Today, my longtime friend and business partner, Dr. Lorraine Smoot Stone, passed away suddenly. To say that I am devastated is the understatement of this young century. Dr. Stone was a loyal friend like few I have ever had in my lifetime. She was also one of the most accomplished individuals I have ever met, let alone worked with. She carried top clearances in government and the military (having worked on the development of the stealth bomber system) and could pick-up the phone and call almost anyone from high level government officials to people like Magic Johnson and LL Cool J. We spoke literally every day over the past 6 years. The last time we spoke was yesterday morning. In that ever so brief moment as her daughter held the phone to her ear, the only thing she could say to me in her physical anguish was, Jer. She was a one of a kind that I was proud to call, friend. Please, take a moment and review a few of her work accomplishments - although she would have told you her greatest accomplishments in life would have to do with her children, grandchildren, friendships, and her personal service to her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Dr. Lorraine Smoot Stone, Verde Energy CEO, possesses over 30 years of senior management, teaching/training, and entrepreneurial experience in various environments. She is an expert at planning ‐ organization development, and leadership skills to produce consistently strong revenue, production and profit. She is result driven with success in creating vision, identifying opportunities, while delivering strong revenues and profits despite intense market competition. Dr. Stone is an expert in project management across diverse corporate cultures as well as an industry expert and pragmatic diplomatic relations with foreign governments including Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Bermuda, Jamaica, Anguilla, Mexico, Canada, Brazil, and several South African countries. Dr. Stone has completed numerous government, commercial and private projects with large multi‐million dollar scope and triple six‐plus figure budgets. Dr. Stone’s balanced leadership, via conceptual thinking and strategic planning, are her strong points as she has successfully built key organizational relationships, rapidly developing a positive and productive working rapport. Her hands‐on management style, and keen ability to capitalize on individual team member strengths and talents, is a positive. She has led and garnered critical projects from inception, conceptualization, to assessment and implementation totaling $7.4 Billion with budgetary responsibility of $500M to $20B as an officer for companies like BOEING Aircraft Company. Dr. Stone’s educational background is the perfect fit for the multiple projects of Benchmark/Verde. 1971 ‐ Penn State University – Economics /Engineering 1973 ‐ Penn State University ‐ MBA /Mechanical Systems 1976 - University of Washington, Doctoral Course work completed in Political Science /Economics / Engineering 1991 - Honeywell – graduated in Mechanical Systems and Building Automation Engineering and Design. 1994 - University of San Diego, CA ‐ Certification in Lead/Asbestos Abatement Supervision, EPA 1998 ‐ USC, Brownfield’s, Hazardous Material, and Disposal 2002 ‐ Harvard‐ School of Business – Doctoral Studies Judicator ‐ PhD 2004 ‐ Chancellor Prospectus, Penn State University 2006 ‐ Job Core Lenities ‐ Train the Trainers Task Force Deployments 2006 ‐ Red Cross Disaster Recovery Mobilizations Doc, You already are sorely missed. You fulfilled the definition of a friend as defined by William Shakespeare when he said, A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow. Thank God for your incredible life! Jer
Posted on: Thu, 30 Jan 2014 23:25:14 +0000
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