Leadership
Steven R. Hodges
KiMe Founder
Steve has been employed by a large multi-domestic Fortune 200 company since 1983. An association he is proud of and committed to. He currently serves in a management position supporting operations initiatives throughout the US. Steve attended the University of New Mexico for a short period of time before transferring to the University of Albuquerque where he received his Bachelor’s degree. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, he became an avid researcher and practitioner of leadership principles forming his own style and perspective along with a drive to achieve customer excellence. Steve soon became a requested speaker in a variety of venues including Miami, San Antonio, Austin, Washington DC, and Atlanta on the topics of Leadership, Motivation, and Building Exceptional Teams to Achieve Exceptional Results.
Steve’s leadership experience extends beyond his company. He previously served at a local level as a Board Member, President, and later as the National Director of a professional society that fosters the professional growth and educational advancement of its members. From 1999 to 2005, he served as a Board Member, President and later Chairman, of a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) comprised of some of the largest corporations in the country focused on building business partnerships and providing educational scholarships to economically disadvantaged youths.
Steve has served his community as a volunteer coach for a number of youth softball and basketball teams, first doing so in 1983. His passions include travel, photography, and spending time with his family, including his two daughters Kim and Megan.
Steve lives in Knoxville, Tennessee. The family motto is “don’t look back and say you wish you would have.” That is why they started the KiMe CND Fund in 2010.
J. Eric Brinley
Certified Financial Planner Professional® & Certified Wealth Strategist Professional®. Having completed a degree in Education from the University of Missouri in 1980, Eric worked in management with several national retail chains. In 1992, he entered the financial services field by opening an independent financial planning practice. Eric is a Registered Principal with First Allied Securities, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC and an Investment Advisor Representative offering services through First Allied Advisory Services, Inc. His office serves over 250 personal and business clients in Alabama, California, Colorado, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Missouri, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah. He attained the mark of ‘Certified Financial Planner’ in 1999 and added a Certified Wealth Strategist designation in 2008.
Eric frequently conducts workshops in businesses and churches on topics such as Morally Responsible Investing, Planned Giving, and Planning for Retirement. He was the lead instructor for a series of 200 Planned Giving Workshops for the Archdiocese of Galveston/Houston. Eric leads a small group Bible Study at his local church and enjoys motorcycle touring, photography, and spending time with his wife, Sue, and their three grown sons.
Leslie McDermott
Leslie currently serves in a financial management position responsible for assisting with the development of cost estimates, schedules, project trending, and analysis. Having earned a Computer Science degree, she previously provided a broad range of IT applications including: intranet content design; web/corporate infrastructure applications; software analysis; development/implementation of web-based systems; and database development for an international company with more than 40,000 employees. Leslie lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, with her two daughters, enjoys photography, and has been an active fundraiser for charitable causes.
Jeff Robinette
Former Volunteer
Jeff is a lawyer and an entrepreneur. He is the founder and managing attorney of the Robinette Group PLC and the managing principal of Government Contract Advisors LLC, which are located in northern Virginia and provides legal and other professional services to companies that do business with the U.S. and state and local governments. Jeff has 20 years of experience in government business and law. His practice is focused primarily on transactional and compliance matters, and helping corporate executives find creative solutions to regulatory challenges facing their businesses. Jeff is licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth of Virginia and in Washington D.C. He is an active member of the American Bar Association and frequently writes on topics of interest to the government contracting industry. Jeff previously worked for the U.S. Navy, Boeing, Reed Smith LLP and Oracle Corporation. He received his B.A. in International Studies from Ferrum College in 1990 and his Juris Doctor from the Columbus School of Law of the Catholic University of America in 1997. He and his wife Jennifer live in Falls Church, VA just outside Washington D.C.. They have recently taken up sailing as a hobby, but also enjoy cooking, photography and traveling together.
Dr. Michelle Brewer
Michelle has been a physician with Knoxville Neurology Clinic since 1989 and helped design the Cole Neuroscience Center’s Movement Disorders Clinic for its reopening in 1997. Since then, she has served as the Director of the Movement Disorder Clinic and treats more than 1,000 Parkinson’s patients in her practice. Michelle holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Pharmacy and a Doctor of Medicine from the University of Tennessee and completed a residency in neurology at the University of Virginia. Michelle has been an assistant clinical professor for the University of Tennessee Medical Center in neurology, teaching internal medicine and family practice residents. In the area of educational awareness and patient support, Michelle was instrumental in the formation of the Knoxville Parkinson’s Support Group and, as an outreach, has built a network of East Tennessee Parkinson’s support groups within a 100-mile radius of the university through the development of a brochure and speakers bureau for Parkinson’s patients. In addition to serving on the University of Tennessee Executive Committee, Michelle has served on numerous other committees at the university and has chaired the Stroke Committee and the Physical Medicine and Rehab Committee. With her background in pharmacy and medicine as well as her years of practice, Michelle has served as a consultant and speaker for the pharmaceutical companies whose emphasis is on the neuroscience area and Parkinson’s disease. On the community level, Michelle served as President of the Knoxville Chapter of the American Heart Association for two years, and is currently on the Appalachian Ballet Board of Trust and the Knoxville Opera Board of Directors, serving on the Development Committee and the committee for the Rossini Festival. Michelle enjoys golf, travel, music, her book club, and spending time with her children and grandchildren.
John Campbell
John is a Certified Public Accountant and has worked with KPMG and Coopers & Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) in the area of audit and business assurance. John currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of Anderson Merchandisers. He has extensive experience with not-for-profit organizations, having served as Treasurer of the Tanasi Girl Scout Council, Chair of the Finance Committee of Central Baptist Church – Bearden, served on the Allocations Committee of the United Way of Greater Knoxville, recently served on the Executive Committee of the Great Smoky Council, Boy Scouts of America and as Vice President of the Bearden High School Foundation. He holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Business Administration degrees from the University of Tennessee. John and his wife, CeCe, live in Knoxville, Tennessee, and have two married daughters and two grandchildren.
Joseph Siragusa
Joe joined Fidelity Investments in 2000 and holds the title of Vice President and Branch Office Manager. His concentrated responsibilities include site leadership, branch financial planning process, local market development, compliance and risk management, and client experience management. Joe has earned the designations of Certified Financial Planner in 2006 and Chartered Financial Consultant in 2007. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Boston University and served as the captain of the Boston University Rugby Team. Joe shares his time in his community as an Assistant Coach at the University of Tennessee Men’s Rugby Team and a mentor through the TN Achieves program. Joe was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and currently resides in the Knoxville, Tennessee area with his wife, Kelly and two children.
Steve Pratt
Steve Pratt has owned and operated Esteban’s Café and Cantina in League City, Texas since 1988. After attending college at the University of Houston, he spent several years working in the restaurant industry and had the opportunity to open Esteban’s. He oversees a staff of 45 and is responsible for all restaurant operations, including off-site catering, as well as managing an adjacent 80 seat banquet facility. Mr. Pratt served several years on the Board of Directors for the North Galveston County YMCA and coached numerous youth sports teams during that time. He was also a member of the League City Rotary Club and the League City Lion’s Club. Steve has served on several Boards and Committees for the City of League City and is currently on the Board of Directors for the Galveston County Health District and the Business Development Committee at Hometown Bank of League City. Mr. Pratt has been married to Charla Pratt since 1992 and they have two sons, Cody and Jacob. In his free time he enjoys woodworking, pottery and cooking. Steve was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in April of 2015 and is hopeful that a cure for Parkinson’s is found in his lifetime.
Kallee Botkin
Kallee is a Brand Manager for growing financial planning and investment firm, TVAMP. In this role, she creates brand awareness and generates leads through social media marketing, event planning, and email campaigns. Since Kallee began serving as a “KiMe Volunteer” in 2017, she has played a key role in adding significance to events including, KiMe Fund Annual Shakin’ Not Stirred Parkinson’s Fundraisers and the inaugural Golf Classic. Kallee earned a degree in marketing from the University of Tennessee Knoxville’s college of business in 2015. Whether it’s designing an invitation, coordinating an event, or just a cozy space in her house, Kallee finds pleasure in creating a great aesthetic. Her passions include being at home with her dogs, and reading anything Reece Witherspoon recommends.
Dr. Chris Tolleson
Dr Christopher Tolleson is a Movement Disorder Specialist at UT Medical Center. He did his medical school training at the Medical College of Georgia and his residency in Neurology at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, finishing that in 2010. After that, he did a fellowship in Movement Disorders at Vanderbilt University in 2010-2011, and then stayed on as faculty for six years before coming to UT Medical Center in hopes of assisting Dr. Brewer in continuing to expand the program. He is currently the head of the Huntington’s Center of Excellence here at UT Medical Center. He has numerous peer-reviewed articles and has had a passion for looking at continuous surgical therapies in Parkinson’s. He currently hopes to look more at potential neuroprotective therapies in PD through industry clinical trials. He is excited to be a part of KiMe as they look to support Parkinson’s research and care.
Pete Deuber
Pete has lived in Knoxville since 2000 and was diagnosed with PD in 2015. In 2016 he retired from his career in Heavy Duty Truck leasing after 35 years with Ryder Truck Rental.
Pete has two Neurologists, seeing one in Knoxville and one at Vanderbilt in Nashville. He likes to joke that he’s never met a Parkinsons’ organization he didn’t like. Attending events Sponsored by PK Hope is Alive, Kime, and PJ Parkinsons has kept his calendar busy. Believing the best defense is a good offense Pete works out with Rock Steady Boxing twice a week and Pedaling for Parkinsons at the West Side YMCA in Knoxville also twice a week.
Since research will one day bring a cure for Parkinsons Pete has volunteered for two clinical trials. The first, called SURE PD3 concluded in 2019 showing (unfortunately) that Inosine did not impact Parkinsons Disease. The second is really in a pre-trail phase and has to do with FOG (freezing of gait) and is sponsored by the University of Tennessee Mechanical Engineering Department.