The Team -- With Akron On Our Hearts
Bryson Davis
Bryson serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the AKLF. He has been serving in various leadership roles
for 13 years. Learning from
his own experiences of
poverty and loss, he has
transformed his
disadvantages into
advantages for others. His passions are youth, leadership development, race & culture, and economic development.
Charles Roe
Dr. Roe serves as the Executive Director of the AKLF Economic Development Center. He is a serial entrepreneur with a background in financial education and employment counseling. Charles presently serves on the Board of Directors of
AlgiSys, Jubilee Impact Fund, Across Borders, Agora College, and Word of Grace Church. He is passionate about the socio-economic, physical, and spiritual well-being of Akron.
Donovan Harris
Donovan serves as the Community Liaison for the AKLF. He is the Summit County Re-entry Specialist who after being sentenced to a long prison term at 18, has since spent13 years bringing help,hope, and opportunity to the city he loves – Akron. He is a star of the feature-length documentary, “The Cooler Bandits”, featured on national television shows,a national speaker, and a loving father of two.
JR Rozko
JR serves on the AKLF Board. He has spent most of his working life serving simultaneously in local churches as a pastor and in theological education as a program developer and instructor. JR has a Doctorate in Missiology from Fuller Theological Seminary.
Vatreisha Nyemba
Vatreisha serves as the Chair of the Board for AKLF. She is the Leader and Community Development Director at Building Hope in the City in Cleveland. Vatreisha has her Bachelor’s in Business Administration and Business Management, her Master’s in Public Administration and Nonprofit Management, and has a Doctorate in Transformational Leadership.
Elizabeth Roe
Elizabeth serves on the Board of AKLF. Presently, Dr. Roe is the director of the Center for Intercultural Studies and a professor of Social Work at Malone University in Canton, Ohio. She and her husband, Charles, reside in Summit Lake, and are involved in community development work in Summit Lake and the surrounding areas.
Christy Staats
Christy serves on the AKLF Board and is a consultant for the National Immigration Forum. She has 20 years of cross-cultural and international experience including managing teams, leading in strategic planning, partnership building, and community development. Christy graduated from Miami University and is finishing an MA at Trinity International University (TEDS).
Gino Haynes
Gino serves on the AKLF Board. He is a Pastor at Beacon of Hope Community Church, a Community Organizer for Canon For All People, and a Certified Professional Business and Personal Coach with over 12 years of leadership development experience.
Nicole Flower
Nicole serves on the AKLF Board. She is trained in art therapy. She is the former Director of The Landing, a weekly community gathering and food pantry through Akron Christian Reformed Church where guests and volunteers alike come with needs and gifts to offer, all landing on equal ground. She also has experience as a Compassionate Entrepreneur with Trades of Hope, which partners with women around the world by selling their handmade jewelry and home décor so to empower them out of poverty, human trafficking and other vulnerable situations.