Four New Board Members Welcomed

The Board of Directors welcomed four new members in March. They are Christopher Bugel, Medal of Honor Recipient Command Sergeant Major Gary Littrell, USA (ret.), Beverly Marksbury, and John Ventimiglia.

Command Sergeant Major Gary Lee Littrell, USA (ret.)

Command Sergeant Major Gary Lee Littrell, USA (ret.) served in the U.S. Army for 24 years from 1961 to 1985. On October 15, 1973, then-Sergeant First Class Littrell was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Richard M. Nixon for actions that took place from April 4 to April 8, 1970.

At that time, while serving on Advisory Team 21 of I Corps Advisory Group, in Kontum Province, Republic of Vietnam, SFC Littrell was a Light Weapons Infantry Advisor with the 23rd Battalion, 2nd Ranger Group. On April 4, 1970, the battalion came under intense mortar attack and all advisors except Littrell were killed. Unrelentingly, over the next four days, SFC Littrell kept the battalion inspired, while he directed artillery and air support, distributed ammunition, strengthened faltering defenses, cared for the wounded, and shouted encouragement to the Vietnamese in their own language. For his “sustained extraordinary courage and selflessness”, and by order of Congress, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Today, Gary Littrell serves as Chairman of the Tribute to Valor Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) charity committed to influencing, impacting, and inspiring students involved in STEAM curriculum with the goal to help these students understand and engage the values of the Medal of Honor; Courage, Sacrifice, Patriotism, Citizenship, Integrity, and Commitment.

Chris Bugel

Chris Bugel is Assistant General Counsel – North America for Transurban, a large international toll road operator that manages and develops urban toll road networks in Australia and North America.

Prior to joining Transurban, Chris practiced law at Greenberg Traurig, LLP and Chadbourne & Parke LLP, both large international law firms where he represented a wide range of clients in connection with mergers and acquisitions, commercial agreements, securities offerings, financings, and other general corporate matters.

In addition to his commitment to the welfare of America’s veterans, Chris also volunteers his time and expertise to startup and early-stage companies through a mentoring program targeting tech and life science companies in the Washington, DC metro area.

Beverly C. Marksbury

Beverly C. Marksbury has served in senior board positions with charities including the Pasadena Humane Society, where she served two non-consecutive terms as Board Chair, The Colburn School (Los Angeles), and Pasadena Showcase House for the Arts.

Other charities that have benefited from her leadership include the Tournament of Roses Association, the San Marino League, the LA Phil, Pasadena Senior Center, and the Tiffany Circle of the American Red Cross.

Marksbury’s professional career spanned 38 years with the court system, including the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco, and the Los Angeles Superior Court. She was a Peer Review Panel member for the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance for 15 years.

Among her many accomplishments was developing a grants program exceeding $15 million to promote and fund court programs and increase access to justice; directing new courthouse construction with a budget in excess of $300 million, including project managing the design and construction of the Edmund D. Edelman Children’s Court in Monterey Park, Calif.

Marksbury’s commitment to America’s veterans was forged by her family. Her father served in the U.S. Navy during World War 2, and her brother, Commander G.J. Corcoran, was a career officer in the U.S. Navy who skippered the Fleet Ballistic Missile nuclear submarine USS John C. Calhoun (SSBN 630).

John Ventimiglia

John Ventimiglia retired from Boeing in 2021 after 32 years of service. In his last role, he led a group of program managers for the Global Information Technology Infrastructure Services Program Office. In this role, the team managed internal IT projects for Boeing Enterprise.

During his career with Boeing, John held numerous positions related to Strategic Development, Cyber Security, and Energy, as well as positions in the Guidance, Navigation & Controls Group for the Space Shuttle Program.

From 2007 to 2022, John served as Treasurer (an Executive Board position) for the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Association of United States Army. John also held a number of roles for the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) organization from 2017 to 2022.