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2024 Summit Speakers

Nov. 20-22, 2024 | Ocala, FL

Florida Rural
Economic Development
Summit 2024

2024 Summit Speaker

Antonio Jefferson

Antonio Jefferson

City Manager
City of Gretna

Lacy Beasley

Lacy Beasley

President
Retail Strategies

Anthony Bedell

Anthony Bedell

Senior Corporate and Government Relations Director
Becker & Poliakoff

Richard Blackwell

Richard Blackwell

Vice President of Development
Agracel Inc.

Cathy Chambers

Cathy Chambers

Senior Director, Economic Development
Florida Power & Light Company

Christen Johnson

Christen Johnson

Vice President and Administrator
AdventHealth Wauchula

Darryl Register

Darryl Register

Executive Director
Baker County Chamber of Commerce & Baker County Economic Development

Denise Grimsley

Denise Grimsley

CEO
The Development Group

Fred Hawkins

Fred Hawkins

President
South Florida State College (SFSC)

Ben Friedman

Ben Friedman

Research Manager
Duke Energy

Greg Vaday

Greg Vaday

Economic Development Representative
U.S. Department of Commerce

Mike Grissom

Mike Grissom

Principal, Government Relations
Buchanan

Sadie Haire

Sadie Haire

Government Relations Consultant
Becker & Poliakoff

J. Alex Kelly

J. Alex Kelly

Florida Secretary of Commerce

Jenn Gregory

Jenn Gregory

President
Downtown Strategies

Jodi Tillman

Jodi Tillman

Director
Big Bend Technical College

Justin Garner

Justin Garner

Sr Director of Operations – Hospitality and Marketing
World Equestrian Center

Kaylee Tuck

Kaylee Tuck

Florida House of Representatives, District 83
State of Florida

Keitha Daniels

Keitha Daniels

Director
Hendry County Economic Development Council

Kyle Hudson

Kyle Hudson

Operations Manager
Probes Unlimited

Mark Kruse

Mark Kruse

EVP and General Counsel
FCF/FFC

Mason Alford

Mason Alford

Director
Office of Small Business Innovation, Florida Department of Commerce

Matt Chestnut

Matt Chestnut

Vice President Business & Economic Development
Space Florida

Jerry Parrish, Ph.D.

Jerry Parrish, Ph.D.

Chief Economist
Metro Atlanta Chamber

Richard Williams

Richard Williams

Executive Director
Opportunity Florida & CareerSource Chipola

Rob Bowman

Rob Bowman

President,
R+L Global Logistics

Rose Fagler

Rose Fagler

Economic Development
Weyerhaeuser

Scarlett Phaneuf

Scarlett Phaneuf

Economic Development Representative
PowerSouth Energy

Shellie Phelps

Shellie Phelps

Executive Director
Wetumpka Area Chamber of Commerce

Steven Birnholz

Steven Birnholz

President
Florida Council of 100 Foundation

Tammy Dasher

Tammy Dasher

Director
NextStep at Endeavor Academy

Tess Fay

Tess Fay

Principal and VP of Location Intelligence
Global Location Strategies

Thomas Hoversen

Thomas Hoversen

President
Comarco Products