Brenda North Ramsey
Executive Director

Brenda Ramsey is a non-profit and government professional with over 25 years of experience in program planning, development and management.  She holds a MSSW from the University of Tennessee.  Ms. Ramsey is responsible for the overall direction of the City of Life Corporation in accordance with its mission, purpose and goals including developing new initiatives, optimizing growth opportunities, being fiscally accountable, and providing support to the Board of Directors.  Ms. Ramsey has served in a leadership role in three non-profits prior to coming to the City of Life Corporation.  She began her non-profit career while still in graduate school as director of a local community center.  While there she increased the pre-school program and developed a program for teens and senior adults.  The agency budget more than doubled under her leadership.  As an Associate Executive Director for a local non-profit, Ms. Ramsey provided leadership for five programs with a combined budget of $1.2 M.  She developed and helped write grants for two of the programs.  As Vice President of a non-profit in Dallas, Texas, Ms. Ramsey provided leadership for a division of 85 staff and a major contract of $44M which served more than 12,500 families annually.  In her role with state government, Ms. Ramsey served as Director of Child Care Services and Director of Child Care Planning and Development for the Tennessee Department of Human Services overseeing Federal Child Care and Development Fund quality initiatives.

Out-of-School-Time Program (OSTP)
Lori Elaine Porter – director of the OSTP is responsible for managing all aspects of the daily program including assurance of goal attainment.  Most of Ms. Porter’s working career has been aimed toward management and leadership in nonprofit organizations with 15 plus years working in child care administration.  Her senior leadership and management experiences helped to develop leadership skills and also provided experience in interpreting, understanding, and implementing policies.  Ms. Porter completed a comprehensive course of study in administration and leadership, earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and a Master of Business Administration degree; both with a concentration in General Management, as well as a Master of Public Administration degree.  Her other interests include local church and community volunteer work; involvement with the International Church Of God In Christ; work as a consultant, inspirational, motivational, and seminar speaker.  She is also a member of various organizations.       

SUCCESS Teens Program/Skills for Life Mentoring Program
Gloria Johnson - has been a public school teacher for over thirty years and has coordinated summer youth enrichment programs for the last 20 years.  Ms. Johnson holds a Masters + 45 in Special Education from Middle Tennessee State University.  She, along with Ms. Bettye Bond, has served as a Coordinator of the SUCCESS Teens Program since its inception in 2008.  Her specific responsibility and expertise has been to coordinate curriculum activities and field trips, provide one-on-one mentoring to students and ensure that the program operated smoothly.  Ms. Johnson’s role with the mentoring program is program developer and mentor.  She volunteered over forty hours with Skills for Life and has given over forty volunteer hours of pre-planning for SUCCESS Teens each year.  Ms. Johnson is a volunteer with the Adult Education Program in Bedford County and serves on the Foster Care Review Board for the State of Tennessee.  She is a mother of three and grandmother of four.

Jacqueline Lucas-Beverly – is a part of the SUCCESS Teens Planning Team and gives approximately 40 volunteer hours to the process each year.  She is vital in helping to make the connections with the various schools and community agencies that the program partners with each year.  Mrs. Beverly is 33 years retired Educator from Metro Nashville Public Schools.  She holds a Masters Degree in Guidance and Counseling with Administration and Supervision Certification.  She is presently an Early Childhood Education Specialist / Trainer for Tennessee Voices for Children, and a Trevecca Nazarene University Adjunct Instructor.  Mrs. Beverly is President of the National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa, Inc, - Alpha Beta Chapter, and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.  Ms. Beverly is married with two adult children and three grandchildren.

Mary & Martha Restoration Clinic
Cheryl Page - As a survivor of domestic violence, Cheryl Page overcame the violence, and that experience has strengthened her for the work she does to this day.  As she pursued wholeness and health, Ms. Page and her daughter were able to maximize the potential within as they started life over again.

Ms. Page worked in the insurance industry for 30+ years in a leadership role and has now refined her former teaching and training to fit her present role as director and advocate overseeing the Mary & Martha Restoration Clinic (MMRC) program.

In 2004, Ms. Page became a part of the legal advocate network with the Davidson County General Sessions Court/Order of Protection Docket.  In 2006, Ms. Page became director and project manager of MMRC transitional housing.  In 2007, Ms. Page received approval for MMRC to house Offender Residential Program participants through the Tennessee Department of Probation and Parole.  Ms. Page uses her marketing skills to bring in needed supplies and resources as she facilitates the growth of the Mary & Martha Restoration Clinic program.

CAMP
Sara Davis - has worked in the finance industry for the past 10yrs, from management to now a financial consultant.  Sara has intermittently worked internationally in such countries as Paraguay, Belize and South Africa in the area of economic development and family planning.  A graduate and all conference athlete of Fisk University in Nashville TN, Sara has horned in on her passion for sports and youth development and now serves as a Coordinator for CAMP- Christian Athletes Mentoring Program.  Sara hopes to foster the development of youth and families and act as a role model to program participants.