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Heritage FoundationPreserving and Interpreting the Heritage of the Savannah River Site
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Foundation Officers & Committee Members
Gwendolyn B. Johnson
Gwen is a native of Aiken County, a former DuPont employee at SRS, and an educator with 28 years of experience. She currently is employed by USCA and is assigned as Director of the Allendale Elementary School Development School.
Gwen received a Bachelors Degree in Biology from Lake Forest (Illinois) College and a Masters Degree in Mathematics Education; she has completed all but the dissertation for her Doctorate in Mathematics Education. She worked for DuPont at SRS as an environmental biologist in the 1970’s. Gwen has been a member of the USCA faculty since 1991 and has served as Director of the Ruth Patrick Science Center for 3 years and as Director of Student Programs at the Center for 9 years. She currently is Director of the Allendale Elementary School Professional Development School. Gwen is very active with the youth of her church and in the community. She has served on the SRS Citizen’s Advisory Board, an advisory group to the South Carolina Education Oversight Committee, and the Governor’s Mathematics and Science Advisory Board/
J. Walter Joseph
Walt was employed for 39 years at the Savannah River Site in a variety of technical and management positions for E.I DuPont and the Westinghouse Savannah River Co.
He is a graduate Mechanical Engineer with a BE degree from North Carolina State College and a MS from the Pennsylvania State University. He served as an officer in the US Army Ordnance Corps in Korea during the conflict. His initial assignments at SRS were in the Savannah River Laboratory doing research and development on reactor hydraulics and heat transfer and irradiation effects of structural materials. He transferred to the Savannah River Plant for varied assignments including managing the Traffic and Transportation Department, the L-Reactor restart project, and Site Quality. Walt is an enthusiastic historian, a long-time member of the Aiken County Historical Commission, and a life member of the Archaeological Society of South Carolina,
Anna G. Loadholt
Ann was born in Ellenton, South Carolina, lives in Barnwell, and is very active in church, historical, and civic affairs.
She received a BA in Business Education from the University of South Carolina and taught for 15 years in public schools in Columbia, Barnwell, and Blackville. She was Chairperson of the Barnwell County Council in 1996 and the SRS Citizen’s Advisory Board from1997-2000. She is a life member of the University of South Carolina Alumni Board and a member of Magna Charta Dames, Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Bluffton Historical Association. She was named Woman of the Year by the Barnwell Chamber of Commerce in 1992.
J. Malvyn McKibben
Mal has 45 years of experience in technical and management positions for DuPont/Westinghouse at SRS. He is very active nationally in the nuclear industry with the American Nuclear Society and in his current positions as Executive Director of the Citizens for Nuclear Technology.
He obtained a BA degree in Chemistry from Emory University in 1955, and while there was the student leader for two years on an ORNL contract to determine fission yields of proton bombarded heavy isotopes. From June 1955 until January 2000, he was employed by E. I. Du Pont, then Westinghouse, at SRP/SRS. Technical assignments included support of SRP's production reactors and the Heavy Water Components Test Reactor, development of analytical chemistry methods, spent nuclear fuel reprocessing, special isotope separations, and research on radionuclide separations. Managerial assignments included technical oversight of the two SRP separations facilities, and Senior Project Manager for design and construction of the $2 B Defense Waste Processing Facility. His last assignment at SRS was as Senior Advisory Scientist for Advanced Planning.
Mal is a fellow of the American Nuclear Society (ANS), where he currently serves as Chairman of the Fuel Cycle and Waste Management Division and as a member of the ANS Planning Committee. He is a member of the American Chemical Society and past member of the Institute for Nuclear Materials Management, American National Standards Institute, and the American Society of Testing Materials. The South Carolina House and Senate honored Mal in 2000 with a joint resolution commending him for outstanding service to the community and the nation.
Bettis is a well-known businessman and developer in Edgefield with an abiding interest in local and South Carolina history.
He is a graduate of Harvard University and the University of South Carolina Law School. He has organized and developed numerous businesses including an 81-bed nursing home, several newspapers, and cotton mills in four states and Costa Rica. Bettis is active in the Edgefield County Historical Society and the Executive Council of the South Carolinia Society and has served as President of the South Carolina Historical Society. The University of South Carolina Aiken presented Bettis with an honorary degree of Doctor of Business Administration in 1993.
R. Lee Smith
Lee became President/CEO of the Community Foundation for the Central Savannah River Area in 1998 after 37 years in entrepreneurial activities.
He received a BS degree in Marketing from the University of South Carolina and began working at Martin Marietta Aggregates in Savannah. From 1968 to 1993, he was an officer and partner in Southern Roadbuilders, Inc., an Augusta-based paving company which was sold to the APAC Division of Ashland Oil Co. in 1988. Lee retired from APAC and opened and expedited freight business in Memphis which he sold in 1997. He is a life member of the Augusta Museum of History and the Richmond County Historical Society, serves on numerous boards, and is an avid hunter and fisherman.
J. Chris Verenes
Chris became President of Security Federal Bank and its subsidiaries after being employed for 15 years with Washington Group International.
He received BS and MS degrees in Marketing from the University of South Carolina. He was employed at the Savannah River Site and was with Washington Group in various capacities, including Chief of Staff to the President and Chief Executive Officer. He has broad experience in the banking industry. Chris has served on the South Carolina and Aiken County Boards of Education and the University of South Carolina Aiken Partnership Board. He is a past Chairman of the Greater Aiken Chamber of Commerce and has been named Aiken County Man of the Year by the Jaycees.
Joanne Zobel
Joanne has taught high school and university courses in South Carolina and Delaware and is very active in local historical activities.
She was born in Dunbarton on what is now the SRS and received a BA in English from Coker College. She taught at Brookland-Cayce High School, Williston High School, and the University of Delaware branch at Georgetown, Delaware. She served on the Coker College Board of Trustees and the Alumni Board and was President of the Alumni Association and the Board of Visitors. She was recognized with the Outstanding Alumni Award for service to the College. She is active with her church, the Aiken County Historical Museum, and the Aiken County Historical Society. She has served on the Aiken County Historical Commission.