Jeffery Gregory, Chairman
Jeff Gregory resides in Cleveland with his wife Lori, he is the President/Owner of Printing Consultants Inc., founded in 1996. He also works for Servpro of Chattanooga and Bradley County as the Director of Business Development.
Jeff has served on the Bachman Memorial Inc., board since July 2015. He also serves as a member of Salvation Army Council, Better Business Bureau of Cleveland advisory board, Blood Assurance advisory board and the Bradley Sunrise Rotary of Cleveland.
Jeff has worked in many capacities during his time on the Bachman Memorial Home Inc., board, serving as the Secretary, and currently the Vice – Chair of the board and Chair of the Finance and Development Committee.
Jeff’s insight and connections throughout the community have helped Bachman Memorial Home Inc., DBA Bachman Foundation be successful.
Mike Sikes, Vice Chairman
Mike Sikes has served on the Bachman Memorial Home Inc., DBA Bachman Foundation board of trustees since 2018.
Mike received a Master’s degree from Jacksonville State University in Special Education, and an Education Specialist Degree from Lincoln Memorial University in Educational Leadership. He has taught Special Education for 13 years and was a school administrator for 19 years.
Mike is retired and lives with his wife of 38 years in Cleveland Tennessee.
He has dedicated his life to teaching and empowering students who learn differently.
Ken Weller, Treasurer
Ken Weller, a Chattanooga native, President, Founder and CEO of Weller Construction, LLC, a family owned and managed residential construction company. Weller Construction specializes in designing and building custom homes in Hamilton County and the surrounding areas. He enlisted in the Air Force right out of high school where he served for four years. After his discharge from the military he went to work for TVA as a unit operator. He also worked for North American Royalties – Wheland Foundry where he developed and managed their information system and worked with robotics.
While at Chattanooga State, Ken studied mechanical engineering, industrial electronics, plant automation and robotics. Ken has a soft spot in his heart for all children and we are especially thankful for his dedication to special needs children here at Bachman. Ken Weller has been a member of Bachman Academy’s Board of Trustees since 2010.
Nate Durham, Secretary
Nate Durham is a resident of Cleveland, currently he is the President / Owner / Principal Broker for the Chattanooga Real Estate Group.
Nate and his business partners are in the process of opening two more real estate groups in Cleveland and Knoxville.
Nate was born in Brunswick Georgia in 1968, after living in Houston and graduating high school Nate joined and served in the United States Navy from 1988 – 1992 aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, and he fought in the 1st Gulf War.
After leaving the military honorably Nate worked for Delaware Savings Bank as a loan officer.
Nate owned and operated Centurion Realty in Chattanooga for 6 years.
Nate has been in the Real Estate business for 17 years and is well connected throughout Hamilton County, Bradley County and Knox County.
Nate has an extensive background in finance and Real Estate.
Nate contributes annually to Bachman, Cleveland Fire Department and the Chattanooga Police Department.
George Con Knox, Jr. CLU, Trustee
Con has served on the Board of Trustees at Bachman Memorial Home, Inc. for the past 30 years. He has served as a Chairman on two different terms and is currently a trustee. Con’s primary source of income is the sale of insurance, primarily to professionals. From 1978 until 2008 Con was CEO President of 4 Insurance agencies, as well as, a Loan company.
Currently, Con is the owner of the OMNI Group, LLC, a general insurance agency with a division which administers IRS Section 125 plans for all companies. In addition, he is the owner of the Bailey Executive Suites in Chattanooga where he rents 24 individual offices and two large conference rooms. Con and his wife, Connie, live on Signal Mountain and attend the Signal Mountain Presbyterian Church.
Con is an avid golfer and also a caretaker for his wife’s two horses.
Bachman appreciates Con’s years of service.
Melody D. Babb, Board Member
Melody Babb is a Cleveland, TN native. She is a professional with a passion for designing solutions with consideration for the needs of both people and technical aspects. She enjoys forming relationships with diverse groups of people which enables her to resolve concerns and create solutions across otherwise hard to breach boundaries. Her values of integrity and teamwork combine to help facilitate open and honest discussions in difficult situations.
Mrs. Babb is an experienced Quality Assurance professional and certified Lead Auditor. She also has experience in interview and people skills through her position as an Employee Concerns Manager. With this combined experience, she can bridge the gap between department boundaries, managers, and all levels of employees. This enables her to resolve concerns through collaborative work groups. She also has creditable experience in the Financial Services industry.
In addition to her education and experience in technical and people skills, Mrs. Babb has personal skills obtained through life experience that are relevant to the Bachman Foundation. Mrs. Babb is the mother of a former student at Bachman Academy. She has experienced first-hand the struggles that individuals face they have difficulties that are out of their own control. She has also experienced the joy of working hard and finding a solution that works for someone with special abilities. Bachman Academy was the long sought out solution for her son. The impact was so important to his development that he still talks about that being the best experience of his life.
In addition to her work experience, Mrs. Babb is passionate about gaining an understanding of how the community can grow to meet the needs of individuals. She is an empathetic listener and desires to gain an understanding of each individual and what gaps need to be filled to meet these needs. She understands that communities must work together to build a better quality of life and adapt to the changing needs of the environment. Mrs. Babb holds a BS degree in Clinical Laboratory Science and a MS in Quality Assurance. While working toward her degree, she was the Medical Laboratory student of the year at Cleveland State Community College and received the Senior Award for Medical Technology at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga.
Andy Willoughby, Board Member
Andy Willoughby will be joining the Bachman Foundation board as a trustee starting March 11, 2024.
He was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia and lived there for twenty-five years.
Andy graduated from Georgia Tech in 1993 with a BS in Management and Marketing. Andy’s parents William and Betty live in Milledgeville, Georgia and have been married for over 60 years. He has one sibling who is a Radiologist in Milledgeville.
After college, Andy met his wife, Janel, just after moving to Birmingham, then on to Brooklyn Connecticut, Florence Kentucky, Cheyenne Wyoming, Lexington Kentucky, Ooltewah Tennessee, and they finally landed in their dream home in McDonald Tennessee.
Andy and Janel have been married for over twenty – nine years and will soon celebrate their thirtieth anniversary later this year.
They have four children ranging in ages 19 – 26.
Andy started working at Keebler company during his time in college. He also worked for Amazon in a variety of management roles. He is currently the Senior Director of Construction, Launch and Facilities for Chewy.com, which is the largest online pet retailer. Over the last six years his team has delivered fourteen large scale new sites.
When Andy is not traveling for work, he loves playing his guitar and spending time with family.
Andy and his wife Janel are members of Redemption to the Nations Church here in Cleveland.
One of the reasons that serving on the Bachman Foundation board appealed to Andy was his daughter is studying to become a teacher with a concentration in “Special Needs”, and he believes they could both participate within the Foundation. Andy believes in the Foundation’s mission to “facilitate educational opportunities for students in East Tennessee who learn differently.”
