Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustees Provide Fiduciary Oversight, Develop and Lead Fundraising Endeavors, and Lead Through Their Own Philanthropy
Tom McGannon
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Chair
Tom is the vice president-community engagement at Corewell Health Foundation – Southeast Michigan (formerly Beaumont Health). He has experience as a senior marketing, communication, and fundraising executive and advanced skills and connections in corporate sponsorship solicitation, community funding return-on-investment programs, and strategic corporate communications. His board experience includes the former Acorn organization, chairperson of the former ROOTS board, and past service to The University of Toledo Alumni Association.
Amanda Sears
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Vice-Chair
Amanda is Director of Planning and Projects with The Senior Alliance. She has over a decade of experience in nonprofit leadership with a focus on improving aging and caregiver systems through the lens of social justice. She has expertise in program planning and development, coalition building, community outreach, nonprofit management, and grant management from both the requestor and funder perspective. Her personal and professional passion is enacting change to build communities in which all individuals thrive. Amanda lives in Royal Oak with her husband and two young sons, the oldest attends Royal Oak Schools.
Sharlan Douglas
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Secretary
A founding Royal Oak Civic Foundation trustee, Sharlan has served on the Royal Oak City Commission since 2013 and on the planning commission since 2005. She is the former CEO of the Dearborn Chamber of Commerce and was the founding executive director of the Eight Mile Boulevard Association. As an officer and volunteer with multiple nonprofits, she has written bylaws, led strategic planning, raised funds, created and overseen budgets, and recruited and managed volunteers. She’s a longtime member of Stagecrafters, serves on the board of Royal Oak Youth Assistance, and is a past president of the Michigan Association of Planning.
Alexander Fike
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Alex Fike is tackling complex issues to fix the world’s trickiest problems. At Elevance Health, he leads learning programs for future-focused topics like digital, AI, automation, and process improvement and excellence, and supports team members through Elevance Health’s Automation and Process Academy. Prior to Elevance Health, Fike led Talent Management, Learning & Leadership Development at United Way, the world’s largest nonprofit. Before that, he served as a Legislative Director, a case worker, a communications specialist, and a policy architect. He serves on various community-focused nonprofit boards.
Darian Neubecker
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Treasurer
Darian is the senior vice president of Robertson Homes Company and has years of accounting and project management experience. He has expertise in financial and executive-level leadership as well as significant drive and determination to succeed. He manages many employees and is well-versed in the engagement and growth of others toward a common goal of success. As a Royal Oak resident and father of three children who will grow up in the city, he wants to provide assistance and expertise to ensure this Royal Oak remains a great place to live.
Howard H. Collens
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Howard is a member of Collens Estate Law. He focuses his law practice on contested and uncontested probate and trust administration, estate planning, and elder law. Mr. Collens is a board member for Ageways (Area Agency on Aging 1B) and the vice president of the Senior and Caregiver Resource Network. Howard serves as a council member of the State Bar of Michigan’s Elder Law and Disability Rights Section. He also served as the 2nd vice president of Congregation Shir Tikvah and as president of the Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Howard is married with three children and lives in Huntington Woods.
Christopher Bower
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Christopher is the founding Member of Detroit Internet Marketing, a Certified Google Partner’s agency in Royal Oak and Orlando. His skills include Internet marketing, PPC management, and digital marketing consulting. He is recognized as an experienced marketing director as well as a strong team builder, sales builder, and company branding strategist. He lives in Royal Oak, and his education includes marketing and counseling psychology for which he earned his Bachelors of Science at Rochester College. Christopher also supports Detroit Rescue Mission, Columbus Dream Center, and Act Now Ministries in Catania, Sicily.
Jill Martin
Executive Director
Jill Martin began her career in public service at the City of Romulus in 1992 as an Administrative Assistant and retired in 2023, having earned the position of Grant Administrator and Emergency Preparedness Coordinator. She attended Wayne State University and has a bachelor’s degree in communication. Jill serves the City of Royal Oak as the Grants Coordinator Management Analyst. As the executive director for Royal Oak Civic Foundation, Jill has a desire to impact the lives of Royal Oak positively. Her prior non-profit experience includes Vice President of Romulus Goodfellows, Chair of Romulus Pension Committee, and President of the LMR Fire Board.
John Peetz
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
John Peetz, Vice President of Treasury, Investments and Debt. John joined Beaumont in 1990 and has held various financial management positions of increasing responsibility since that time. Prior to joining Beaumont, John was a Financial Officer at NBD Bancorp (since acquired by JP Morgan Chase). Mr. Peetz earned his Bachelor degree in Finance from Western Michigan University and an MBA from Wayne State University. Mr. Peetz has served on the Board of Community Living Services (CLS) and is a past Treasurer of that organization.
David Guest
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
David Guest, Certified Public Accountant, joined Grant, Millman & Johnson, P.C. in 2007, continuing a now four-decade career in client service. David sits on the Financial Advisory Board of Notre Dame Preparatory School and is active in the Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce. David graduated from the University of Michigan, married a life-long Royal Oak resident and raised his two children in this city. His personal interests include visiting Detroit’s graffiti murals and architectural highlights, often via in-line skating and biking, interests also shared by his family members.
Julie Lyons Bricker
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Julie is Oakland County’s Sustainability Project Manager and holds designations as a LEED AP O+M and Project Management Professional (PMP). Prior to joining Oakland County, she worked at the City of Royal Oak as the grants coordinator, energy and sustainability manager, and the founding executive director for the Royal Oak Civic Foundation. Julie has experience on several regional, non-profit executive boards. She is also a Royal Oak resident of 22 years and holds a deep commitment to community volunteering.
Jennifer Banovetz-Bastian
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Jennifer is a strategic communications leader with a diverse background spanning industries including automotive, B2B, consumer products and non-profit organizations. With a passion for public service, she crafts messaging and marketing campaigns to drive awareness, reach key stakeholders and form meaningful connections. Prior to starting her own consultancy, Jennifer held leadership positions in communications and brand marketing at global companies including Ford Motor Company, Ogilvy and Edelman. Her non-profit experience includes working with The Recording Academy, Adopt the Arts, Animal Wellness Foundation, and Infinite Hero Foundation. She lives in Royal Oak with her husband Paul, who is a lifelong Royal Oak resident, and their four rescue cats.
Eric Lofquist
Royal Oak Civic Foundation Trustee
Eric is the Director of Development for Oakland Community College. He has a diverse skillset in fundraising: major gift cultivation, corporate and foundation relations, grant management, and planned giving. Eric attended Oakland Community College, graduated from Michigan State University, and has a Master of Community Development from the University of Detroit Mercy. Eric serves on Royal Oak’s Audit Review Committee and Rehabillitation Board of Appeals, and is the co-chair of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network – Detroit.
More About Royal Oak Civic Foundation
The Royal Oak Civic Foundation is a formal 501(c)(3) non-profit that works to improve the city of Royal Oak’s health, safety, and cultural opportunities by inspiring the philanthropy of residents and business leaders to support a thriving, resilient community. We can respond quickly to matters concerning Royal Oak and can apply for grants with deadlines and requirements that the city government may be unable to meet. In addition to grants from other foundations, we accept individual and corporate donations and bequests. Your donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by the IRS, and giving opportunities include Community Benefit Fund, Royal Oak Animal Shelter, Arts Commission, Historical Commission, Nature Society, Public Safety, Public Library, Parks & Recreation, and the City’s Senior Center.
Every year, many people make donations to the city programs they love, like the Public Library, Animal Shelter, and Parks & Recreation. The Royal Oak Civic Foundation provides a central place for you to donate and, as a 501(c)(3), enables a deduction on your tax return to the extent allowed by the IRS. We exist as a channel for residents, businesses, and corporations to make impactful philanthropic contributions. Your donation supports civic entities that receive little or no tax-base funding and groundbreaking community projects that improve the quality of life in the city of Royal Oak.
Trustee Job Description
Trustee’s Purpose: To act as a voting member of the board with full authority and responsibility to develop policies, procedures, and regulations for the operation of the organization; to monitor the organization’s financial health, programs, and overall performance; and to provide the chief executive officer with the resources to meet the needs of those the organization serves.
Further, the Board of trustees shall be the governing body and manage the property, business, and affairs of the foundation in a manner that is consistent and in compliance with the purposes, objectives, and limitations set forth in the Bylaws, the Articles of Incorporation, and as otherwise required by law. See Article IV in the Royal Oak Civic Foundation Bylaws for the detailed general powers and duties of the board of trustees.
All trustees will function as community fundraisers, both identifying and personally soliciting cash and in-kind gifts to support active campaigns.
Election and Term:
Trustees are elected, and/or removed, by the foundation’s sole member, the city of Royal Oak, which is represented by the city commission. The trustee term of office is three (3) years, and the trustee may serve up to two (2) consecutive terms, not including any partial term when filling a vacant trustee position.
Duties:
1. Duty of Obedience — The duty of obedience requires trustees to be faithful to the organization’s mission. They are not permitted to act in a way that is inconsistent with the central goals of the organization. A basis for this rule lies in the public’s trust that the organization will manage donated funds to fulfill the organization’s mission.
2. Duty of Care — The duty of care describes the level of competence that is
expected of a trustee, and is commonly expressed as the duty of “care that an ordinarily prudent person would exercise in a like position and under similar circumstances.” This means that a trustee owes the duty to exercise reasonable care when they make a decision as a steward of the organization.
3. Duty of Loyalty — The duty of loyalty is a standard of faithfulness; a trustee must give undivided allegiance when making decisions affecting the organization. This means that a trustee can never use information obtained as a member for personal gain, but must act in the best interests of the organization.
Royal Oak Civic Foundation
203 S. Troy St.
Royal Oak, MI 48067
(248) 254-6490
