Meet Our Board
Dedicated to Mental Health
Meet Our Board
David Geer – Chairman
David Geer was born in Charleston, SC in 1943 and graduated from Washington and Lee University with a BA in commerce and graduated from University of North Carolina with an MBA. He has worked in the ‘for profit’ textile industry for 40 years in management positions at different levels. He served as CEO for Origin SC (formerly Family Services, Inc.) in the nonprofit sector for 14 years. OriginSC is a strategic partner of CDMHC and both agencies serve many of the same clients. OriginSC and CDMHC’s partnership goes back at least 14 years. David has a “respect and a fondness” for the mentally ill population, which has brought him to serve on the Mental Health HEROES board.
Deborah Greig – Treasurer
Deborah Greig is an Account Executive with WCSC-TV and Gray Media. She has worked in television most of her career: first in News and now in Sales. Her job is to help local businesses market themselves on multiple platforms. She is also an active volunteer, working with Mental Health Heroes, East Cooper Habitat for Humanity, and Operation Home, and she spent many summers working with child cancer patients and their siblings as a camp counselor at Camp Happy Days. Deborah earned a Bachelors Degree of Science in Communications from Lewis and Clark College, and has received more than 20 honors for her journalism, including an Emmy Award for Best Newscast and the South Carolina Broadcasters Association Star Award for Best Reporter in the state. She is a graduate of Leadership Charleston. Deborah lives in Mount Pleasant.Cathy Joyner – Secretary
Cathy Joyner retired as the Staff Resource and Development Coordinator at Charleston Dorchester Mental Health Center (CDMHC) after 30 years of service. While at CDMHC and today, Cathy remains passionate about helping people thrive and become full members of the community. She earned a Master of Education in Clinical Counseling at The Citadel and followed her calling to pursue a career in behavioral health, focusing her work on children and the family unit. A Charleston native, Cathy says mental health wasn’t something she and her family talked about growing up, even though severe mental illness affected relatives and friends. Fortunately, things have changed for the better and Cathy credits organizations like National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and Mental Health HEROES with raising awareness to reduce stigmas in the community. Cathy joins the board with experience helping patients of CDMHC stabilize by leveraging Mental Health HEROES to meet basic needs and access care. “I’ve have been given a wonderful life,” Cathy says. “I’d like to share that. I just believe that’s what we should do.”Nicole Aiello
Nicole Aiello is Santee Cooper’s Manager of Public Relations and one of the utility’s spokespeople. She’s been working in public relations since 1997, beginning her career in the Big Apple before making her way to South Carolina. Nicole’s professional experience ranges from the celebrity, entertainment and tourism industries to nonprofit, government and utility communications. Nicole has been with Santee Cooper for more than 10 years, and she and the PR team are responsible for internal and external communications, including messaging on owned media platforms and crisis communications. Nicole earned a Bachelor of Science from Ohio University’s Scripps School of Journalism and an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach certificate from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She is a member of the Public Relations Society of America and American Public Power Association, and a graduate of Leadership Charleston. Nicole currently calls Mount Pleasant home.Brandi Barnhill
Brandi Barnhill is the South Carolina Area Business Specialist at the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson. Brandi grew up near Lexington, South Carolina, and graduated from The College of Charleston with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Corporate Communications. Brandi has enjoyed professional success in both corporate and entrepreneurial arenas. She brings her expertise to Mental Health HEROES because she hopes that serving on our board and advocating for mental wellness in her daily life will help educate people and reduce the stigma of mental health disorders. She recognizes that mental health directly impacts every family in our community, including her own, so she’s passionate about normalizing the discussion about diagnosis and treatment options. In her free time, Brandi is active outdoors: traveling, playing sports and making memories out on the water with her husband and three children.Mark Hood, M.S
Mark Hood earned his master’s degree in clinical psychology from the University of Missouri at Kansas City and advanced training in leadership, cancer support facilitation and biofeedback from the Menninger Clinic in Topeka Kansas. He had worked in psychiatric hospitals throughout his career in positions ranging from the delivery of clinical services, biofeedback and the director of marketing and business development. He has been an accomplished photographer for more than 25 years and has won multiple awards for his work. He and his wife (Melissa) moved to Charleston in 2007 and have loved the Lowcountry for all of the incredible photographic opportunities and people. He became interested in Mental Health HEROES as soon as witnessed the results of their mission.
