WaterTower Theatre Welcomes New Board Members, Officers for 2014-15

By: Sep. 23, 2014
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WaterTower Theatre (WTT) has announced the election of Derek Blount as President of the Board of Directors, serving for a fifth term. WTT also announced the election of a slate of Board Officers including Vice President, Ben Cunningham, Secretary, Katie Myatt, and Treasurer, Jimmy Niemann.

The following directors were re-elected to a new term: Rosalind Benjet, Barbara Daseke, Buddy Frazer, Terry Martin, Robert Mayer, Jr., and Katie Myatt.

WaterTower Theatre also welcomes the appointment of six new Board members: Rose Colarossi, Laree Hulshoff, Margo Keyes, Jeff Laceky, Wade Owens, and Corky Pledger. WaterTower Theatre's Board Resources Committee was Chaired by Derek Blount, and included board members Barbara Daseke, Stan Graner, and Terry Martin.

President Blount also announced the appointments of Stan Graner as Development Committee Chair, April Bosworth as 2015 Spotlight Gala Chair and WOW! Chair, Jimmy Niemann as Endowment and Planned Giving Chair, Jeff Laceky will continue in his role as Corporate Council Co-Chair, and Barbara Daseke and Stan Graner will continue in their role as Co-Chairs of The President's Circle.

Derek Blount is North Dallas President for Sovereign Bank. He has served on the WaterTower Theatre Board of Directors for eight years and has served as President for the past four years. He is also the Co-Chair of WaterTower Theatre's Corporate Council (with Jeff Laceky).

Members of WTT's Board of Directors consists of leaders in the fields of business, publishing, education, law, finance, community activism, real estate, and the arts who volunteer their time and expertise on behalf of the organization. The newly elected members will join current Board members Derek Blount, Rosalind Benjet, April Bosworth, Michael Canterbury, Ben Cunningham, Barbara Daseke, Buddy Frazer, Stan Graner, Robert Mayer, Jr., Terry Martin, Katie Myatt, Jimmy Niemann, and Debbie Staggs.

"I am so pleased that Derek Blount has agreed to serve as President for a fifth term," said Terry Martin. "Derek has served as our President with distinction and continues to provide the kind of solid leadership a growing arts organization requires."

"I am equally thrilled to welcome our six newest board members to WaterTower Theatre," Martin continued. "Derek's just completed fourth term as President was marked by numerous successes, including continuing to oversee expanded development and fundraising activities including our Endowment Fund program and Planned Giving. All of our fundraising programs involve members of the board, and Derek has been instrumental in engaging our board in all of its key areas of governance."

"This past season WaterTower Theatre continued to experience growth in ticket sales and fundraising not to mention the myriad of artistic successes that defines WaterTower Theatre," said Derek Blount. "I'm proud of both the staff and the Board of Directors for their prudent management this past year as well as their willingness to take on new projects. Our new slate of Executive Committee Officers and recently appointed Board members will be important assets to the organization to ensure that our Board continues its work to support the mission of WaterTower Theatre. I'm pleased to welcome Rose, Laree, Margo, Jeff, Wade, and Corky to our Board, and I know they will bring important skills and leadership qualities to an already dynamic group of individuals."

Derek Blount (President, WaterTower Theatre) joined the WaterTower Theatre Board of Directors in 2006 and has served in the roles of Board Treasurer; Co-Chair of The Corporate Council, Board Vice President, and in September 2010 was elected President of the Board of Directors. He was re-elected as Board President in 2011, 2012, 2013, and for 2014. In addition to his role as President of the Board, Derek serves as Co-Chair of The Corporate Council.

Professionally, Derek serves as North Dallas President for Sovereign Bank, a Dallas-based financial institution. In his role with the bank, Derek focuses on corporate banking including commercial real estate lending, mergers & acquisitions, equipment financing and working capital loans.

Founded in 2004, Sovereign Bank has grown to more than a billion dollars in assets and proudly serves the Texas metro-markets of Dallas-Fort Worth, Austin, and Houston.

Derek's professional experience prior to Sovereign includes corporate lending roles with international banking syndicate Credit Lyonnais (now Credit Agricole) and helping establish the Dallas commercial banking division for Hibernia Bank (now Capital One Bank). Derek began his banking career with JPMorgan Chase through completion of their executive training program and later serving as a commercial banking officer.

A Texas native, Derek received both his BBA in Finance and his MS in Marketing from Texas A&M University. Derek is an active member of American MENSA, an enthusiastic traveler, and an avid runner. Derek is married to Bethany Blount, and they are the proud parents of two children, Harrison and Roland Blount.

 

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