Christy is a serial entrepreneur who has a continual love for learning, teaching, and giving back to her community and those around her. She earned her undergrad degree in Human Services with a Minor in Business Administration and continued to earn her master’s degree in Leadership and Development, as well as a Women’s Global Leadership Certificate all from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. It is there where she also continued to purse her education with a Ph.D in Global Leadership and Communication. Christy and her husband own two businesses and a nonprofit organization in their small-town of Sullivan, Indiana, where they focus on community development and educational services.  Together her and her husband have 6 beautiful children, and 3 grandchildren. 

Chris Stitzle, a native of Putnam County, has dedicated more than 30 years to serving the students of Southwest School District as a teacher, coach, mentor and administrator. His goal as an educator and administrator is "to provide every student with an opportunity to succeed.”

Richard Whitlock is the Owner and Managing Partner of RTA Properties, LLC and the Managing Member of the JRW Investment Trust.  He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in Counseling both from Indiana State University.  He worked at Gibault School for Boys for 17 years starting as a part-time Recreation Worker and ending as the Director of Treatment.  Following Gibault, he worked in the human resources field in manufacturing as the Regional Human Resources Director for the Midwest operations of JT Walker Industries.  He was born, raised and currently lives in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Michelle Franklin is the CEO of Sullivan County Community Hospital, a critical access hospital in rural central southwestern Indiana.  Michelle has over 30 years' experience in the healthcare field.  As a Registered Nurse, her clinical experience has included medical-surgical nursing, nursing management, staff education and development, home health care, and hospice management.  In addition to these roles, Michelle has had the honor of serving in senior leader positions at her hospital in both the Chief Nursing and Chief Executive Officer roles; careers that have spanned over 20 years.

In her current role as CEO, Michelle oversees several clinical departments.  She serves as initiative champion for her organization's "Journey to Excellence".  This was a deliberate initiative designed to engage employees in the work of the organization, improve the quality of care given, and enhance the customer service experience.  This has resulted in a $2 million dollar uptick in net revenue, improved patient satisfaction scores, improved willingness to recommend scores, and high employment engagement rates.  In 2019, her organization received Press Ganey'sGuardian of Excellence Employee Engagement Award.

Michelle also serves as her organization's ACO champion.  This is a role near and dear to her heart.  Since joining Caravan Health, her organization has made significant strides in population health management.  Working in rural America, she is very familiar with the role social determinants of care can play in an individual's healthcare or lack thereof.  Michelle is extremely proud of the recognition her staff and hospital have received over the past several years for their population health work.  

Michelle is married with two teenage children and two fur babies.  Her hobbies include reading, gardening, cooking, and state-side as well as international travel.

My name is David Dubree. I am a Sullivan County native who enjoys the small-town life and endless opportunity available to us. Exercising my creativity with visual storytelling and starting new businesses keeps me excited. 1987 was the start of my corporate technology support career working in small, medium and large business environments. From there I began my own small computer support business and a regional wireless internet provider business.

Over the years my interest in creating led me to several regional leaders working hard to build the startup community in Indiana and beyond. Participating in that community provided many opportunities to be involved in the startup of other new businesses and building an even stronger startup entrepreneur community. Part of that ‘building’ has meant hosting, managing and growing networking events and programs designed to inspire startup founders and create valuable connections for future success.

Suncast Studios is my latest startup venture. We are a small niche marketing agency with a community development and tourism focus.

After living in larger cities such as Indianapolis Indiana and Houston Texas, it is evident that opportunity is everywhere, including small town America.

I am happy to be involved in several local non-profit community organizations like the High School CEO Program who are on a mission to invest in local talent, grow the local economy and increase the regions quality of place for current and future generations.

Let’s connect!

Sullivan County CEO Program:

My name is Chris Egge. I am a Sullivan County resident now, as of this date, for 4 Years. I have the privilege of managing the Brampton Brick operations in Farmersburg, Indiana. 

I grew up working in the antique automotive parts manufacturing industry serving in several roles from Machinist, Inventory, Shipping & Receiving and Quality Control. My professional leadership experience started in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, directly after 9/11, where I had the honor of serving for 12 years. During that time, I deployed to Africa, Korea, Kuwait, and conducted 3 combat tours in Iraq. In 2012, I decided to focus on my civilian career, and left the Marine Corps. In 2014, I rejoined our military ranks in a part time role with the United States Army National Guard where I am part of Texas Training Command. I am able to conduct my services in Mineral Wells, TX at Fort Wolters Training Center where I facilitate various training of all four branches of the US Military. I have 18 years of combined service in our military. 

I am also a certified Wildfire Responder for Fort Wolters. I hold a certification from the Texas Forestry Service for Wildfire Firefighting and am also certified as a First Responder, Hazmat Level 1, CPR, First Aid, AED, Several Fire Fighter certifications, and I hold a Black Belt in Taiho Jutsu and a Green Belt in MCMAP (Marine Corps Martial Arts Program).

I have been fortunate to have learned many things from my travels, experiences, harsh environments, and extreme stress and pressure situations. These lessons have enabled me to excel at managing many different types of people and personalities in all sorts of situations. It also taught me how to plan and strategize.

My brick career started in North Carolina and then relocated me to Texas. While in Texas, I managed 17 different Capital Improvement projects over the course of 23 months totaling $9.2 Million. This was done while managing a staff of 51 and operating at full production 7 days a week. All projects were completed successfully, met deadlines, and a zero injury record. These improvements resulted in 200% profit increases year on year, during my 3 years as Plant Manager. I managed all aspects of the site operation of the Mineral Wells West Plant through 2 corporate mergers/acquisitions.

In June of 2017, I was asked to relocate to Indiana to manage the Brampton Brick operations in Farmersburg. This is the second newest plant in North America and is highly automated. We are currently operating at 70% capacity and employ 37 employees. I manage an annual operating budget of roughly $12.5 million. We manufacture 227 different products on one manufacturing line and primarily sell through a network of 411 distributors all over North America. 

I have over 10 years’ experience developing annual and capital budgets. Also experienced in performance improvement index tracking; process improvements; SOP draft, management and implementation; Environmental/Health/Safety Management; MSHA and Mining Operations; and several other certifications.  

I am married to Odessa Egge, and between us we have 5 children ranging from 3 to 18 years of age. Our 18 year old, Kaylia, is currently attending Indiana State University. I enjoy spending time with family, playing basketball, precision shooting, motorcycle riding, boating, and tackling the daily challenges of Brick Making.

I feel compelled to serve our community in any way possible. Having lived in several different places, being a transplant to Sullivan County allows me to see the value in community living, being neighborly, and simply being a good American and human being. I believe that my experience and skillsets, both professionally and personally, are an asset to the Sullivan County Community and I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the CEO Board. 

Ryan is currently a tax manager for Sackrider & Company CPA’s. He graduated from Sullivan High School in 2002 and received my BS in Accounting from The University of Evansville in 2006. Ryan is a Certified Public Accountant, Accredited Business Valuator, and Certified Valuation Analyst. Born and raised in Sullivan he briefly lived in Terre Haute before returning home. Through his employment at Sackrider & Company he has worked with companies in various stages of growth and in many industries including ag, manufacturing, retail, medical practices, law practices, and others.  

Ryan is married with three children. He currently serves on the boards of The Estate Planning Council of Central Illiana, the Kiwanis Club of Terre Haute, and the Sullivan County Youth Soccer Association. In his free time he enjoys traveling, attending the kids sporting events, and cooking out.

I am Carri Howard and a current member of the Sullivan County CEO board. Additionally, I serve on the Dugger Union Schools Board of Trustees. I am happy to be associated with groups aspiring to provide support for today’s students and tomorrow’s leaders.

My educational background is in Elementary Education having received both my undergraduate and master degrees from Indiana State University. I was an elementary teacher at Dugger Elementary School for thirty – four years. Since retiring in 2014, I have maintained a connection to education through my work on the school board as well as supporting the various sports teams and organizations associated with DUCS.

I am a lifelong resident of Dugger and am a wife, mom, and “Meme” to my grandchildren.

Ms Nancy Liston

Principal - North Central Jr/Sr High School

38 years experience in Education in the Northeast School Corporation.

CEO Board Member

Lives in Farmersburg, Indiana