Leadership & Team
Meet the dedicated leaders and changemakers guiding our mission to empower the next generation through financial literacy.
Meet Our Board
Meet the people driving our mission forward.
Brad Fulner
Founder & Director
Brad Fulner is the Founder of Grow Together Initiative and Host and Producer of GTI TV, where he highlights community leaders, inspiring stories, and mission-driven conversations. With experience in supply chain operations, eCommerce, and global business, Brad brings strategic thinking, creativity, and hands-on leadership to every initiative. Based in Killingworth, Connecticut, he believes lasting impact is built through collaboration, mentorship, education, and investing in people ready to grow, serve, and create positive change together daily.
Todd Godfrey
Board of Directors
Todd A. Godfrey is a U.S. Army veteran, retired Detective Sergeant, entrepreneur, and strategic business leader with more than 25 years of experience across public safety and private enterprise. After law enforcement, he built ventures in construction, real estate, retail, transportation, and personal services, including an award-winning indoor shooting range. Todd’s leadership is grounded in service, trust, persistence, accountability, and Dreaming Big, with a lifelong commitment to helping people move forward with confidence and purpose.
Kara Bell Fiske, MBA, CMPE
Board of Directors
Kara Bell Fiske, MBA, CMPE, is a mission-driven executive with more than 30 years of experience in healthcare administration, governance, and nonprofit leadership. A proud U.S. Army veteran, she currently leads integrated medical and mental health services at Kansas State University. Her career spans behavioral health, addiction treatment, and community healthcare, with a focus on governance, access, collaboration, and building systems that serve people in meaningful, measurable, community-centered, and lasting ways daily for lasting impact.
Chef Vonshai
Board of Directors
Chef Vonshai is a gourmet chef, culinary educator, consultant, and event professional with more than 34 years of experience serving high-profile clients, celebrities, luxury brands, and private events. As founder of a boutique catering and event planning company, she is known for bold flavor, elegant presentation, exceptional service, and memorable hospitality. Her work transforms gatherings into meaningful experiences built around creativity, connection, culture, and the joy of bringing people together through food and celebration daily.
Consultants & Advisors
Our network of consultants and advisors brings specialized expertise to help guide our initiatives and maximize our impact.
Jake Huggins
Financial Consultant
Jake Huggins is the CEO of Synergy Financial Partners and a financial literacy advocate committed to expanding access, education, and opportunity for underserved families. Raised in Georgia, Jake played football at Kansas State University, an experience that shaped his discipline, leadership, resilience, and team-first mindset. Through Synergy, he helps families pursue stability and generational wealth through mentorship, strategic partnerships, practical financial education, and a commitment to empowering communities with knowledge, confidence, and purpose for all.
Alisa St. Georges
Wellness Consultant
Alisa St. Georges is a wellness entrepreneur and generational impact advocate dedicated to helping families strengthen health, create opportunity, and build lasting legacy. After navigating serious personal health challenges, Alisa turned her experience into a mission of education, encouragement, and service. Through LifeWave’s patented phototherapy technology, she mentors individuals and families in taking ownership of wellness, developing confidence, and building community impact through service, education, leadership, and purposeful personal growth.
Rachel Harris
First Responder Advocate
Rachel Harris is a first responder advocate with more than 20 years of experience outfitting, supporting, and protecting the men and women who serve on the front lines. Born and raised in Oklahoma, she has built her career around ensuring first responders have the tools, resources, and support needed to serve safely and effectively. Her deep commitment to service, preparedness, community, and practical support drives her work and reflects the heart of GTI’s mission to uplift people, strengthen communities, and create lasting impact through education, mentorship, collaboration, and meaningful relationships that help individuals and families thrive.
Cesar Barros
Consultant Advisor
Cesar Barros is an entrepreneur, community builder, and public speaker focused on connecting driven professionals across Connecticut. As founder of the Connecticut Business Networking Association, one of the state’s fastest-growing business communities, Cesar brings together entrepreneurs, investors, and professionals through high-value events. His work makes networking simple, enjoyable, and effective, helping people build meaningful relationships that create real growth, stronger partnerships, new opportunities, and lasting business connections rooted in trust, collaboration, and shared success statewide.
Greg Harkrader
Consultant Advisor
Greg Harkrader is a retired Kansas law enforcement veteran with 28 years of service across the Rice County Sheriff’s Department and Kansas Highway Patrol, where he rose to Lieutenant. A longtime Special Response Team member, crisis negotiator, instructor, and Kansas State University graduate, Greg brings trusted leadership to every partnership. He also helped found the No Stone Unturned Foundation, supporting children with special needs and their families through advocacy, resources, compassion, and service every day.
Shamoon Yaghmor
Financial Consultant
Shamoon Yaghmor is an active day trader and financial literacy advocate with a strong passion for markets, education, and responsible decision-making. He studies opportunities across stocks, cryptocurrency, and commodities, focusing on market structure, price action, risk management, and trading psychology. Through ongoing research and practical market experience, Shamoon helps others better understand how markets operate so they can make more informed and confident financial decisions.
Ramon E. Peralta, Jr.
Consultant Advisor
Ramon E. Peralta, Jr. is the Founder and Creative Director of Peralta Design, a mission-driven agency specializing in branding, web development, and digital marketing. With a BFA, an Agentic AI Certificate from Harvard’s Data Science Center, and an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Bridgeport, Ramon blends creative vision and business strategy. His experience includes Priceline.com’s startup team, authorship, TEDx speaking, national media features, and decades of helping organizations communicate with clarity and impact nationwide.
Bob Nolan
Philanthropy Consultant
Bob Nolan is Executive Director of Development at the School of Public Health at Indiana University-Bloomington and a respected philanthropy leader. A Certified Fund Raising Executive and Fellow of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy, Bob has more than 20 years of experience across hospitals, biomedical research, public health, and higher education. He has raised over $75 million, presented at national and international philanthropy conferences, and helped mission-driven institutions grow through generosity and long-term impact nationwide.
Madison "Mads" Hardee-Rios
Social Media Advisor
Madison “Mads” Hardee-Rios brings heart, humor, and hustle to GTI’s social media presence, helping keep the mission visible and community engaged. A trained culinary artist who managed from-scratch bakeries in California, Mads later transitioned into social media and community-centered brand work. As Shop Manager for Patriot Tattoo Company and Patriot Tattoo Company Fort Riley, she builds welcoming spaces where people feel seen, valued, supported, connected, and encouraged through creativity, consistency, purpose, and care every day.
Jamiah Bartlett
Technology Advisor
Jamiah Bartlett is a co-founder of NJ Developments, a Connecticut-based web design agency serving local businesses and nonprofits. A civil engineering senior at the University of Connecticut, he combines technical discipline, design instincts, and client strategy to build strong digital partnerships. At GTI, Jamiah helps oversee the organization’s website, branding, and online reach, ensuring its digital presence reflects the strength, professionalism, purpose, and forward momentum of the mission across GTI’s digital ecosystem online every day.
Javier Flores
Technology Advisor
Javier Flores is a co-founder of NJ Developments and a computer science senior at Quinnipiac University. With a strong engineering foundation and talent for clean, functional builds, Javier translates design direction into systems and code that bring projects to life. He also supports outbound growth for the agency. At GTI, Javier helps maintain the infrastructure, tools, and technical systems behind the organization’s digital presence, supporting its platform with reliability, consistency, care, and purpose every day.
Nolan Krieger
Technology Advisor
Nolan Krieger is a co-founder of NJ Developments and a computer science senior at Quinnipiac University. A developer focused on execution, reliability, and real-world performance, Nolan brings a builder’s discipline to every project. He contributes across development, delivery, and client work, helping ensure projects ship on time and serve organizations well. At GTI, Nolan supports the technical backbone powering the website with clarity, consistency, thoughtful problem-solving, and lasting purpose.
Youth Advisory Committee
Young voices helping shape the future of our mission.
Jacob Harkrader
Youth Advisor
Jacob Harkrader is a multi-sport student athlete who competes in football, basketball, track and field, and baseball throughout the year. An avid sports enthusiast and statistics researcher, Jacob is passionate about helping others and regularly volunteers with charitable organizations in his community. Outside athletics, he enjoys traveling to collegiate and professional sporting events and has begun trading and selling sports cards, with future plans to grow as a vendor and entrepreneur in the years ahead.