Leading with HOPE

Orah RaiaCo-founder

Parent Advocate

Orah has over 35 years of experience in the area of special education, specifically focusing on the inclusion of students with disabilities in schools and communities. She holds a Master's Degree in Special Education.

She began her advocacy career working for the NJ Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN). In this role, she collaborated with many school districts in New Jersey, as well as with the New Jersey State Department of Education and the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities on several state initiative projects.

In addition, she has taught graduate and undergraduate courses in the area of inclusion and has conducted numerous workshops both locally and nationally. She has also served on several nonprofit Boards of Directors.

Her son Brian, who has developmental disabilities, was one of the first students included in general education classrooms with supports in New Jersey. He is the driving force behind her passion to provide inclusive opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in their communities.

Orah and her family moved back to New Jersey in July 2024 after living in North Carolina for 14 years in order to be closer to family. In addition to Brian, her family includes their daughter, who lives in Vermont.

The lack of supports for her son in North Carolina was also a major reason for the relocation. Regardless, she remains committed to HOPE NC's mission as a Board member.

Colin MellorPresident

North Carolina Department of Transportation Environmental Policy Unit
Parent Advocate

Colin began his career at NCDOT in 1994. Since then he has worked both as a public servant and in private industry as a geologist and a geophysicist, gradually changing paths through environmental coordination and permitting roles to NEPA/SEPA (National/State Environmental Policy Act) analysis and environmental policy. Currently with NCDOT’s Environmental Policy Unit he oversees project environmental planning and compliance for the eastern half of the state and is one of NCDOT’s technical leads on Governor Coopers climate change-focused Executive Order 80. He earned a Bachelor's degree in Geology from the University of Wollongong, Australia, and a Master’s degree in Geology from UNC Chapel Hill. He is a North Carolina Licensed Geologist.

Colin resides in rural Orange County with his wife Kim and his two children Henry and Anna. He is actively involved as a coach and a Board member with the Mebane Youth Soccer Association.

Greg McGrewVice-President

Retired Attorney
Parent Advocate

Greg McGrew has been involved in the developmental disability community since his son was diagnosed with autism, at age 3 (he is now 29).  Over the years, Greg has held leadership roles in the disability community, including serving as President and board member of Disability Rights, North Carolina from 2002 to 2005, and as President and board member of First In Families of North Carolina from 2007 to 2012.  Greg is an attorney licensed in North Carolina and recently retired at the end of 2024 after a 27-year career as Assistant General Counsel at Ciena Corporation.

Greg resides in Apex with his wife, Cheryl, and their son, Jacob.  Their daughter, Megan, currently lives in New York.  Greg is actively involved with the Boy Scouts of America and serves on the local board of directors.

Randy McNeillTreasurer

Retired CPA

Randy was a CPA licensed in NC from 1987 to 2023, and retired at the end of 2021 after 7 years as VP-Finance for Habitat for Humanity of Orange County NC. Prior to Habitat, he worked for 25 years at Hanesbrands and RJR Nabisco in Winston-Salem, in various roles of increasing responsibility in accounting and financial planning and analysis. Randy is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill, and upon graduation he worked for Ernst & Young in Raleigh.

Randy and his wife live in Graham, and love to take driving vacations across the state and beyond. They have two daughters and three grandchildren; their daughters are both educators, one in the Alamance Burlington School System and one at NC State as an assistant professor teaching courses in special education as well as elementary education. Randy enjoys playing golf, hiking, gardening, and spreadsheets.

Ginny DropkinSecretary / Co-founder

Parent Advocate

Ginny has been actively involved in the developmental disabilities arena since her son was diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum, at age 4 (he's now 40).  She has a Master’s Degree in Social Work from the UNC-Chapel Hill. Ginny served on the Board of Directors at Frankie Lemmon School. She's been a member of the Arc and the Autism Society. Her advocacy is now focused on joining efforts with others to find solutions to the critical question of what happens to these young adults when their parents and caregivers are no longer alive or able to offer support and care. She was a Board Member of Autism Community Initiative, an effort to create supported housing. Her experience with ACI eventually led directly to her current efforts with HOPE, which she co-founded. She continues collaborating with other parents and looking for solutions.

Barrett Joyner

Former President, SAS North America

Barrett Joyner spent the prior 8 years raising funds for a non profit shelter for homeless men and women addicted to drugs and alcohol. Previously, he spent 25 years in high technology developing and implementing marketing and sales strategies for: Mi-Co, software company focusing on hand writing recognition and mobile data capture activities with the Mi-Forms form design platform, FullSeven, email marketing software, SciQuest, software focusing on strategic procurement for academic, healthcare and research-centric organizations and 16 years at SAS Institute, the world's largest independent software vendor serving as Software Sales Director, VP of Sales and Marketing and President of SAS North America. Barrett graduated from UNC, did graduate work at NC State, and has worked at RTI (Research Triangle Institute).

Barrett has previously served on the Board of Directors of the Eastern North Carolina Chapter of the MS Society and is a strong supporter of the nonprofit, Rebuilding the Triangle.

Barrett loves calling the Triangle area home having lived in Carrboro, Chapel Hill and Raleigh. Barrett now lives in Cary with his wife, Stephenie.

Grant Pearson

Self-Advocate

Grant moved to North Carolina from Richmond, VA in 1999 and graduated from C.E. Jordan High School in 2004. He currently participates in weekly activities at Reality Ministries where he enjoys socializing with friends. In his spare time, he enjoys cooking, visiting Duke Gardens in the spring and summer, and doing yard work at home.

Holly Riddle

Retired Assistant Director in the NCDHHS' Office of the Senior Advisor on the ADA

Holly Riddle is currently retired from leading the Olmstead Plan Development for the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) as an Assistant Director in the NCDHHS’ Office of the Senior Advisor on the ADA.  Over her four decades in government, she has served, in addition, as policy advisor to the NC Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services; executive director of the NC Council on Developmental Disabilities (NCCDD); general counsel to the former NCDHHS Division of Youth Services; and a staff member of Wright School and the Whitaker Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility.  Ms. Riddle holds bachelor’s in English and master’s degree in Special Education from UNC-Chapel Hill and a Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law Center.  She is a former member of the American Bar Association’s Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law; a member of the National Advisory Board for the College of Direct Support; a member of the boards of the NC Guardianship Association and Housing Options for People with Exceptionalities (HOPE NC); a graduate of Leadership North Carolina; former chair of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities’ (AAIDD) Legal Process and Advocacy Committee; and Fellow of the AAIDD.  In 2013, the NCCDD created an award in her name, recognizing excellence in professional leadership in the field of developmental disability.

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Paul Fogleman

Attorney / Partner, Womble Bond Dickinson

Paul Fogleman is a partner in the firm's Capital Markets group, which represents banks, non-traditional lenders, and borrowers in a variety of finance transactions, including term and revolving facilities, construction facilities, asset-based lending, and receivables financing.

Paul has extensive experience representing borrowers and real estate owners in many aspects of real estate transactions, including real estate secured financings, acquisitions and sales, developments, leases, title review, and due diligence analysis. He regularly serves as North Carolina counsel in the issuance of local counsel real estate and enforceability opinions.

Within the community, and aside from his involvement with HOPE NC, Paul is active on the board of the Poe Center for Health Education. He also regularly handles residential closings and general corporate matters on a pro bono basis for Habitat for Humanity of Wake County.

Paul is a graduate of North Carolina State University and the University of South Carolina School of Law.

Alex Nickodem

Broker/Realtor with Terra Nova Global Properties

Alex lives in Chapel Hill with his wife, a professor at UNC, and their son. He has been practicing real estate in the Triangle since early 2018. In 2022, he joined Terra Nova Global Properties in Chapel Hill. His practice areas include residential sales, new construction, and he has extensive experience with first time homebuyers. As a former fundraiser for Habitat for Humanity, he is passionate about making people’s home dreams become a reality. 

His greatest joys in life are found in time with his family, whether that be splashing in Morgan Creek, exploring the NC Botanical Gardens, or chasing his son around the lawn at Weaver Street Market. He loves exploring the natural beauty to be found in the Triangle, from Eno River State Park to the Hillsborough Riverwalk to Coker Arboretum.

Harriet Able

Retired Professor of Special Education of UNC-CH
Parent Advocate

Harriet Able is a mother of an adult with high functioning autism and a retired professor of special education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has been in the disability field for over forty years. Her primary work has focused on family support initiatives for children, youth, and adults with disabilities. While a professor at UNC-CH, Harriet received numerous grant awards from the U.S. Office of Education focused on preparing interdisciplinary professionals to be leaders in family centered practices. Her research and advocacy work has focused on helping individuals with disabilities and their families be informed consumers and advocates for needed services.

Chris Cole

CPA and Certified Fraud Examiner, CliftonLarsenAllen

Chris Cole is a CPA and Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE).  He joined CliftonLarsenAllen CPA firm (top 10 CPA firm in the US) in January 2022 as their Quality and Wellness Director. Among his responsibilities is assessing and monitoring the impact of workload and culture on engagement quality across the firm.  He's originally from Connecticut and upstate New York, and lived in North Carolina since 1982.

Chris and his family currently reside in Hillsborough.  His hobbies include reading, golf and travel with his wife, Amy, and son, Jay.  His son is a senior at Georgetown University and in Air Force ROTC and his wife is an IT Project Manager at UNC Chapel Hill Medical School.