all levels of government. 

Mary Katherine Bennett is a homeschool graduate and mother of six. As a founding member of the Bedford County Patriots, Mary Katherine works to unite our community in standing up for our children and our freedom.  

Melvin Adams, 

Melvin Adams has almost 40 years of experience in educational leadership. Born in Africa to parents serving as Christian missionaries, he was homeschooled in his early years, then attended a British school during his high school years before going to the U.S. to begin his college studies. He took his first teaching job in 1982. 

Since then, he has served on the teaching faculty and in the administration of several schools and colleges in the U.S. and started and led a college in Ukraine from 1993-2000. From 2008-2016, he helped to found and lead Renewanation, a faith-based non-profit organization with a focus on education. In 2016, he served on the Presidential Transition Team as a Senior Advisor on Education. 

His international experience and his work in the private non-profit sector have helped to shape his perspectives on education. He lives in Virginia with his wife Sandy. They have six children and eighteen grandchildren.

Mr. Braunlich has served as Chief of Staff to Congressman John LeBoutillier, Assistant Vice President of Public Affairs for the National Association of Manufacturers, president of the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, and vice president of the Center for Education Reform. In 2003, he was the Republican candidate for Virginia State Senate in the then-36th Senate District. In 2009-10, he served as a member of Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell’s Transition Working Group on Education. His articles have appeared in dozens of publications, including The Washington Post, The Baltimore Sun, The Roanoke Times, The Virginian-Pilot, The Washington Times, and The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star.  

He is a graduate of Hofstra University in Hempstead, NY, and resides in the Alexandria area of Fairfax County with his wife, Eileen. They are the parents of four adult children; grandparents of four sparkling grandchildren.

Elicia lives in Loudoun County, Virginia. She has three children in Loudoun County Public Schools. She first became engaged with her school board in the summer of 2020 when neither the superintendent nor the Board would provide a plan to parents for their children to receive a quality public education in the 20/21 academic year. 

Elicia serves as advocate and spokesperson for students and families who have experienced sexual assault in school. She is committed to protecting children and fighting for rigorous education, free of political ideologies and agendas in the classroom, as well as student safety, parental rights, academic transparency and individual freedom for all families.

As Vice President of Grassroots and Communications Strategies for The Family Foundation, Candi focuses on amplifying and empowering the voices of concerned Virginia citizens, including moms, dads, pastors and business leaders through the Speak Up! Virginia movement. She develops grassroots networks that give families the tools they need to express their concerns in a loving, winsome—and yet powerful—manner, whether it’s at local school board meetings or hearings at the Capitol. She also work closely with Team Timothy, The Family Foundation's intrepid team of prayer warriors.

Candi joined The Family Foundation after nearly 19 years at Focus on the Family, where she served as a national expert on education issues affecting public and private education, including school choice initiatives, sexual agendas in public schools, and parental rights issues. Her interest in equipping parents and students inspired her to launch several initiatives and create unique web tools—including the annual Bring Your Bible to School Day, which grew from 8,000 participants to more than 650,000 in the last five years.

Cushman has also represented the viewpoints of students and families in national media outlets and radio shows, including CNN’s “Anderson Cooper,” HLN’s “Dr. Drew,” and MSNBC. She also served for several years as an editor for Focus on the Family’s Citizen magazine. Prior to joining Focus, she was an investigative reporter for WORLD, a weekly national news magazine. Cushman also served six years at a Texas state organization associated with Focus on the Family as the media liaison and program director for the 700-member physicians’ grassroots coalition.

David V. Dietrich served for over 40 years as a professional national security analyst and educator. Since retirement in in 2015, he has worked as an adjunct political science instructor at the college level (2016-2021), and a volunteer docent at a Thomas Jefferson historical site (2016-Present). He has authored several articles on the life and times of Thomas Jefferson and was a former director of the Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society. He holds a Master of Science (MS) degree.

In 1988, Helgeson graduated from Liberty University (LU) with a degree in Finance and went on to earn his MBA from LU in 1990. In 2001, he earned his M.S. in Financial Services from American College.

Along with his duties as a council member, today he teaches corporate finance at LU. Helgeson is married to Lynchburg native and cardiac nurse practitioner Allison Helgeson. He carries a passion for wrestling, hunting, camping, and bluegrass guitar.

Before working in grassroots, Josiah taught middle and high school students in Rockwall, Texas. Growing up in a homeschool family and then teaching in the public school system has provided him with an understanding of varying student needs and how to meet them.

In 2016, she was appointed to the Virginia Western Community College (VWCC) Local Advisory Board. She has served on a private school board and education non-profit boards, has written many articles on education, and is a published author. Dr. Hiltz holds a B.S. and MBA in Management and an Ed.D. in Leadership Studies. She is married to Chuck Hiltz. They have three children and five grandchildren. They currently reside in Florida.

Laura fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming an attorney by beginning law school at Regent University at the age of 49. During law school, she became a CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocate), which is a program that advocates for abused and neglected children. Additionally, she spent many years navigating the world of special education to advocate for her autistic daughter. Noting how complex the path can be, she attended the Institute for Special Education Advocacy at William & Mary School of Law to become certified as a special education advocate.

By 2017, Laura had become increasingly disenchanted with the direction that her local public schools taking and decided to run for Virginia Beach School Board and was elected to a four-year at-large position in 2018. She is running for reelection in 2022 and is currently employed as an associate attorney at Anderson & Associates.

 

 

Amy Snead is the chapter chair of Moms for Liberty – Bedford County. She and her husband, Christian, have four boys and advocate for parental rights and involvement in the school system and at all levels of government. 

Ms. Smith is currently serving in the elected capacity of Supervisor on the Franklin County Board of Supervisors. She also serves on the Roanoke-Alleghany Regional Commission, Broadband Authority Vice Chair, Community Policy & Management Team and liaison to the School Board in her service as Supervisor. She also serves on the Tri-County Lakes Administrative Commission, Smith Mountain Lake Association Board, and STEP (Solutions that Empower People) Board as President.

During the last 30+ years, Ms. Smith has served her communities, providing leadership to numerous public and non-profit organizations. Prior to leaving the workforce to care for her disabled daughter, she worked at Genicom Corporation in the areas of administration, shareholder relations, and treasury.

She and her family have resided at Smith Mountain Lake for ten years. A native of Waynesboro, VA, she is married to Robert and has two children. Lorie is a member of Trinity Ecumenical Parish where she was president of a newly created non-profit, Neighbors Helping Neighbors, providing services to seniors.  

DeLois Stallman is a licensed attorney, homeschooling parent, and advocate for common sense reform in government schools.  She is in her 8th year of homeschooling her two children and actively works on initiatives and legislation for parents’ rights in Virginia.  

Mrs. Stallman believes we are on the cusp of a great conservative take-over of government schools, education policy, and school boards across the country.