Team

Antoine M. Thompson is the National Executive Director of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) the largest organization of African-American real estate professionals in the United States.  He is a partner with Creative PMO Solutions, a consulting firm that focuses on diversity, inclusion and advocacy work. He is also a licensed real estate agent with Howard Hanna. Antoine is a partner with Black Politics Today.

Antoine is a staunch champion of fair-housing and community re-investment by local and national financial institutions. He has had a significant public service career in his hometown of Buffalo, New York. His positions have included appointments to Buffalo Common Council where he authored the Buffalo’s Fair Housing Law and secured over $75 million for community development projects. He was elected to the New York State Senate in 2004 and 2008 and served as the Senate Deputy Majority Whip and Chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Environmental Conversation and Co-Chair of the Senate Minority and Woman Business Enterprise Task Force. He authored the NYS MWBE Mentor/Protégé Law. He is a former delegate to the Democratic National Convention; and was a member of the 2004 Electoral College.    Thompson currently serves on the Board of Unity 9 PAC and co-Chairs the Civic Engagement Committee for the MAAC. He is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and First Baptist Church of Glenarden.  Thompson is also the Chair of the Board of Directors for Housing Options Planning Enterprises, a regional community economic development corporation.  He serves on numerous boards, taskforces and working groups.

In 2020, Antoine was ranked on the  Swanepoel Power 200 list ranking of the most influential and powerful leaders and executives in the residential real estate brokerage industry.

Zeno W. St. Cyr, II, MPH, is a retired health care executive, with a career in both the public and private sectors of Public Health that spans more than 40 years at the Federal, State, and local levels.  St. Cyr has a demonstrated commitment to public service, having served nearly 30 organizations in volunteer and leadership capacities.  He currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Prince George’s County MGM Local Development Council and is a past President of the South County Economic Development Association.  He is a co-founder of the Greater South County Coalition for Absolute Progress and served for nearly twenty years as President of the Riverbend Citizens Homeowners Association.  Currently, Zeno also serves as a public member on the Maryland State Board of Examiners of Psychologists and has served as a public member on the Maryland State Boards of Pharmacy and Dental Examiners.  St. Cyr joined the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) Board of Directors in 2017, as a Public Director at Large, and also serves on the nccPA Health Foundation PA Mental Health Steering Committee.  He is the recipient of numerous civic and professional awards.

Katherine Carter is the Senior Associate at the National League of Cities, where she oversees programmatic and technical assistance that strengthen local elected officials’ knowledge and capacity on race relations, justice, and equity. Previously, she served as Community Development Manager at the National Community Stabilization Trust, where she managed the Neighborhood Stabilization Initiative – a joint collaborative of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to provide affordable housing opportunities to Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey housing markets. Katherine has a wealth of experience in the community development field including affordable housing development, federal affordable housing finance programs, stakeholder engagement and state/local housing policy. She has held positions at the Prince George’s County Department of Housing and Community Development, the State of Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, and Neighborworks America. She has received a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C. and a Master’s degree in Social Administration from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. In addition, Kathy is a former adjunct faculty member at Strayer University, where she taught various courses in Sociology. Katherine currently resides in Brandywine, MD and enjoys volunteering with local charities and taking Zumba classes.

Tamara Davis Brown is a longtime resident of Prince George’s County.  An attorney by profession, she specializes in telecommunications law and is Co-Founder and CEO of Last Mile Broadband of Maryland, LLC, a high speed Internet service provider.

Tamara is a community activist and has served in leadership for many community and charitable organizations.  She used her legal skills to help advocate for the mandatory mediation provisions now required under Maryland law before foreclosure cases can advance. She has helped many neighbors avoid foreclosure and other housing matters on a pro bono basis during the housing crisis.

She is an active member of From the Heart Church Ministries, and is a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.  She and her husband reside in Clinton, Maryland and have two adult children.

Doris Canty-Brown is a 20-year resident of Prince George’s County, Maryland.  She has developed a passion for homeownership and financial literacy, recognizing the significance and impact they have communities. She finds joy in going into classrooms to introduce students to money management skills.

Doris has developed an excellent reputation for leveraging her expansive knowledge and expertise to bridge gaps, create opportunities, maximize resources, and drive results.

Doris spent many years in the nonprofit and philanthropic arenas in several roles, including the position of Program Associate for the Equal Opportunity Division at the Rockefeller Foundation.  She is one of the rare staff members to move from the operations side of the Foundation where she was an accountant in the Comptroller’s Office, to the program side of the foundation.

Currently, she is a Diverse Segments Business Initiatives Consultant for Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, responsible for supporting the development, implementation and execution of strategies to increase and sustain homeownership for minority borrowers and communities at all income levels, and for low-to-moderate (LMI) income borrowers. She has been in the industry for 19 years, all of them with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage with Diverse Segments.

Her present focus is on balancing her life/work interests.  Doris resides in Lanham, MD with her husband Alfred, and spends her time enjoying a large extended family and her community.

Gerron Levi is an attorney with nearly 20 years of federal and state government affairs experience. Her background includes serving in the Maryland General Assembly, where she authored laws on education, crime and ex-offender reentry and was a member of the National Conference of State Legislatures, National Black Caucus of State Legislators, National Foundation of Women Legislators and the American Council of Young Political Leaders. During her tenure, the Maryland State’s Attorneys Association named her as Legislator of the Year in 2010.  She also served as Assistant Director of the Legislation Department at the AFL-CIO and as a Legislative Representative for the Laborers’ International Union. She lobbied Congress on a host of law around wages, working conditions, immigration, trade, health care and pensions. She is featured in the documentary How Democracy Works Now as the top lobbyist for the AFL-CIO on federal immigration reform. She also served as senior staff for former U.S. Representative Gus Savage and for U.S Senator Dianne Feinstein.  She is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley and Howard University, School of Law.

Clarence Carter is Retired Director of Residential Lending for Industrial Bank, a historic Minority owned Community Bank based in Washington, DC. Focused on Financial Literacy, housing programs, housing grants and emerging markets.

Currently Managing Director for CA Enterprise, a private consulting group on affordable housing programs, grants, assistance and literacy working with several housing agencies in the metropolitan area.

Attended St. Josephs College for his undergrad.

Starr Jefferson is the Managing Member of Refund & Asset Recovery Expeditors of America a government auditing agency located in Washington, DC.

As a lifelong financial services professional, Starr is committed to redefining the future of her community by providing them with tools and resources needed to thrive in a world filled with financial traps and hindrances.

With over 20 years of experience in the financial services sector, her roles included being Personal Banker for one of America’s largest banks, Mortgage Loan Officer, Financial Services Representative, Insurance Agent, small business owner and avid investor in Real Estate.

A graduate of The George Washington University and a native of the Washington DC, metropolitan area, Starr has proactively educated thousands in a variety of financial topics including principles for creating and protecting personal wealth.

A published author and speaker, Starr contributes regularly as an expert guest on various trainings, panels, seminars and webinars.  Her passion for teaching has garnered her much acclaim and recognition, making her a highly sought-after speaker and presenter on topics like ‘Winning in Today’s Economy’ and ‘Women’s Rules for Money and Wealth.

Her all-time favorite quote relating to finance has remained her guidepost: “Without a financial education, your money will always flow directly to those who profit from your financial ignorance.” -Robert Kiyosaki.

A person of deep faith, Starr is guided by a heart to serve her community and to empower individuals.  When not working, she can be found enjoying her beloved avocation as an NCAA Division I Basketball Official.

Delna Gray

dhurley@hopefinancial.org

Donna B. Hurley founded Housing Options & Planning Enterprises, Inc., in 2005, and serves as CEO/President andExecutive Director (CEO). In this capacity, Ms. Hurley provides overall leadership, direction, management andsupervision of all H.O.P.E. staff.  The strength of any organization lies in effective, strong, and innovative leadership,and Ms. Hurley demonstrates this leadership. Her experience is strengthened through the ties she has cultivated (andcurrently maintains) in Prince George’s County and surrounding communities.

Ms. Hurley has over 30 years of comprehensive experience in the housing and real estate industry. She is a licensedrealtor in Maryland and the District of Columbia, and she brings this knowledge and visionary leadership to H.O.P.E.,her staff, and the clients that the organization serves.

Ms. Hurley a certified Financial Coach is align with the National Industry Standards for Homeownership Education and Counseling. She adopted the Standards and obtained certification in 2010. In addition to Financial Coaching, she is an expert with Pre-Purchase Homeownership Education, Post-Purchase Homeownership Education, Homeownership Counseling, Foreclosure Intervention & Default Counseling, and Rental Housing Counseling.

Ms. Hurley has acquired a vast knowledge of education in real estate and banking finance and has demonstratedhands-on experience in providing community mobilization and planning strategies for economic development withnonprofits to stimulant economic development growth toward a robust workforce in Prince George’s County, fordisadvantaged population participation in the economic wealth of the community.