Board of Directors

Karen Wald

Chair of the Board

Formerly Alliance Data, Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff

Karen is retired from Alliance Data where as Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Chief of Staff, she oversaw initiatives that protected and enhanced Alliance Data’s enterprise reputation and stakeholder engagement across internal and external groups.

A longtime Board of Trustees member for LaunchAbility, Karen now serves on the Board of Directors for My Possibilities following the merger of the two organizations in 2017.  Karen is passionate about workplace inclusion and an advocate for hiring adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

Tamara Trummer

Vice Chair & HR Committee Chair

HR Consulting Services, HR Consultant

Tamara works with Leaders in small to mid-sized firms that may not have the HR expertise internally, helping them achieve their business objectives through people.  She teaches HR certification classes at the University of Dallas for professionals in HR who want to become certified, and to undergraduate students at UTD (the University of TX at Dallas) who are just beginning their careers in HR.  In addition, Tamara works part time as a Career Consultant to students in the Career Management Center of UTD,

At MP, Tamara is the Chair of the HR Committee as well as the Compensation Committee, in addition to being a Board Member.  She has been volunteering with the organization since 2014, and works closely with the Director of People Engagement to support the overall HR function at MP.

Beccy Ratliff

Secretary

Raised in a family of entrepreneurs, Beccy has been around and worked in a family business her whole life and isn’t afraid of a little hard work. While she and Bennett were raising their young family, she went to school part-time to get a degree in Education and Mathematics, earning Dean’s list honors from the University of North Texas. Beccy accepted a job in the local middle school teaching Algebra and was an award-winning teacher, team leader, and technology specialist during her 10-year tenure. A longtime advocate for people with disabilities, Beccy was appointed by Governor George W. Bush to serve on the Texas Planning Council for Developmental Disabilities.

Beccy and her husband, Bennett, founded a Construction Management Company in 2002 and as the company grew, Beccy retired from teaching to work with Bennett full time, while also concentrating on charitable and civic endeavors. She currently serves on a number of non-profit boards where she gives her time to those who struggle financially, advocates for people with disabilities, and still works to take care of Ratliff Group clients every day.

Beccy and Bennett enjoy living with their HIPster, Thomas, and traveling in their motorhome, especially to see their other children and granddaughter.

Kyle Liner

Treasurer

PwC, Partner

Kyle is an Assurance Partner at PwC and primarily leads the audits of public companies.  Kyle served on the Board of Trustees for LaunchAbility from 2011-2018 and filled the roles of Treasurer and President-Elect during his tenure.  He joined the My Possibilities Board of Directors at the time of the 2018 merger between My Possibilities and LaunchAbility.  Additionally, Kyle is the Vice Chair of the My Possibilities Board of Directors and the Chair of the Governance Committee.

Roy T. Atwood

Residential Chair

Atwood Gameros LLP, Attorney – Co-owner

Atwood Gameros LLP specializes in commercial litigation, product liability defense, construction law and special education law (representing the interests of students).  As the parent of an adult son with Down syndrome and long-time board member of LaunchAbility, I am excited about the future of supported employment for adults with disabilities through My Possibilities.  I also serve on the Board of Directors of the Down Syndrome Guild of Dallas and am very involved with the Student Ministry program at St. Andrew United Methodist Church.

Barbara Rayner

Chair of Nominating & Governance

A senior executive with over 35 years of specialized technical financial experience guiding organizations ranging from large multi-national companies to smaller growth companies through various phases of capital allocation through all business cycles. Stewards and leads quality and risk management practice that provides clients with the highest quality business advice and guidance while balancing the firm’s risk tolerance and audit independence concerns.

Charmaine Solomon

Founder & Chair of the Board Emeritus

Solomon Family Services, Principal and Counselor/My Possibilities, Founder & Chairman

Charmaine Solomon is one of three original founders of the organization. She has served in her board capacity since establishing My Possibilities in June 2008.

Jim Gardner

MPact Chair

Jim retired in 2019 from a Vista Equity portfolio company following more than thirty years leading marketing and branding initiatives in both corporate and agency environments. In retirement he continues to lecture at several local universities, has spoken at many industry events, and is the author of dozens of articles in professional journals. Gardner holds an MBA from Texas Christian University and a BA from the University of Iowa.

Jim has a long history of supporting the cause of inclusive employment and was serving on the board of LaunchAbility when that organization merged with My Possibilities in 2018.

Collette Laday

Parent Representative

John Baumgarten

Board Member

Bernstein Private Wealth Management, Principal and Financial Advisor

John D. Baumgarten joined the firm in 2007 as a Financial Advisor  in the Dallas office and was named Principal in 2011. He advises  high-net-worth individuals and institutions regarding investment  strategies and, in conjunction with the Wealth Planning and  Analysis Group, works closely with clients and their professional  advisors on a wide range of investment matters, including tax and  estate planning, concentrated stock positions and the sale of  privately held businesses.

Prior to joining Bernstein, John was executive vice president and chief operating officer  of wholesaler GNAC and, before that, he was vice president of sales at SYNNEX  Corporation, an IT firm.

William Behrendt

Board Member

Behrendt Consulting, Executive Coach/ Consultant

I retired two years ago from a 30-year career in healthcare human resources and am now an Executive Coach, consultant and faculty member at UT Dallas and SMU where I teach MBA classes on management and human resources.

Jeffrey Dils

Board Member

Accenture, Managing Director, Communications Media and Technology

Jeff is responsible for all commercial activities associated with Accenture’s relationship with one of the firm’s largest US-based telecommunications clients.  He has been employed by Accenture for sixteen years in a variety of commercial and financial roles, including managing legal, financial, human resources and operational reporting for large client relationships, structuring the large new business transactions and M&A evaluation and due diligence.  Prior to joining Accenture, he was employed in a variety of roles by Electronic Data Systems for eighteen years.  Jeff also holds a designation as a Certified Management Accountant (CMA).  He joined the My Possibilities Board of Directors in 2012 and currently serves on the Finance Committee in addition to his board responsibilities.  Jeff is married with a sixteen year old son who has special needs.

David Doyle

Board Member

David Doyle served as Chief Information Officer and SVP for Brinker International from 2013 through his retirement in 2018. In this role, David led Brinker’s IT department, ensuring the team’s long-term strategies continued to support leading Chili’s and Maggiano’s initiatives.

David joined Brinker in 1994 as Director of Corporate Accounting, becoming Vice President of Corporate Accounting in 1997. In 2003, he was promoted to Senior Vice President and Controller until assuming the CIO position in 2013. Over the years, David was involved in numerous IT initiatives, bridging the gap between IT and accounting services, to provide leadership on integral restaurant-system projects and rollouts.
Prior to Brinker, David was employed by KPMG for 12 years. He graduated from Texas Tech University with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting and is a Certified Public Accountant.

In his spare time, David serves on the Boards for Texas Independent Bancshares, Inc. and My Possibilities. David and his wife, Allison, live in Plano and have four children.

Meryl Evans

Board Member

Dr. Tara Goodwin

Board Member

Kathleen Larkin

Board Member

Jeffrey Lau

Board Member

Jeffrey has been with My Possibilities for almost 12 as a HIPster, a leader, and a mentor.  My Possibilities has been an important part of his life as it allows him to socialize and learn new skills.  Most importantly for Jeffrey, he feels MP gives him the opportunity to self-advocate and help others do the same.

Jeffrey worked at Trinity Eye Care for ten years and volunteered at Medical City of Plano for 15 years.  He spent some time at The Eye Place, helping make glasses, and in 2019, with the help of Launchability, he started his current position at Learfield as a support assistant.

Jeffrey has lived in Plano for 28 years.  In his spare time, he likes to write bible verses, listen to music and play his Keyboard.  He also participates in Special Olympics and the zoom classes offered through MP.  Jeffrey joined the board in 2020.

Jason Lines

Board Member

Tim McHugh

Board Member

The Woodland Group, LLC., Executive Coach & Consultant

Tim helps individuals and teams elevate performance. He previously worked as a Finance Executive in various roles for over 30 years at Eastman Kodak, Hanson PLC and HeidelbergCement AG. In his work with My Possibilities, Tim has served as Finance Committee Chair and Quality Assurance Committee Chair. He has also worked with the Leadership Team to help improve its effectiveness. With their youngest son attending the program, Liz and Tim McHugh have been involved with and supporters of My Possibilities since its inception.

Julie McLaughlin

Board Member

Jon Nelson

Board Member

Kris Ramji

Board Member

Kris Ramji graduated from SMU’s Cox School of Business with a Magna Cum Laude designation in Management Information Systems and a minor in Economics.  Fielding offers from many of the top consulting firms, Kris chose to start his working career at PricewaterhouseCoopers.  He spent the next two years learning the ropes of corporate life.  While he excelled and performed well, something was missing.  It was time to ignite his entrepreneurial spirit.  As such, Kris left the corporate world and invested his savings in the dry-cleaning business.  Within 3 years, he had purchased and built 18 stores across the DFW metroplex that were personally operated on a daily basis with 50+ staff members.

Kris started Slate Land & Development Co and Slate Real Estate Co in 2019.  Slate currently has over 100k square feet of new product under development.  Slate’s focus is multi-tenant retail, medical, office, and multi-family.  Kris is also a partner and investor in Galactic Glass which is a custom glass fabrication and installation company focused on residential new construction and remodels.  Galactic Glass was one of the featured vendors in the City of Southlake’s coveted Street of Dreams in 2020.  Kris has also built a small portfolio of VRBO and residential rentals properties over the course of the past few years with many units around the DFW metroplex.

Justin Roche

Board Member

RPAI/The Shops at Legacy, General Manager

In his current role, Justin serves as the General Manager for The Shops at Legacy in Plano, Texas, as well as overseeing other commercial real estate properties in north Dallas. His professional background includes managing/marketing regional shopping malls and airport concession programs in Texas and St. Louis, Missouri, where he is from originally. Prior to joining the board of directors with My Possibilities, Justin served as Treasurer for Leadership Plano (a program of the Plano Chamber of Commerce) and on the board of the Hendrick Scholarship Foundation, and is an alum of TCU.

Michaela Sears

Board Member

Helanie Scott

Board Member

Hiren Shukla

Board Member