Board of Directors
The board of directors is the governing body of the Objective Zero Foundation. Independent of the day-to-day management of Objective Zero, our board is focused on governance, strategic vision, and executive steering. Our board is responsible for ensuring the organization follows sound moral, ethical, and legal regulations and adopts sound financial management practices and policies.
Ryan Strong
Board President
Ryan Strong obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of North Georgia and received his master’s degree in organizational leadership from Central Michigan University. Ryan served over 27 years in the military and is currently an instructor/writer at the Army Management Staff College at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas.
Ryan held a variety of leadership positions. He was a principal advisor to the US Army talent manager for diverse organizations and managed worldwide recruiting quality issues, trends, and losses. Ryan also managed science and technology design development projects and monitored quality assurance and customer satisfaction. He assisted in incorporating matrixed management to historical hierarchical organizations.
After a successful career of helping organizations and individuals solve complex problems and improve performance, he now facilitates learning in organizational leadership, emotional intelligence, knowledge management, and diversity and inclusion.
Colonel Kevin Johnston, U.S. Army (Ret.),
Board Secretary
Kevin was raised in New Hampshire, attending and graduating from the Derryfield School in Manchester. Kevin joined the Army in 1990 and spent the next 29 years serving our Nation, first as an enlisted Infantryman before attending Officers Candidate School in 1992. Following successful assignments and command at company and battalion level Kevin was promoted to Colonel and assigned to serve as an advisor to the Adjutant General for the state of New York, retiring from service in late 2018. Kevin holds a BA from Cameron University in Oklahoma, an MA in Business Management. Kevin also serves as elected Trustee for VFW post 7356 in Parkville, MO where he volunteers with several of their committees. Kevin is an active volunteer in his son's school and a proud supporter of his activities to include coaching baseball in Platte County.
Darren Farber,
Board Member
Darren Farber is a Managing Partner of Albion River (“Albion”), a private direct investment firm focused on acquiring companies that produce highly technical Defense Products & Services.
Prior to Albion, Mr. Farber was a co-founder of NAWAH LLC, a Pritzker Organization company specializing in Middle East third party logistics. NAWAH was sold to Hutchinson. Ports, a division of Hutchinson Whampoa Limited. Prior to NAWAH, Mr. Farber served as a special advisor to the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense – Business Transformation and Director – Task Force for Business and Stability Operations at the U.S. Department of Defense. In this capacity, Mr. Farber led efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan to redefine contracting doctrine with the goal of decreasing Host Nation unemployment. These efforts were recounted in “War Front to Store Front: Americans Rebuilding Trust and Hope in Nations Under Fire” – Brinkley A., Paul: Wiley & Sons, 2014.
Mr. Farber is the Chairman of Magpul Industries and a board member of MDA Inc (TSX:MDA). He was previously a board member of Sparton (formerly NYSE: SPA) and American Pacific (formerly NASDAQ: APFC). Mr. Farber started his career at Northern Telecom as an operations engineer and held senior product and operations roles at Celestica (NYSE: CLS).
Dori Kreiger, Board Member
Dori Kreiger joined CTIA Wireless Foundation as its Executive Director in September 2018. CTIA Wireless Foundation accelerates social innovation fueled by wireless technology in American communities. Under Dori’s leadership, the Foundation launched Catalyst, a competitive awards program supporting early-stage social entrepreneurs using 5G and leading edge wireless technologies to enhance our lives and address pressing social challenges.
Dori brings vast experience as a philanthropy strategist specializing at the intersection of non-profit and business sectors. For more than 20 years, she has developed innovative programming and engagement opportunities to make giving more impactful and rewarding for donors of all types - individuals, families, foundations and corporations. She created and hosted ForwardThinking, a podcast series exploring the future of philanthropy, and has given countless presentations on trends in family philanthropy and funder networks.
Prior to CTIA Wireless Foundation, Dori has held leadership positions at The Pew Charitable Trusts, Foundation Source, and The Council on Foundations. She began her philanthropic career at The Community Foundation Serving Richmond and Central Virginia.
Dori grew up as part of an active duty Air Force family and is the daughter of a Vietnam Veteran.
Colonel Lawrence H. Madkins, III; U.S. Army (Ret.), Board Member
Lawrence was born in Texas and raised in San Antonio. After graduating from the University of Texas at San Antonio in December 1986 and being commissioned a Second Lieutenant, he went to flight school at Fort Rucker, Alabama. Over the course of a 30-year career, he served in Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific region. After Brigade Command at Fort Hood, TX, Lawrence concluded his service to the Nation in 2016 as the Deputy Chief of Staff at U.S. Army Pacific. Lawrence holds a BBA from UTSA, a MSIR from Troy State University, a MSS from the U.S. Army War College, and a graduate certificate in Emergency Management from Texas A & M University. Today, Lawrence is a Program Manager and runs U.S. Army Pacific’s new Command and Control Facility. He is active member of the First Baptist Church of Pearl City. He also serves on the Hawaii Baptist Foundation Board of Directors.
Colonel Andrew Parker,
KS ARNG (Ret.),
Board Member
Andrew Parker is a retired US Army Field Artillery Officer having served 32 years in the Kansas Army National Guard as both a traditional Guardsman and an Active Guard and Reserve (AGR).
Andrew graduated from the University of Kansas in 1996 with a Bachelor’s of Business Administration degree and received his commission thru the ROTC program. After completing his Field Artillery Officer Basic course in 1997, he attended the University of Kansas Law School, earning his Juris Doctorate in 2000. Andrew was admitted the Kansas Bar in 2000.
Andrew practiced law in Pittsburg, Kansas for a year and then joined the Kansas Army National Guard full time force as a battalion training officer. Over the next 19 years, he served in various leadership and staff positions to include Field Artillery battalion command, Brigade S1 and State Deputy G3.
After his retirement, Andrew joined the Hallauer Law Office in Leawood, KS, an estate planning firm.
Andrew lives in Baldwin City, Kansas, with his children, Grace and Nick.