East Lake Foundation Welcomes Two New Members to its Board of Directors

Today, the East Lake Foundation’s Board of Directors welcomed two new board members: Marilyn Hack and Joyce Reto. These two leaders in the community have been associated with the Foundation’s work for years and will contribute to the broad diversity of the Foundation’s Board.

Marilyn Hack is a former long-time resident of the Villages of East Lake, active participant in the East Lake community, a current Drew Charter School parent, and has served as a resident representative for the East Lake Foundation for numerous local and national events and publications. She will serve on the Foundation’s Board of Director’s as its first ever community Board Member.

Joyce joins us from RSM, a company that has been committed to holistic community revitalization and has been a generous supporter of the Foundation’s work for the last two years.

“We are thrilled to have Marilyn and Joyce join our East Lake Foundation team,” said Danny J. Shoy, Jr, President and CEO of the East Lake Foundation. “Marilyn and her family represent the Foundation’s mission in action and Joyce is proof that partnerships amplify the Foundation’s outcomes.  Their diverse expertise, knowledge and unique familiarity with our work will help foster and sustain our progress in East Lake.”

Marilyn Hack

Founder and Owner, CPR Learning Concepts, LLC.

Marilyn Hack is a skilled nurse and entrepreneur. Born in Guyana, South America, Marilyn immigrated to the United States, initially living in New York City before moving to Atlanta in 1990. She and her family moved into the Villages of East Lake in 2000, where they initially lived in an income-based apartment before moving into market rate housing and then purchasing their home in 2018. During her time at the Villages of East Lake, Marilyn was very involved with the Foundation’s Resident and Community Support Program, which assisted her with starting her business. In 2018, Marilyn played an instrumental role in the Foundation’s refinancing negotiations with the Atlanta Housing Authority, which was ultimately approved.

Marilyn has two children who are Drew Charter School Alumni, Paul Chapman and Terez Chapman, both of whom predate the addition of Drew’s High School, finishing Drew in 8th grade in 2005 and 2011, respectively. Marilyn’s youngest child, Maliha Hack, is currently a 4th grader at Drew, entering through its Cox Pre-K program, after starting at the Sheltering Arms East Lake Early Learning Center.

Marilyn has an Associate Degree in Psychology from Georgia State University then attained an Associate Degree in Nursing from Excelsior College before returning to Georgia State University to complete her Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing.

Joyce Reto

Joyce Reto, Atlanta Office Managing Partner, RSM

Joyce serves as the office managing partner and an audit partner for RSM’s Atlanta office where she focuses on audit engagements primarily for clients in retail and consumer products industries. Joyce has 28 years of public accounting experience with RSM and other firms service public, private equity owned and privately held companies. RSM is the nation’s 5th largest public accounting firm providing audit, tax and consulting services primarily to the middle market.  Previously Joyce has served as RSM’s Charlotte Office Managing Partner and as the CFO for a multi-billion privately held company.

Joyce was elected to the RSM Board of Directors for a four-year term beginning in 2018.  She participates on the finance, M&A, and partner matters committees and chairs the strategy and innovation committee of the board.  Joyce also has over 11 years of experience serving on the boards of not-for-profit organizations including United Family Services in Charlotte and Susan G. Komen in Atlanta and Charlotte.

Joyce has been honored with the Charlotte Business Journal’s Women in Business award, Athena Women’s Award, Charlotte’s 40 Under 40 Business Award and was one of the recipients of Atlanta’s 2019 Most Admired CEOs award.

For the past two years, Joyce has been engaged with the East Lake Foundation through its partnership with RSM.  She has garnered support in 2019 for the Foundation’s East Lake Invitational and in 2019 and 2020 led RSM’s Birdies for Love Campaign (named after RSM sponsored PGA Golfer Davis Love), which raised awareness and financial support for East Lake Foundation. Joyce has a B.S. degree from St. Cloud State University. 

Please click here to see a full list of East Lake Foundation Board Members.

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About the East Lake Foundation

Founded in 1995 by developer and philanthropist Tom Cousins, the East Lake Foundation collaborates with public and private organizations to provide tools and equitable opportunities that enable Atlanta’s East Lake residents to build a better future through its holistic model for community revitalization.

The East Lake model includes cradle-to-college education at Charles R. Drew Charter School and its early learning partners, mixed-income housing at The Villages of East Lake and community wellness through programs including First Tee of Metro Atlanta, the Resident and Community Support Program, Emory University’s Start ME: East Lake micro-entrepreneur program and the East Lake Family YMCA’s East Lake Healthy Connections program. This approach to building a strong community not only helps break the intergenerational cycle of poverty but creates a place where people of all ages and incomes choose to live.

East Lake has become a national model for holistic community redevelopment across the country through Purpose Built Communities. For more information, please visit www.eastlakefoundation.org.