Board of Directors Executive Committee
JIM ROSTAN, CHAIRMAN
Mr. Rostan has been an active supporter of UNC Health Blue Ridge. He served 20 years on the Board of Directors of Valdese General Hospital and Blue Ridge HealthCare. He spent 25 years in Management/Co-Owner of 700 employee family business and is President of the private Rostan Family Foundation. He also manages several Private Investment Partnerships. He is a graduate of Davidson College and holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
KEVIN BAXTER, VICE CHAIRMAN
Mr. Baxter is the Vice Chancellor and Chief Campus Officer for N.C. School of Science and Math-Morganton and joined the school in January 2017. His career has largely centered on honors education – first at the University of Maryland and then at East Carolina University, where he designed, built, and grew special programs and communities for talented scholars. This work led him to his current role where since 2017, he has led the development and opening of the newest campus of the UNC System at NCSSM-Morganton
DAVID BENNETT, TREASURER
Mr. Bennett is a co-founder and strategic partner of Fonta Flora Brewery and Benchmade Ventures, a venture fund focused on start-ups and real estate development. He is also on the board at Morganton Day School and the North Carolina School of Science and Math Foundation. He earned a master’s degree in business administration from Babcock School of Business, Wake Forest University.
SUSAN HAIRE, SECRETARY
Ms. Haire is a partner at Starnes Aycock Law Firm in Morganton. Having received her undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1992, she graduated Summa Cum Laude from North Carolina Central University School of Law in Durham in 1995. Ms. Haire has served on The Community Foundation of Burke County, The Real Estate Section of the North Carolina State Bar, the BB&T local advisory board and was a past President of the 25th District Bar Association
BLAKE MILLINOR, MEMBER AT LARGE
Mr. Millinor is President and CEO of Valdese Weavers, where he leads the largest employee-owned (ESOP) domestic manufacturer of decorative textiles in the USA with more than 700 associates across four facilities located in Burke County. He is a graduate of The Citadel and Kenan Flagler School of Business at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a board member of the National Council of Textile Organizations, the High Point Market Authority, and Boy Scouts of America Piedmont Council.
Board of Directors
THOMAS O. "TOD" BLACKWELL, CLU, CHFC
Mr. Blackwell s a financial advisor for MassMutual Carolinas in Morganton. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and holds both the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC) designations from The American College of Financial Services, Bryn Mawr, PA. He is currently serving as treasurer for the Blue Ridge HealthCare Foundation. He has served as Scoutmaster for Boy Scout Troop 192, is a past president of the Valdese Rotary Club and is currently a member of Lovelady Masonic Lodge.
CHRIS BRITTAIN
Mr. Brittain is the co-owner of Nest Realty in Morganton, managing accounting and property management for the firm. He manages real estate investment properties and development projects, including the most recent creation of MoCo (Morganton Coworking). He is a graduate of Western Carolina University and holds a Master of Business Administration from Gardner-Webb University. He is a member of the Alder Springs Deaf and Blind Community Board of Directors and a member of the Community Foundation of Burke County.
AMY JACKSON
Ms. Jackson is a District Administrator with the Guardian ad litem program, administered through the N.C. Administrative Office of Courts. She was awarded a Certificate for Professional Excellence by NC Chief Justice Paul Newby at the GAL Statewide Conference in 2022. She also serves as an on-call chaplain for Amorem (formerly Burke and Caldwell Hospice). Ms. Jackson is a graduate of Lees McRae College with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and holds a Master of Divinity degree from N. Greenville University in Tigerville, SC. She also serves on the Western Piedmont Community College Board of Trustees and Burke’s Community Foundation.
ADAM KINNINGER, DO
Dr. Kinninger practices at McDowell Family Practice. He is a board-certified family physician and sports medicine specialist with over 15 years of clinical, leadership, and governance experience. He has held numerous senior leadership roles within hospital and physician organizations. He serves as Adjunct Clinical Faculty for both Campbell University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and has precepted medical students, residents, and fellows throughout his career. He is a graduate of the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed his residency at Ohio University and his fellowship in sports medicine at Kettering Medical Center.
RAHUL SAMPATH, MD
Dr. Sampath, formerly practicing at Blue Ridge Infectious Disease, served as Internal Medicine Residency Program Director at UNC Health Blue Ridge from 2019 through January 5, 2026, leading the program through a period of significant growth. He also served as president of the Medical Staff from 2023 to 2026. He is a graduate of Kasturba Medical College in India and completed his residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Texas. He also completed a fellowship in infectious diseases at the Mayo Clinic. He is board-certified in internal medicine and infectious diseases. He recently left his position on the Medical Staff to begin a Fellowship in Critical Care Medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.
THEA YANG
Ms. Yang is the values and culture director of The Industrial Commons. A former Hmong refugee, she resettled in the United States in 1989. She is a graduate of WPCC and the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in communications. She is a member of the North Caroliniana Society.
