News

GO VA Region 5 Council Welcomes New Members

Norfolk, Virginia — The GO VA Region 5 Council is pleased to announce the appointment of the
following new members, effective July 1, 2025:

Mr. Paul Nolde, Executive Director, 757 Collab
Ms. Jennifer Smith-Brown, President, Owner, Operator, J. Smith McDonalds
Mr. Rob Shuford, President, Old Point National Bank

In addition, current Chair, Thomas Frantz has been reappointed as Chair and Lynn P. Taylor,
CPA, President of Zel Technologies, LLC, was reappointed as Vice Chair.

“We are excited to welcome these accomplished leaders to join the GO VA Region 5 Council, “
said Thomas Frantz, Chair. “Their regional insight and professional expertise will strengthen our
efforts to drive strategic economic growth and innovation.”

GO (Growth and Opportunity) Virginia is an innovative economic development initiative that
provides project-based incentives to encourage collaboration between private industry, higher
education, and local government in each region to produce results that grow and diversify the
regional economies and ultimately the Commonwealth of Virginia.

“We congratulate our new Council members for their nomination and look forward to their
contributions as we continue to build a stronger and more resilient regional economy,” said
Nancy L. Grden, President & CEO, Hampton Roads Executive Roundtable.

The nine GO VA Regional Councils are responsible for identifying economic opportunities,
needs and challenges, and establishing priorities among those opportunities that can be
addressed through regional collaboration. These opportunities and priorities are laid out in an
Economic Growth and Diversification Plan updated every two years. Additionally, the Regional
Councils are responsible for soliciting, reviewing, and recommending regional projects to the
GO Virginia State Board for funding that align with these priorities. GO Virginia Region 5 is
comprised of 16 cities and counties located in Hampton Roads and Virginia’s Eastern Shore.