T. Christopher King, Esq. | Elevation Financial Group LLC

T. Christopher King, Esq.

President & Chief Executive Officer, Elevation Financial Group, LLC

T. Christopher King is the founder and integrating force behind Elevation Financial Group, LLC. Under his leadership, Elevation Financial Group has developed a consortium of companies specializing in real estate investment, property management and property renovation. Mr. King oversees a group of companies that have successfully launched five private equity funds and own and operate assets in five U.S. states. Under his leadership, Elevation has developed a network of hundreds of private investors across the United States who have supported the company’s efforts to revitalize and preserve affordable housing while creating a profitable return.

Mr. King received his undergraduate degree in Religion, Politics and American Public Policy from Harvard College and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida. In 2010 and again in 2012, Mr. King and Elevation were honored by the Department of Housing & Urban Development for “Excellence in the Preservation of Affordable Housing” with its Serenity Towers branded communities in St Petersburg, Florida and Sanford, Florida.

Mr. King has served in a number of community service roles in recent years. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Grace Medical Home, a non-profit medical organization that serves high-quality medical care to uninsured Floridians. Mr. King serves as the Chairmen of The Elevation Foundation, a public charity charged to address inequality through education and entrepreneurship.

He founded The Elevation Scholars Program, a joint program of The Elevation Foundation, the University of Central Florida and Orange County Public Schools, that provides college admissions and opportunity scholarships to high-performing student leaders from Title One Schools. He founded the Elevation Global Initiative (“EGI”), a program designed to promote entrepreneurship and sustainable development in Haiti and Africa. EGI has supported tree reforestation, fish farming and entrepreneurship training in Haiti for nearly five years and commenced entrepreneurship training in Kenya in 2015. On behalf of EGI, Mr. King has been featured as a keynote speaker on the power of purpose-driven entrepreneurship at conferences in Nairobi, Kenya and Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Mr. King is married to Kristen King—his high school sweetheart–and they have three children, Charlie, Mary Grace and Luke. Mr. King is a third generation Central Floridian and attends Summit Church.

Michael H. King

Vice President, Elevation Financial Group, LLC | President, Elevation Design and Revitalization

Mr. King is a licensed real estate broker in Florida, North Carolina and Tennessee and is the broker of record for all properties in the Elevation portfolio. Since 2006 Mr. King has served as Vice-President of Elevation Design and Revitalization and in this role has been responsible for overseeing the re-positioning, re-branding and stabilization of all Elevation purchased properties. Mr. King has successfully negotiated and stewarded over 20 million dollars of revitalization projects over the past 10 years. Mr. King is most proud of Elevation’s revitalization work in Memphis, Tennessee over the past five years re-positioning two very broken properties while working collaboratively with the Memphis Housing Authority, city leaders and multiple out of state vendors. As a result of this work, there are now over 500 new safe, clean and affordable apartments serving the residents of Shelby County. Mr. King is a board member of Elevation’s philanthropic entity, the Elevation Foundation. As a board member he has leveraged his French language skills to assist wherever possible. In 2015, Mr. King was the keynote speaker in Paris, France at the inaugural celebration for Le Nouvel Horizons and over the course of 30 minutes spoke entirely in French to a room full of 150 international entrepreneurs.

Mr. King is a proud 20-year member of The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and along with acting credits dating back to 1995 wrote and produced the feature film, “The Way Back Home” which airs nationally on The Trinity Broadcasting Network. The loves of Mr. King’s life are his wife Tammy and their two daughters, Kirsten and Brittany. Mr. King received his A.B from Duke University, his MFA in Dramatic Arts from UNC at Chapel Hill and his MBA from Rollins College Graduate School of Business.

Stuart A. Heaton

Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel, Elevation Financial Group, LLC | President, Elevation Property Management, LLC

Stuart A. Heaton is the Chief Operating Office & General Counsel of Elevation Financial Group and is a key executive officer of its affiliated companies. Mr. Heaton joined Elevation Financial Group in November 2012. He has served for more than two decades as a senior executive directing and managing a broad spectrum of operational, legal, and capital-related activities for micro-to-large cap publicly traded companies. In addition, he is a licensed attorney who has practiced law in both the private sector and in-house for 30 years. He has served as the General Counsel of a Fortune 500 corporation and has directed the global business development activities of a satellite media company with a presence on three continents. Mr. Heaton’s real estate experience includes real property acquisition, development, divestiture, leasing, facilities management, and related transactional activities. He has developed and delivered office parks, warehousing facilities, light industrial developments, and commercial office space. He has also conducted and completed numerous M&A transactions, joint ventures, public and private financings, and cross-border transactions.

Mr. Heaton received an undergraduate degree from California State University, Fullerton, a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and an MBA degree from Vanderbilt University. He began his professional career as a litigation attorney in Miami and eventually migrated into the corporate world as the General Counsel for Thomas Nelson Media. Having later served in various senior executive capacities for Lockheed Martin, CarMax, and WorldSpace, Mr. Heaton brings a deep and diverse background and extensive skill sets to the Elevation companies.

Mr. Heaton is a past board member of the Association for Corporate Growth, Orlando Chapter, and currently serves on the board of SuperFlex, LLC, an Orlando-based athletic equipment manufacturer. He and his wife, Carolyn, live in Oviedo with two of their five children.

Ken Najour

Chief Financial Officer, Elevation Financial Group, LLC

Ken Najour is the Chief Executive Officer of Elevation Financial Group and a key executive officer of various affiliated companies. He is responsible for overall financial management and strategy, financial and statistical analysis, cash and treasury oversight, forecasting and budgeting, tax credit bids, merger and acquisition activities, lender relations, capital fundraising and investor relations. Mr. Najour has a proven track record of success in global conglomerates. Fluent in Spanish, he is a seasoned executive with extensive operations and finance experience in real estate, consumer products, financial services and public accounting.

Prior to joining Elevation in September of 2016, Mr. Najour’s career spanned three decades where he worked with the Big Four Accounting Firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) servicing the Firm’s ‘blue chip’ clients such as Hewlett-Packard, Chevron and the California State Workers’ Compensation Insurance Fund. Highly valued for his interpersonal and communication skills, Mr. Najour was also selected to join in the Firm’s US Manager International Program, which led to an expatriate assignment in Venezuela. In addition, he has held executive roles at Altisource Asset Management Corporation, PepsiCo and Mastercard where he served as CFO for its Latin America Division.

Mr. Najour holds an active Certified Public Accountant license, has a Master of Accounting degree from the University of Miami, and a Bachelor of Science in Commerce degree from Santa Clara University. He and his wife Suzanna reside in Orlando.

 

Paul Morgan

Principal & Director, Elevation Financial Group, LLC | Director, Elevation Foundation

Paul Morgan is a native of north Georgia and attended the Georgia Institute of Technology where he received a Masters of Aerospace Engineering Degree. After working for most of the major defense companies, Mr. Morgan founded Engineering Technology, Inc., a defense oriented research and development company whose focus was the design, engineering, and test of special technologies for use by the counterterrorism, bomb disposal and military special operations communities. ETI was acquired by General Dynamics Inc. in 2004 and continues as General Dynamics Tactical Systems – Orlando Operations.

Mr. Morgan has been involved in various capacities with the “Elevation” efforts since their inception.

Mr. Morgan’s civic activities include: Every Kid Outreach, Eatonville, Fla. – Chairman, Board of Directors: Presbyterian Church, Maitland, Fla. – Elder, Clerk of Session, Chairman of Service Committee: Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida, Orlando, Fla. – Board of Directors: Glenda G. Morgan Charitable Foundation, Altamonte Springs, Fla. – Founder, President: Haiti Fund Inc., Raleigh, N.C. – Board of Directors: Social Enterprise Fund, Altamonte Springs, Fla., – Co-founder, Board of Directors: Florida Fellowship Foundation, Orlando, Fla. – Board of Directors and lastly Georgia Institute of Technology, Academy of Distinguished Engineering Alumni.

Mr. Morgan makes frequent trips to both Haiti and Nicaragua where he is involved with charitable development projects in the areas of fish farming, reforestation, teaching farms, medical clinics and alcohol rehabilitation.

Paul and Glenda Morgan have been married more than 40 years. They have two sons and have lived in Altamonte Springs, Fla., since the early 1970s.

Russ Prather, M.D.

Principal & Director, Elevation Financial Group, LLC | Director, Elevation Foundation

Dr. Russ Prather is a practicing Pediatric Hospitalist for Pediatrix, based at Arnold Palmer Medical Center. Impressed by its solid leadership and unique real estate niche, Dr. Prather’s initial involvement in Elevation was as an investor but evolved into the role of Director.

Dr. Prather attended the University of Florida, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History. He received his medical degree from the University of South Florida and then completed his Pediatric Residency at Arnold-Palmer Medical Center. He serves on the Arnold Palmer Medical Center Foundation.

Dr. Prather is the Managing Member of Prather Properties, LLC and Three Prathers, LLC, with specific experience in property rehabilitation, renovation, and management. He is a past member of the Community Redevelopment Agency Board of Directors in Kissimmee. He recently celebrated the seven- year anniversary of Broadway Pizza Bar, a restaurant that he conceived, designed, and opened with a partner.

Dr. Prather lives in Winter Park, Fla., with his wife, Andi, and their five children, Liam, Ansley, Allie, Lilah and Graham.

Scott Lee

Vice President of Business & Philanthropic Development, Elevation Financial Group, LLC | President, Elevation Foundation

Scott Lee serves as the Vice President of Business and Philanthropic Development. In his business development role for the company, Mr. Lee provides leadership to the maintenance and growth of Elevation’s investor base, directing all communications with current and prospective investors. Within his philanthropic position, Mr. Lee founded and now serves as President of The Elevation Foundation, Inc., the philanthropic arm of the company which includes all corporate social responsibility and charitable initiatives, including Elevation’s philanthropic partnerships in Haiti, Kenya, and France.

With more than 18 years of experience as a nationally respected leader in the not-profit sector, Mr. Lee previously served for eleven years with Good News Jail & Prison Ministry, a global 501(c)(3) organization with 400 staff members in 21 countries. At the time of exiting his tenure with the ministry, he was the Vice President of Advancement, and was responsible for generating the $7M in annual revenue required to fund the organization’s initiatives and operation. Prior to that, Mr. Lee owned a consulting firm, in which he helped dozens of non-profits develop more effective strategies for fundraising; collectively increasing his client’s funding by more than $15M.

Mr. Lee received his MBA from Rollins College Crummer Graduate School of Business in 2016 and is a member of First Presbyterian Church of Orlando, where he served as an elder. He is a board member of Polis Institute. He and his wife Amy reside in Orlando with their two young daughters, Maggie and Anna Kate.

Jennifer Morrill

Vice President of Accounting & Controller, Elevation Financial Group, LLC

Jennifer Morrill is Vice President of Accounting and Controller for Elevation Financial Group and Elevation Property Management. She is responsible for the accounting and financial reporting, performance analysis, and cash management for EFG, EPM, and all related companies. Mrs. Morrill prepares annual budgets and develops cash flow projections; supports Elevation’s property acquisition team with pro form balance sheets, analyses, and assists with property disposition analysis. Mrs. Morrill leads a team of three property accountants.

Prior to joining Elevation in 2009, Mrs. Morrill was the senior accountant at K.S. Anderson, CPA, where she worked for 11 years. She has extensive experience with financial statement and tax preparation in diverse industries including commercial real estate, multi-family housing, construction, restaurants, health-care consulting, and event production. She partnered with wealth managers, retail bankers, investment advisors, and mortgage lenders to serve high net worth clients. As senior accountant, Mrs. Morrill oversaw all areas of accounting functions and financial reporting.

Mrs. Morrill holds both a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Accounting from the University of Central Florida. She is eligible and pursuing CPA licensure in Florida. Mrs. Morrill is a member of FBLA-Phi Beta Lambda’s professional division and volunteers at their student leadership conferences. She and her husband, Douglas Morrill, live in Orlando.

Jim McDougall

Director of Acquisitions and Dispositions, Elevation Financial Group, LLC

Jim McDougall is Director of Acquisitions and Dispositions for Elevation Financial Group. He is responsible for identifying and executing strategic acquisitions and dispositions for Elevation Financial Group Funds – including management of acquisition activities: market analysis, site selection, initial assessment of market value, environmental review, full physical and legal due diligence, negotiation of purchase agreements, financial analysis and funding and/or financing alternative analysis.

Prior to joining Elevation in 2014, Mr. McDougall worked for a financial services firm that provided investor relations, financial media and research for small cap publically traded companies. As both a Specialist and the Director of Marketing, Mr. McDougall helped coordinate retail and institutional roadshows, produce strategic communications, and organize investor conferences for clients. Prior to that Mr. McDougall was an Investment Sales Analyst at NAI Realvest in Orlando, FL. Mr. McDougall helped provide financial and market analysis for industrial product throughout the Central Florida Region.

Mr. McDougall holds a Master of Business Administration from the Crummer Graduate School of Management at Rollins College. He also holds a Master of Science in Real Estate from Warrington College of Business at the University of Florida. He completed his undergraduate studies at Washington and Lee University and holds a Bachelor of Arts in European History. He and his wife, Rachel, daughter Shelton and son Billings live in College Park.

Jim is a member of the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC).

Angela Howell

Director of Marketing and Communications, Elevation Financial Group, LLC

Angela Howell is Director of Marketing and Communications for Elevation Financial Group. In her role she leads the strategic and tactical marketing direction for EFG, EPM and all related companies. Mrs. Howell is responsible for branding, creating and maintaining EFG awareness, new property lease-up campaigns, press relations, collateral, media creation and website and social media strategies for all Elevation businesses. She also provides marketing support for Elevation’s public charitable organization, The Elevation Foundation.

Mrs. Howell brings a wealth of experience in all facets of marketing communications. Prior to joining Elevation in 2015 she held roles in both small and Fortune 500 companies including GE, Emerson and Siemens. Most recently Mrs. Howell led the global marketing and communications efforts for one of Siemens largest divisions where she directed large-scale international projects with teams located in multiple countries across the world.

Mrs. Howell holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Florida International University and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree from Tusculum College, a private institution located in Tennessee. She also holds certifications in web development and design obtained after attending a two-year specialty program. She is a member of several professional organizations including IABC and AMA. Originally from Knoxville, Tennessee, Mrs. Howell now resides in Orlando, Florida with her husband Ron.