Board Members
Tom Costello and his wife, Irene, have been married for 22 years and are the prod parents of 20 year olds twin boys; Mike and John, who both have Autism. He is a Managing Director at Duchossois Capital Management. He received a BA in Economics from University of Chicago and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He and his wife are founders of the Twin Hearts Autism Foundation and they are active supports of Misericordia. Tom has been actively involved with 21st Century Dads Foundation since 2019. He was involved with the first SFN Mastermind Group and was featured in episode #69 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast.
Richard Gathro and his wife, Kathy, reside in Largo, FL. They have been married for 45 years and are the proud parents of two adult children: Kate and Will, who has schizencephaly. Rich spent a good portion of his professional career in Washington, DC and in leadership positions with a variety of organizations including; Pepperdine University, Seattle School of Theology & Psychology, Nyack College, Fund for Integrated Education and Council for Christian Colleges & Universities. Rich has been involved with 21st Century Dads Foundation since 2019. He was featured in episode #54 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast and he is a member of SFN Mastermind Group I.
Gary Grube is the father of one and founder of Caerus Institute. Gary graduated from University of Illinois, has a Masters of Electrical Engineering from Illinois institute of Technology and a MBA from the JL Kellogg Graduate School of Management. He began his career at Motorola in 1980 rising through the ranks where he served as a Motorola Senior Fellow and Chief Technology Officer before retiring in 2008, with more than 100 patents to his credit, the most in Motorola’s history. Since 2009 he is founding president of Caerus Institute, an intellectual property consultancy where he has produced more than 300 additional patents for a wide range of clients. He also owns a state-of-the-art organic micro greens farm in Lahaina, HI.
Christopher Hunter and his wife, Jane live in Orlando, FL and have been married for 41 years. They are the proud parents of an adult daughter and four grandchildren. Chris is originally from Canada and has a bachelors of science degree in civil engineering from University of New Brunswick and a MBA from York University. He was an engineer for 15 years with LafargeHolcim. Since 1994 he has been in the wealth management business and for the past 15 years with Wells Fargo Advisors, where he has dedicated a large part of his practice to serving the disability community. Chris was also featured in episode #345 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast.
Shane Madden and wife, Emily, live in Collierville, TN and have been married for 9 years. They are the proud parents of Marshall who is nine and has cerebral palsy as well as autism. Shane has a degree in economics from University of Tennessee – Knoxville and a Bachelors of Arts degree in applied economics from Eastern Kentucky University. Professionally, Shane has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for more than a decade and works at Pfizer as an operations analyst. He’s also a SFN Mentor Father, a member of the SFN Mastermind Group and was featured in episode #318 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast.
Wayne Messmer is the father of two daughters, grandfather of four and a native Chicagoan. Wayne graduated from Illinois Wesleyan, has a Masters of Education from Loyola University (Chicago) and Ph.D. from LaSalle University. He is a Certified Speaking Professional, host of the Wayne Messmer Radio Show, author of The Voice of Victory, Sr. Executive VP & Founding Partner of the Chicago Wolves, founder of Wayne Messmer & Associates a financial services firm, a veteran broadcaster, a professional actor: “Damien” A one-man play by Aldyth Morris and most widely know as “Chicago’s Original Voice of the National Anthem.”
Brian Page and his wife, Natalie, reside in Orland Park, IL, have been married for 36 years and are the proud parents of three children; Harold, Benjamin (who was born with a brain bleed) and Autumngrace. He works at Elim Christian Services and Shepherd’s College. He received a BA in Business Administration & Marketing from Tennessee State University and MBA from Regent University. He is also volunteer with special Olympics Illinois and is founder of Finishing Well Men’s Advance. Brian has been involved with 21st Century Dads Foundation since 2018 and was featured in episode #29 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast.
John Shouse and his wife, Janet live in Franklin, TN and have been married for 41 years. They are the proud parents of three children; Emma (36) and 29 year old twins Brendan and Evan, who is Autistic. John has an electrical engineering degree from University of Missouri-Columbia. Professionally John is an Industrial Control Sales Engineer with Link Systems, Inc. John has been an outspoken disability advocate. He has been involved with The ARC of Tennessee for more than 25 years and serves as the Development Chair. John is also a SFN Mentor Father, a member of the SFN Mastermind Group and was featured in episode #52 of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast.