GOVERNING BOARD

Photo Credit: Tri City Bank

Andy Bethune is Vice President, Business Development Officer for Tri Star Trust in Saginaw. Prior to Tri Star, Andy spent 18 years with the Saginaw Valley State University Foundation. Andy’s capstone project with SVSU was to manage the private fundraising initiative to construct the Carmona College of Business, which raised nearly $16 million. During his tenure, the foundation achieved several milestones, including the completion of its three largest private fundraising campaigns; its largest individual, foundation, corporate, and alums gifts; and the growth of the University’s endowment from $44 million to more than $100 million.

Andy has been extensively involved in the community. He is a graduate of Leadership Saginaw, 1,000 Leaders and the Great Lakes Bay Institute for Leaders. He has also served on the boards of the Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce, Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, First United Methodist Endowment Committee, Miracle League of Saginaw, and Wildfire Credit Union.

Andy and his wife Andrea have two adult daughters and also host two hockey players from the Saginaw Spirit: Luke McNamara and Brett Fullerton.

Craig Douglas lives in Carrollton with his wife, Joan, and serves on the Carrollton Township Board after more than four decades of service in public education in Michigan. Originally from Concord, Michigan, Douglas spent thirty-eight years in k – 12 education, working in Chesaning, Big Rapids, Oscoda, Elkton-Pigeon-Bay Port, and Carrollton school systems. Retiring in 2013, Douglas came out of retirement to get a glimpse of higher education, working at Saginaw Valley State University for four years. Douglas is a member of First Presbyterian Church (Saginaw) and belongs to the Saginaw Valley Rotary Club, Carrollton Lions Club, Carrollton Education Foundation, Saginaw Country Club, and the YMCA of Saginaw. Douglas has completed over 30 marathons and plans to do his 30th Crim 10-mile race in 2023. WNEM TV 5 regularly allows Douglas to appear in a 9:00 a.m. news segment each week entitled, “Education Matters,” designed to inform and uplift viewers on various aspects surrounding teaching and learning in the Great Lakes Bay Region. Douglas works part-time for a nonprofit organization based in Mt. Pleasant called the Institute for Excellence in Education, keeping him in classrooms and school buildings in the region.

Photo Credit: SVSU

Photo Credit: SVSU

Bio will be posted soon…

Chinu Mridha founded the MIIPH in 2021 with her husband, Debasish Mridha, M.D., for the purpose of promoting peace and nonviolence through community and education. Born and raised in Bangladesh, Chinu earned a full scholarship in economics and attended Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, where she earned her master’s degree in economics.

After migrating to the United States, Chinu earned a second master’s degree in communications from Central Michigan University. In 2001, Chinu and Dr. Mridha co-founded Himaloy LLC, a commercial property management company. That same year, the Mridha Foundation was founded, and the couple’s business and philanthropic pursuits hit full stride.

For the past decade, Chinu has made annual trips back to Bangladesh to visit family and deliver humanitarian aid to the area as part of the Mridha Foundation’s efforts. Her mother and younger brother still live in Bangladesh. She also has two other brothers who live in England and India, respectively.

“Once you extend your hand to help others, that becomes its own reward,” she says.

Debasish Mridha, M.D., is a physician, philosopher, writer, and philanthropist whose enduring interest in peace, harmony, and happiness has influenced his professional career and illuminated his personal life.Born in Bangladesh, Dr. Mridha spent three years of his childhood in a refugee camp in India during and after the 1971 Bangladesh War of Independence. Years later, he would complete his medical studies at the Kiev Medical institute in Ukraine before migrating to the United States for his residency and fellowship at Wayne State University in Detroit, Mich.In 1999, Dr. Mridha launched his medical practice and founded the Michigan Advanced Neurology Center (MANC) in Saginaw. He has served on several medical boards, including Board of Directors for both the Michigan State Medical Society and the Saginaw Valley State University Foundation. Dr. Mridha was honored with the IMG Michigan Physician of the Year Award in 2012.Dr. Mridha established the Mridha Foundation in 2001, signaling his advocacy for education and commitment to humanitarian concerns. Every year, deserving students, educators, and medical professionals who exemplify the Foundation’s values are presented with awards and/or monetary scholarships recognizing their achievements in education, medicine, and humanitarianism.The Foundation supports partnerships with learning institutions, medical facilities, community organizations, and medical associations. Currently, those include American Brain Foundation, American Medical Association Foundation, Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Covenant HealthCare, Michigan State Medical Society, Saginaw Community Foundation, Saginaw Valley State University Foundation, and St. Mary’s of Michigan Foundation.

Jenee Velasquez became the first Executive Director for The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow Foundation in October of 2005. She served as Chief Executive Officer of Midland County’s Economic Development Corporation, Midland Tomorrow, beginning in 1999. Two years prior, she served as Midland Tomorrow’s Manager of Economic Development Services. She was Midland’s first Downtown Development Authority Coordinator. Prior to living in Midland, Velasquez worked for the Manhattan, Kansas, Convention and Visitors Bureau. She earned a B.S. in business administration from Kansas State University and her M.B.A. from Michigan State University, as well as completing an executive education course at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Community activities include serving as a member of Huntington Bank Community Advisory Board, Vice Chair MidMichigan Health Board, Chair of Midland City and County Joint Building Authority, Michigan Municipal League Foundation Board, Council of Michigan Foundations Board, Chair of Midland Entranceway Initiative Task Force, Past Chair and current Member for Michigan Non-Profit Association Board, Greater Midland Community Centers Trustees Board, Past Chair for Leadership Michigan Advisory Board, Midland Business Alliance, Midland Rotary Club, Local Development Finance Authority Board, Past Chair of Saginaw Valley State University Board of Control, Past Chair of Delta College Foundation Board, Past Chair of Brownfield Redevelopment Financing Authority, Past Vice President and Assistant Secretary for Michigan Baseball Foundation, Midland Blooms Volunteer, Dow Community Advisory Panel, Junior Achievement Volunteer, Michigan Humanities Council Grants Committee, Leadership Midland Alumni, and 1000 Leaders-Leadership Saginaw Alumni.