About Us

Who We Are

GUMBO Board Members

Current:​

Chairman—Tommy Lee, Vulcan Inc.
Vice Chairman—Patrick Bussey, President of Bussey Capital Management LLC
Secretary/Treasurer—Donna Watts, President of South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce
Herb Malone, CEO of Gulf Shores/Orange Beach Tourism
J. Gary Ellis, Alabama Gulf State Park

Anthony Kaiser, EXIT Realty Gulf Shores

Greg ALexander, Coastal Alabama Business Chamber

Greg Leatherbury, Hand Arendall

Donna Givens, Baldwin EMC

Frances Holk-Jones, Frances Holk Insurance Company/State Farm

Dr. Joe Wilkins, Columbia Southern University

Wade Bradford, National Bank of Commerce

Administrative Assistant - Mell Davis

Ex-Officio, Non Voting Members:

Robert Craft, Mayor-City of Gulf Shores
Tony Kennon, Mayor-City of Orange Beach
John Koniar, Mayor-City of Foley

Robert "Bubba" Lee

Governmental Relations:

Martin Christie, President of Christie Strategy Group

Most of us were born and raised in Baldwin County and all of us are dedicated to working toward a better future for this unique area of the state.

GUMBO's Mission

The south Baldwin County area is no longer a collection of small communities. We are a coalition of regional communities located in one of the fastest growing areas of Alabama. With that growth comes enormous opportunities and challenges.

We must work together to take advantage of these opportunities and meet these challenges. Local office holders, including mayors, county commissioners and legislators, want and need to hear from business leaders about our area’s needs for the future. Most importantly, they want to hear a united voice with a clear message.

Due to the dynamic and explosive growth of our region, a unified strategy must be developed and communicated accurately to support the growing infrastructure, workforce needs and product development.
 
GUMBO is committed to working with the mayors of our local municipalities, members of the Baldwin County Commission, our local legislative delegation and our leaders in Washington, D.C., to focus attention on our needs and provide the infrastructure necessary to move this region forward while preserving our unique identity and environment.

GUMBO also provides the mechanism to pool our financial resources to engage professional representation in Montgomery to lobby effectively for our area and make policy makers aware of challenges facing south Baldwin County.