The Board of Directors
Ken Bowra
President & Chair of the Board
Ken Bowra retired as a Major General after over thirty-three years of service in the United States Army. He has commanded Special Forces units at all levels including serving as a Special Forces reconnaissance team leader in MACV-SOG during Vietnam service where he conducted long range operations against deep North Vietnamese targets, Commander of a “Green Light” Special Atomic Demolitions (SADM) High Altitude Low Opening (HALO) Special Forces Detachment through contingency operations in Afghanistan.
He was appointed as a senior Foreign Service Officer in the Department of State in February 2009 and was assigned to the U.S. Embassy, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, where he directed a Department of State Interagency Counter Terrorist Program.
He was inducted into the Special Forces Hall of Fame as a Distinguished Member of the Regiment. As an Eagle Scout and Scout leader, he has been active supporting Scouting in his assignments.
Sean Heuvel
Vice President
Dr. Sean Heuvel is a higher education professional who has served in both faculty and administrative positions. He has worked at Christopher Newport University since 2003 and currently serves as Director of Graduate and Professional Enrollment. Sean is also one of CNU’s lead institutional history specialists and oversees efforts to help preserve and commemorate the university’s 65-year history. A military historian by trade, Sean specializes in the American Revolution as well as the Civil War. The author of several books and other publications, he holds an MA from the University of Richmond and a BA, MEd, and PhD from The College of William and Mary. Sean resides in Williamsburg with his wife Katey and two kids.
Christy DeLuca Hopkins
Board Secretary & Parliamentarian
Christy DeLuca Hopkins is a United States Air Force veteran with over 17 years of service as both an active-duty officer and a reservist. She earned her commission through Officer Training School at Maxwell AFB in 2000. Christy has commanded and well as occupied senior staff positions within the 21st Space Wing, Headquarters Air Mobility Command, the Headquarters United States Air Force Reserve Personnel Support Office at the Pentagon, as well as Headquarters, U.S. Special Operations Command. Christy deployed as part of Joint Task Force – Guantanamo, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and for an extended period to Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force – Afghanistan, Bagram Air Base, Afghanistan.
In a professional career spanning over 30 years, Christy has led numerous military, public education, non-profit, and business entities to excellence through strategy design and implementation, process improvement, and building stakeholder relationships through her work as an instructor, advocate, public speaker, trends analyst, manager, and technical writer. Christy has authored policy, training programs, and designed initiatives benchmarked for their valuable institution-wide support to service members and their families. She has also served as the leading Quality Assurance expert representing the government’s interest in a $250 million dollar contract for automated installation entry at all stateside US Army bases. Christy is also a former tenured high school English and government teacher.
Outside of her professional commitments, Christy enjoys fitness and volunteering; she’s an avid volunteer within Newport News Public Schools as well as a committed member of the Newport News Police Department’s Community Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
Currently, Christy is opening her own practice as a parenting coach, personally certified by Sarah R. Moore under her Peaceful Discipline approach. Christy is also an executive leadership coach and consultant for various business clients as well as a Supervising Local Coordinator with the non-profit International Experience where she’s responsible for placing high school exchange students from across the world with host families, overseeing their study and well-being while in the United States providing 24/7 support to them, their host families, and to the schools in which they are enrolled.
Christy earned a Bachelor of Arts with honors double majoring in English and Secondary Education from McKendree University in Lebanon, Illinois and 2 Master of Arts degrees from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri in Leadership and Management as well as Human Resource Development. Christy also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Business earned as a result of completing 5 years of doctoral research at Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Christy’s research focused on entrepreneurial leadership, analyzing power dynamics within organizations, and the practical application of leadership theory. At Massey, Christy evaluated hundreds of undergraduate student research projects and writing on an ongoing basis in 4 business courses: Principles of Human Resource Management, Business & Society, Management & Context, and Leadership Practice.
Christy is the mother of two boys and resides in Newport, News Virginia.
Anne Miller
Assistant Board Secretary
Anne Miller is the Superintendent of Historic Services for the City of Newport News. In this role, she oversees 10 historic sites and five museums, including the Virginia War Museum. She is the chair of the Newport News VA250 Committee.
Ms. Miller began her career as a researcher at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. She served as Curator for 10 years at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, then became Curator of Historic Houses for the City of Virginia Beach. She subsequently served as Director of the Virginia Beach History Museums and Historic Resources Coordinator for Virginia Beach. She is a graduate of Yale University, LEAD Hampton Roads, and the History Leadership Institute. She is a seasoned author, editor, speaker, and teacher, as well as a Navy wife.
Archie Scott
Treasurer
Archie Scott left the Navy as a Personnelman First Class Petty Officer after 14 years of service. He has worked various jobs ranging from Payroll Manager to Hearing Officer for Virginia Employment Commission. Archie holds an Associates of Applied Science degree in Accounting from Thomas Nelson Community College and is eight credits away from his Bachelor of Science degree from Old Dominion University in Accounting and Business Analytics.
Archie has served American Legion Braxton-Perkins Post 25 as Service Officer, Executive Committee Member, Adjutant, Finance Officer, and as Commander of the post. He enjoys giving back to the veteran community and continuing to serve through his involvement with the American Legion. He lives in Hampton, VA and enjoys spending time with his amazing partner Bethann, watching auto racing and football, and being active in his church.
Archie enjoys serving on the Virginia War Museum Foundation board because he loves the museum and the military history that they preserve. He believes that this is one of the best kept secrets in all of Virginia.
Bob McKenna
Serves as the Virginia Peninsula Chamber President/CEO and responsible for the management and operation of the 1000+ member and affiliates business development organization. Coordinates the development of public policy, fosters strategic alliances, and serves as liaison with regional military commands and installations. Facilitates the solution of business-related community issues through collaboration and facilitation by bringing solution-oriented resources together.
A 1984 graduate of the United States Merchant Marine Academy at King’s Point, NY.
Served for 27 years as a USN Officer, with service in five ships: USS Estocin (FFG-15), USS Fairfax County (LST-1193), USS Mobile (LKA-115), USS Belleau Wood (LHA-3) and USS Ponce (LPD-15). Retired as a Captain in 2011.
Married for forty years, and raised four children with his wife, Kathy.
Clint Ross
Clint Ross earned his commission upon graduation from the United States Air Force Academy in 1995. In a career spanning 26 years, Clint served in many varied leadership, command, and staff positions at the Wing, HQ Air Force, the Defense Intelligence Agency, Pentagon, and the White House. Clint is the former Director of the White House Military Office in the East Wing of the White House and also as the Vice Wing Commander of the 501st Combat Support Wing at RAF Alconbury, United Kingdom.
Before retiring in 2021 as a Colonel, Clint served as the Installation Commander for Joint Base Langley-Eustis (JBLE). As the 633rd Air Base Wing Commander at JBLE, Clint commanded three groups, providing installation support to more than 18,000 Air Force and Army personnel, including Headquarters Air Combat Command, Headquarters U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, four operational wings, eight brigades, and more than 20 major associate units. Clint was directly responsible for providing mission ready expeditionary Airmen and Soldiers to combatant commanders in support of joint and combined operations worldwide.
In addition to a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Factors Engineering, Clint has also earned 4 Master of Science degrees: an MS in National Security Strategy from the National War College, an MS in Military Sciences from the USAF Command and Staff College, and a MS in Operations Management from the University of Arkansas.
Clint is the former Senior Vice President, Global Security Operations, at ITA, International responsible for leading all programs and projects within the Global Security Business Unit across 27 states and 5 foreign countries and providing the strategic evaluation of current and new markets.
Currently, Clint is part of Hampton’s Executive Management Team where he is the Federal Facilities and Community Affairs Liaison. Clint is responsible for the continued operation, long-term prosperity, and growth of Hampton-based federal entities consistent with the city’s vision and values. Clint also leads Hampton’s efforts to partner with and build relationships with the NASA Langley Research Center, Joint Base Langley-Eustis (Langley Air Force Base), Hampton Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Fort Monroe National Monument, as well as other federal organizations.
Tim Smith
Tim Smith is from Yorktown Virginia, and is a graduate of Shenandoah College
and Conservatory of Music (now Shenandoah University). He has a Bachelor of Music Education and is the former Director of Bands at Altavista High School, and Poquoson High School. He currently is a Vice President at Smith’s Marine Railway Inc. the family business that began in 1842 in Yorktown. He joined the Virginia War Museum Board in 1993 and has held various positions as part of the oundation. Tim is a 21-year member of the Screen Actors Guild and has worked on over 50 Historical Films and Documentaries. His interest in History also led to photo editing work on nine local History books. He currently resides in Yorktown
Virginia.
Melissa Kuhn
Melissa Kuhn is the co-owner of Ghengis Leadership Strategies, LLC, a firm specializing in strategic leadership optimization and advisory services. Dedicated to empowering leaders, she provides strategic clarity that enables clients to build a foundation for future success.
In addition to her work in leadership consulting, Melissa is an experienced homeschool educator and event coordinator. She holds an academic background in American Studies and Executive Leadership, which informs her multifaceted approach to education and organizational development
Harold (Doug) McDougal
BA,MA (Sacramento State University), PhD (University of California at Davis, School of Medicine)
Commissioned Officer, USAF (Active 5 years, Reserve 8 years)
Tour in Vietnam, June 1962
Founding faculty of Eastern Virginia Medical School (1973-1985)
Founder of London Bridge Trading Company (LBT), a US Government Contractor which designs and manufactures tactical equipment
Founder of Southeastern Guns and Knives, a gun show promotion company
Virginia War Museum Foundation, Member for over 20 Years. Involved in many museum restoration projects and events
Holds a current Type 10 Federal Fire-arms License with SOT
Life Member NRA (1974)
Private Pilot’s License
Sheri Shuck-Hall
Dr. Sheri Shuck-Hall is a Professor of History at Christopher Newport University. She serves as the chair of the History Department and the director of the Public History Center. In addition to teaching courses in public history and early America, Shuck-Hall directs the Public History Program, matching students with history internships with partnering agencies.
With over 30 years of experience in the field of public history, Shuck-Hall has worked as a consultant for museums, including the Atlanta History Center. She recently was a historic preservation expert for Cape Charles, Virginia, where she helped implement an economic impact survey and co-authored a study focusing on historic preservation best practices. Shuck-Hall also received the National Maritime Heritage Grant from NPS in partnership with The Mariners’ Museum. She is active in the 250th commemoration of the United States, collaborating with community non-profits on an exhibition at the Torggler Fine Arts Center.
Shuck-Hall is the author of Journey to the West: The Alabama and Coushatta Indians and co-author of Mapping the Mississippian Shatter Zone: The Colonial Indian Slave Trade and Regional Instability in the American South. She enjoys attending historical events (especially the Yorktown Fifes and Drums) with her two children and husband.
John Hyland
John Hyland is a Professor in the Department of History at Christopher Newport University in Newport News, Virginia. He holds a Ph.D. from the Committee on the Ancient Mediterranean World at the University of Chicago (2005), and specializes in the history of war and empire in world history, with a particular research focus on ancient Persia and Greece. He has written or edited several books, including Persian Interventions: the Achaemenid Empire, Athens, and Sparta 450-386 BCE (Johns Hopkins U.P., 2018); Brill’s Companion to War in the Ancient Iranian Empires (Brill, 2024); and Persia’s Greek Campaigns: Kingship, War, and Spectacle on the Achaemenid Frontier (Oxford U.P., 2025).
