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Tom is the vice president of business development for Java Detour, is an owner of Swisher Hygiene Corp.'s Charlotte, NC franchise and was formerly the company's executive vice president and a director. The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Central & Western North Carolina recruited Tom for the National Board after his involvement in the chapter’s Celebration of Hope event in January 2004. The Celebration of Hope recognized 12-year-old Hope Stout, who wished to grant the wishes of fellow children on the Central & Western North Carolina chapter’s waiting list. The event cemented Tom’s commitment to the Foundation. It was a labor of love because Hope Stout was my wife’s cousin, he remembered. However, it also became an obsession as we could see the people who were moved by her and the faces of the wish kids who were beneficiaries of this effort. Tom holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Western Carolina University. He was appointed to the National Board in July 2004. | 