief Medical Officer for Global Partners in Hope. Brett is a pediatrician, who together with his wife Sheri, a midwife and family nurse practitioner, lived and worked for 14 years in French speaking West Africa, first helping to establish a major children's hospital and then nine rural health centers, all fully run by national staff whom he continues to mentor to this day. The MacLeans have 4 children who feel most at home when they are with others who grew up outside their passport country.
Angela Haas, DO – Dr. Haas is a board certified family practice family practice physician with a background in domestic global health. Before joining Global Partners in Hope, Angela led a clinic providing front line health care to newly arrived refugees. She continues to serve into refugee health care community in Colorado in a variety of capacities. Angela and her husband have four young kids, two of which are adopted from West Africa.
Wesley Grigsby, MD – Dr. Grigsby served as Chairman of Emergency Medicine at Creighton University Medical Center for 25 years, where he also served as hospital Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Grigsby additionally founded EPOWERdoc, an Emergency Department Information System, in 1989, and sold the company a few years ago. Dr. Grigsby lives in Omaha, Nebraska, but splits his time between Nebraska and Georgia, where his three adult daughters and five grandchildren live.
Thomas Strawmier, APRN-DNP – Dr. Strawmier has been a nurse practitioner for the past 10 years. He has spent the majority of his career working in family practice, but now works in internal medicine at Nebraska Medicine. Previously, he served as a registered nurse in inpatient care. He has a specific passion for underserved communities and has enjoyed one trip to the healthcare center in Togo, West Africa. He is married, has four grown boys, and three grandsons! He loves family time, travel road trips, fixing stuff around the house, and providing instruction to those eager to learn.
Thinking about joining the team?
We're always looking to expand our team within the medical committee. Would you like to join our team and experience the impact of HOPE in West Africa? We're looking for members throughout the community who would be wiling to share their talents with those in need. The journey starts today but the impact lasts for generations to come.
