Category: Past Speakers

Bio for Will Edmonds

 

In 1995 Will Edmonds was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar out of our Mobile Rotary Club, which is how he was later able to study in Belgium.  He graduated from the University of Mobile in 1997 with a double major in French and International business.  While in college, he studied in FRANCE, at the Institut de Tourraine, and in BELGIUM, at the Universite Catholique Centre des Langues.  In 2007, he completed a Master of Education with a concentration in French at the University of South Alabama.  In 2009, he achieved National Board Certification in World Languages, and successfully renewed that certification in 2018.  Will taught French 1, 2, 3, and IB 4 for 20 years at Davidson High School in Mobile.  He is now teaching French at Barton Academy for Advanced World Studies.

Bill Tobin, Rotary Relations Manager, ShelterBox USA
A member of the Rotary Club of El Dorado Hills California since 2004, Bill Tobin has served
in several club and district roles and is a major donor to The Rotary Foundation. In 2016-2017
Rotary District 5180 awarded Bill “Rotarian of the Year” for his active and dedicated service
to Rotary, and for his commitment to ShelterBox.
Since learning about ShelterBox in 2010, Bill has shared the project to over 400 Rotary Clubs,
organized fundraisers, and helped develop strategies for donor engagement and volunteer
training. For his volunteer efforts, Bill received the United States Presidential Volunteer Service
Award seven times.
After retiring from a 30 year career as a nuclear power plant inspector, Bill became certified in
Non-Profit management through the University of the Pacific and joined the fulltime staff at
ShelterBox as USA Rotary Relations Manager in January 2019.
Bill is married to Sherie for 38 years, she is an Assistant Governor in District 5180. They have
two sons and a daughter in law.
About ShelterBox:
ShelterBox was founded to provide emergency shelter to people affected by disasters and
humanitarian crises around the world. In April 2000, the Rotary Club of Helston-Lizard in
Cornwall, England adopted ShelterBox as its millennium project. Little did they know that it
would become the largest Rotary Club project in the world, with affiliates in countries across
the globe. Since 2000, ShelterBox staff and volunteers have helped to shelter over 2 million
people in more than 100 countries around the world

 

Brian Harold is Managing Director of APM Terminals Mobile (formerly Mobile Container Terminal) at Choctaw Point in the Port of Mobile, and has held that position since 2010. He is a graduate of West Virginia University in Morgantown, WV and holds a B.S.D. in Finance. With nineteen years of experience in the logistics industry, Mr. Harold has held various positions in liner management as well as inland and seaport operations. Since taking over as Managing Director of the Mobile facility, the Port of Mobile has regularly ranked as one of the fastest growing ports in North America for containerized cargo.  The facility has undergone 2 expansions totaling over $100m in investment, and APMT has also opened an Intermodal Rail Facility in Mobile which Mr. Harold oversees.  He was with Maersk Sealand in Prague, Czech Republic from 2002 to 2004, primarily focusing on intermodal logistics. Prior to relocating to Alabama, he was most recently with APM Terminals in the Port of New York/New Jersey from 2004 until 2010 where he held the position of Director of Ter­minal Operations at their Port Elizabeth facility in New Jersey. His responsibilities there included oversight of day-to-day operations, labor relations and strategic development of the facility.  He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Mobile Steamship Association, the Mobile Propeller Club, and is Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors for the MSSA-ILA Pension and Welfare Funds.  Mr. Harold also served on the Board of Directors of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce and is currently on the Chamber’s Board of Advisors.

David serves at the Vice President of Economic Development at the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce. He joined the economic development department in January 2015. David’s department is the lead economic development agency for the City of Mobile and Mobile County. Under his role, David oversees the day-to-day operations of the department that consist of industrial recruitment, international trade, foreign direct investment, workforce development, talent attraction, and existing industry relations. Prior to his role as Vice President, David served as the Senior Project Manager and Project Manager where he managed lead generation, project recruitment activity, and industrial site development for the Mobile area. Some of David’s recent projects to announce in Mobile include the Walmart Imported Distribution Center, the expansion of the Airbus and Bombardier Final Assembly Line expansion, and the reinvestment of AM/NS Calvert. David serves on the Board of Directors for the South Alabama Regional Planning Commission, USA Center for Real Estate and Economic Development, and the South Alabama Workforce Development Council, where he currently serves as Chairman. David was born and raised in Mobile and attended the University of Southern Mississippi. He has completed the University of Alabama Economic Honors Program and Oklahoma University’s Economic Development Institute.

Rendi Murphree, MS, PhD, returned to the Gulf Coast after retiring as a Captain in the U.S. Public Health Service with 20 years of service at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  Dr. Murphree has extensive experience in public health surveillance and outbreak investigation as a CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service and Career Epidemiology Field Officer.  She joined the Mobile County Health Department just months before the COVID-19 Pandemic reached Alabama.  With her colleagues, Dr. Murphree worked tirelessly to guide COVID-19 response.  She personally analyzed data and published reports that informed city and county leaders and informed the community.  Dr. Murphree consulted with nursing homes, detention centers, homeless shelters and group homes to slow COVID-19 outbreaks in these high-risk settings.  She became a reluctant and trusted spokesperson for the MCHD and feels blessed to serve Mobile community.

 

David Morris is the founder and CEO of QB Country, the nation’s leading quarterback training and development Company. QB Country currently trains NFL, college, high school and middle school quarterbacks in twelve cities across America, with headquarters in Mobile, AL. David founded QB Country in 2010 following a successful high school and collegiate playing career and 6 years of part time private quarterback training. A 4 year letterman and graduate of the University of Mississippi, David became the first true freshman walk-on quarterback to start in the SEC. He holds the record for all-time passing yards and passing TDs at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School in Mobile.

 

David’s NFL trainees include his Ole Miss teammate and two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning (New York Giants), 2019 NFL 1st round draft pick Daniel Jones (New York Giants), and former Alabama QB Mac Jones who was drafted #15 overall in the 2021 NFL Draft. Since 2011, QB Country-trained college quarterbacks have won four FBS championships. More than 200 QB Country high school trainees have signed college scholarships over the last seven graduating classes including 31 QB’s signing scholarships in the 2021 Signing class.

 

David is widely respected as one of the most influential voices in quarterback development and an expert on preparation for the NFL Draft. He has appeared regularly in a variety of regional and national media outlets for his insights and expertise on the quarterback position, including the Wall Street Journal, ESPN, CBS Sports, Sports Illustrated, USA Today, Bleacher Report, The New York Times and New York Daily News. He is a featured speaker at The Manning Passing Academy, and the Andrews Institute Injuries in Football Course.

 

David currently resides in Mobile with his wife Blakely and their two young daughters, Amelia and Meryl.

 

 

ROBERT FRANKLIN BARROW

Lieutenant Colonel (Retired), U.S. Army

Director of Army Instruction

Mobile County Public School System – Junior Reserve Officer Training Program

Mobile, Alabama

 

Born in Wiesbaden, Germany, in 1958 and raised in Mobile, Alabama, Lieutenant Colonel Barrow graduated from Shaw High School in 1975 and the University of South Alabama in 1979.  He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice and was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in Air Defense Artillery.  Lieutenant Colonel Barrow earned a Master’s Degree in Administration of Justice from Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri, in 1984.  In addition, he completed a Master’s Degree in Liberal Arts from Spring Hill College in 2008.  He also completed a Master of Arts in Teaching Degree in 2011 from Grand Canyon University.  He is a graduate of the Army Command and General Staff College, and the Armed Forces Staff College Joint and Combined Staff Officer School.

 

Over the course of his career, Lieutenant Colonel Barrow’s tours of duty have included command and operations assignments in various commands.  His duty assignments include the 32d Army Air Defense Command in the Federal Republic of Germany, the 82^nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and Headquarters Allied Forces Central Europe, Ramstein Air Base, Germany.  Lieutenant Colonel Barrow retired from the Army on 1 January 2002 and immediately assumed duties as the Senior Army Instructor for the Junior ROTC program at LeFlore High School in Mobile, Alabama.  After teaching in the classroom for eleven years, he was selected for his current position as the Director of Army Instruction responsible for supervising all JROTC programs in the Mobile County Public School System.

 

Decorations awarded to Lieutenant Colonel Barrow include the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal w/3 Oak Leaf Clusters (OLC), Joint Service Commendation Medal, Army Commendation Medal (w/3 OLC), Air Force Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal (w/4 OLC), Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Air Force Organizational Excellence Award, National Defense Service Medal (w/Service Star), Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon (2 tours), NATO Medal, and Master Parachutist Badge.  He is a recipient of British, Canadian, and Honduran parachute badges and was awarded the German Rocket/Missile Qualification Badge.

 

Lieutenant Colonel Barrow is married to the former Cheryl K. Ellis of Daphne, Alabama.  They have two daughters, Corey and Lauren.