Bill Smithwick joined Sunrise Children's Services in April 1997 as the agencys president and chief executive officer. He previously held the position of assistant executive director for programs and administration for Virginia Baptist Childrens Home and Family Services.
Bill earned a doctor of ministry degree from St. Marys Seminary and University in Baltimore; a bachelor of arts degree and a master of business administration degree from Averett College in Danville, Va.; and a master of divinity degree from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C.
He has a wealth of experience in working with programs to help troubled children, having served as chaplain of Virginia Baptist Childrens Home and Family Services prior to taking on the administrative role he had there. He also worked for a three-year period as a management consultant for Southeastern Employers Services Co. in Bristol, Tenn.
The Bowling Green, Fla., native has also held student, bi-vocational and full-time pastorates in Virginia Baptist churches.
He lives in Simpsonville with his wife, Dawn. They have three young adult children.
Brandi Felser joined Sunrise in May 2010 as the Chief Development Officer. In this role Brandi oversaw the fundraising, marketing and communications for the organization. In May 2012, Brandi moved into the role of Chief Operating Officer. As the COO, she is responsible for the overall program administration and services, and operations of the organization. In addition, she continues to lead Sunrise’s fundraising and marketing efforts.
Brandi's previous experience includes working in the international community on issues affecting the world economy, with a non-profit that partnered with government agencies to combat substance abuse at the community level, and most recently for a legislative/advocacy organization headquartered on Capitol Hill. She has over 14 years experience working in the development, communications and marketing fields.
Brandi relocated to Kentucky from the Washington, DC metro area. Brandi earned her undergraduate degree at Eastern Kentucky University and her MBA at The George Washington University in Washington, DC.
