Melissa Peele, MSW
Founder & Executive Director
Melissa Peele is the Founder and Executive Director of Firm Foundation of Virginia. Melissa earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work from Norfolk State University and a Bachelor’s of Human Services Counseling from Old Dominion University. She worked as a professional Social Worker for the cities of Newport News and Norfolk Social Services with foster care and adoption. She also worked with UMFS where she was a Regional Independent Living Consultant helping youth prepare to transition out of foster care.
In these professional roles and after experiencing her bout with homelessness, Melissa saw the need for transitional housing for pregnant mothers, youth aging out of foster care, and families who experienced homelessness. Driven by her passion for serving single mothers, Melissa founded Firm Foundation of Virginia, an organization that would provide women a nurturing environment where emotional, social, spiritual, and financial needs are addressed to move them from homelessness to home. In addition to leading Firm Foundation of Virginia, Melissa is currently working as an Adjunct Social Work Professor at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and is a Deaconess in her local church.
Melissa is a native of North Carolina, but has resided in the Hampton Roads Area since 1991. Prior to her Social Work career, Melissa served in the United States Air Force.
Geree Jackson, M.Ed., MHRM, MBA
Board Member
Geree Jackson has over 36 years of experience in the Human Resources field and currently serves as the Chief Human Resources Officer for Portsmouth Public Schools. A visionary and service-driven leader, she is known for advancing organizational culture, developing leadership capacity, and implementing strategic initiatives that promote employee growth and engagement.
Throughout her career, Geree has held progressive leadership roles across public, private, and nonprofit sectors. Her expertise spans talent management, organizational planning, employee and labor relations, compensation and benefits, performance management, and policy development. She is recognized for her ability to lead with compassion while driving meaningful, results-oriented change.
Geree holds an undergraduate degree in Business Administration Management and graduate degrees in Counseling, Human Resource Management, and Business Administration Management. She is also completing her Doctoral studies in Executive Leadership at Regent University.
Deeply committed to civic and community engagement, Geree serves on multiple local and national boards of directors and advisory boards. She is an active and proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, where she continues her lifelong dedication to service, leadership, and empowering others.
Geree loves God and makes a concerted effort to live as a faithful Christian. She attends Calvary Revival Church, where she continues to grow in her faith and commitment to serving others. In her personal time, she enjoys traveling, mentoring, public speaking, and spending time with her daughters and grandchildren, who are the joy of her life. She also finds rejuvenation in activities such as cheerleading and gymnastics.
Charles L. Owens
Board Member
Charles retired from the US Navy after a successful 23-year career, of which, 17 were spent as a Public Affairs Officer where he was primary media spokesman for high-profile events such as the 2003 Gulf War, the attack on the USS COLE (DDG 67), and the USS GREENVILLE’s (SSN 772) collision with the Ehime Maru.
Upon retiring from the Navy, Mr. Owens assumed responsibility for a Media and Marketing Services contract in Afghanistan, where he led the efforts of senior-level strategic communication planners, social scientists, and media analysts with applied planning, opinion research, analysis, and marketing campaign strategy experience. He successfully established and led strategic communication contracts in Stuttgart, Germany, Northern Africa, Bogotá, Colombia, and Miami, Florida. Mr. Owens’ articles on strategic communication have been published in Proceedings Magazine.
Currently, Mr. Owens is working with leadership in the US submarine force analyzing, at the strategic and tactical levels, force requirements through 2030 and beyond. Analysis includes active engagements with NATO partners and assessing practical applications for machine learning, artificial intelligence, crewed/un-crewed systems and other new technologies.
Mr. Owens serves the City of Suffolk as its Soil and Water Conservation Director and his community as a Deacon in his local church.
Lenore Henderson
Board Member
Phillip Killebrew
Board Member
Phillip Killebrew holds a deep passion for growth in the community and people. Growing up in a poverty and crime populated are of Portsmouth, Virginia, he has found that is always rewarding to help those from disadvantage areas. His community driven and servant leader footprint extends through Mentor Collective assisting college students, engaging in speaking seminars with Upward Bound Federal TRiO Program at Old Dominion University, Speaking and Mentoring minority students in STEM ages 12 and under, and engaging with a host of organizations that he is a member of and those he find along his life journey. Serving an organization dedicated to empowering and uplifting the community brings personal fulfilment to his on going commitment to continue the oath he took upon himself after graduating high school in 2009.
Phillip is a Requirements Officer at Department of the Navy, where he is responsible for assisting the Office of the Deputy, Chief of Naval Operations throughout the Planning, Programming, Budgeting and Execution process.
Phillip holds a Master of Science in Engineering and Operations Management from University of New Haven and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering/Mechanical Technology/Technician from Virginia State University.