South Carolina
Greer Mayor Rick Danner is among the 2022-2023 Class of Port Ambassadors for the South Carolina Ports.
The Ambassadors will tour marine terminals, inland ports and customers’ facilities. They will hear from SC Ports teammates, port customers and elected leaders. Danner will be an excellent spokesperson from Greer, having been involved in Greer Inland Port through its inception and remarkable growth.
The ambassadors will see how SC Ports supports the supply chains of many businesses, including retailers, advanced manufacturers, healthcare companies and agricultural producers.
“Our Port Ambassador Program gives South Carolinians a behind-the-scenes look into how our port works and the vital role our maritime community plays in keeping freight moving for Southeast supply chains,” SC Ports President and CEO Barbara Melvin said. “We are proud to showcase how having a top 10 U.S. container port in South Carolina supports businesses and creates jobs.”
The group visited SC Ports headquarters in Mount Pleasant. Ambassadors learned about key infrastructure projects and day-to-day operations. They toured Wando Welch Terminal and ventured up 155-foot-tall ship-to-shore cranes to gain the perspective of a crane operator loading and unloading ships.
Participants are selected from nominations by the Review and Oversight Commission on the State Ports Authority, SC Ports Board of Directors, SC Ports senior management team and County Council chairs from around the state.
2022-2023 Port Ambassadors
• Rick Danner, Mayor of Greer, City of Greer, Greer
ª Pat Black, Chairman, Calhoun County Economic Development Board, Cameron
• Leslie Clark, Vice President of Operations, Carolinas AGC, Lexington
• John Clark, Partner, The Clark Law Firm, Sumter
• Dr. Delores Dacosta, Executive Director, SC Commission for Minority Affairs, Columbia
• Todd Davis, President, Benefit Designs, LLC, McBee
• Kimberlyn Davis, Executive Director, Mother Emanuel Foundation, John's Island
• Cashion Drolet, Chief Advocacy Officer, Historic Charleston Foundation, Charleston
• Barron Ervin, President, Ervin Engineering, Florence
• Dewey Evans, Senior Associate, Site Selection Group, Greenville
• Bruce Greenberg, Commercial Real Estate Broker, Trinity Partners, Columbia
• Brooks Hearn, Senior Public Relations Manager, Chernoff Newman, Summerville
• Emily Heflin, Business Development Manager, MAU, Greenville
• Jerome Heyward, North Charleston City Council Member and Mayor Pro Temp, City of North Charleston
• Jack Jamison, Principle and Broker-in-Charge, RealtyLink, Greenville
• Kaala Maple, Consultant, Deloitte, Cayce
• James T. "Jim" McCain, Jr., Chairman, Sumter County Council, Sumter
• Richie Murray, Partner, Charter One Realty, Hilton Head
• Joannie Nickel, Legislative & Public Policy Advocate, Municipal Association of SC, Columbia
• Rob Perry, Director of Traffic Engineering, SCDOT, Columbia
• Matt Pickard, Senior Brokerage Associate, Colliers, North Charleston
• Ashley Powell, Deputy County Supervisor, Berkeley County, Summerville
• Daniel Prohaska, President & CEO, Lions Vision Services, Columbia
• Mark Sweatman, Chief of Government Relations & Senior Advisor to the Board, MUSC, Columbia
• Bryan Symmes, Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications, Office of the Governor, Columbia
• John Truluck, Director of Economic Development, Dorchester County Economic Development, Summerville
• John Wall, Counsel, Burr Forman, Columbia
• Marshall West, Berkeley County Councilman, Senior Real Estate Appraiser, Compass South Appraisals, Pinopolis
• Charlton "Chuck" Whipple, Executive Director, Enterprise Campus Authority, Midlands Technical College, Lexington
• Michael Wood, Principle, Asset Integration Consultants, Summerville
• Jonathan Yarborough, Director, Government Affairs & Economic Development, Dominion Energy South Carolina, Columbia