ASHBURN, VIRGINIA—SEPTEMBER 15, 2017—The Honorable Mike Pompeo, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund 2nd Atlanta Gala on Friday, October 27, 2017 at the St. Regis Atlanta.
Sponsorship and individual ticket sales are in progress for the gala, a fundraising event to benefit veterans and military family members through college scholarships. The gala is expected to attract over 400 corporate leaders and guests from the Atlanta area and beyond. The evening program’s focus is on military service and families; attendees will have the opportunity to meet Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund scholarship recipients. The acclaimed Georgia Boy Choir will perform.
Keynote speaker Mr. Pompeo will share his thoughts and experience on a range of topics including selfless service and his impressions on leading the Central Intelligence Agency since he was sworn in as Director on January 23, 2017. In his role, Mr. Pompeo manages intelligence collection, analysis, covert action, counterintelligence, and liaison relationships with foreign intelligence services.
“We are delighted that Mike Pompeo will serve as our keynote speaker and we look forward to his remarks,” stated Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund President MaryEllen Picciuto. She continued, “It is especially fitting since Mike is the West Point classmate of our inspiration Colonel John “Johnny Mac” McHugh and many of us on the Fund’s board of directors.”
Mr. Pompeo graduated first in his class at the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1986 and served as a cavalry officer patrolling the Iron Curtain before the fall of the Berlin Wall. He also served with the 2nd Squadron, 7th Cavalry in the US Army’s Fourth Infantry Division. After leaving active duty, Mr. Pompeo graduated from Harvard Law School. He founded Thayer Aerospace, where he served as CEO for more than a decade, and later became President of Sentry International, an oilfield equipment manufacturing, distribution, and service company. Prior to becoming the CIA Director, Mr. Pompeo was serving in his fourth term as congressman from Kansas’ 4th District.
The title sponsor for the Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund 2nd Atlanta Gala is Mercedes-Benz. The Gala is also generously sponsored by dozens of corporations and organizations including Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, ADP, AutoNation, NuLife Med, CBS Radio, Knight Point Systems, Oldcastle, AdvaMed, Boulegeris Investments, Cryolife, Domtar, EMCOR Services Aircond, Ferguson, the Georgia Aquarium, Hearst Autos, L Squared Capital Partners, Richard Bowers & Company, and SiteOne Landscape Supply.
To register or learn more about the 2nd Atlanta Gala, explore the event website.
About Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund
Established in 2014, the Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to financially assisting veterans and their family members with education expenses. The fund is inspired by Colonel John “Johnny Mac” McHugh, KIA in Kabul, Afghanistan on May 18, 2010. To date, Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund has awarded $6 million in college scholarships, funding over 700 students. To learn more or to support the mission of Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund, visit www. JohnnyMac.org