Lilie Leadership Council

Charlie Meyer formed Lovett Industrial in 2020 in partnership with Frank Liu and is currently the CEO. Lovett Industrial has more than $2B of projects complete or actively under construction and has developed or acquired more than 20 million square feet of industrial real estate. He formerly served as managing director at Hines Interests in Houston as well as director of construction and development for NewQuest Properties. He is currently serving on the board of directors for both Generation One and NAIOP Houston.

Annise Parker was Houston’s 61st mayor and the only person in Houston that has held the offices of council member, controller and mayor. She has been named by Time magazine as one of the most 100 influential people in the world. She is currently the president and CEO of the Victory Fund, a nonprofit devoted to electing pro-equality, pro-choice LGBTQ+ leaders to public office at every level. She also sits on the Policy and Global Affairs Committee of the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine and the boards of Houston Botanic Garden, Houston BARC Foundation, Patient Care Intervention Council and the Climate Disclosure Project.

John Chao is Vice President and Managing Director of Westlake Innovations, a subsidiary of Westlake Corporation, and also serves as a board member of Westlake Corporation.  His previous roles include Chief Operating Officer of New York Public Radio and Partner in the strategy and finance practice at McKinsey & Company.  Mr. Chao received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Rice University and an M.B.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Earl Hesterberg, who now calls Houston home, served as the former CEO of Group 1 Automotive. Prior, Hesterberg was at Ford Motor Company working as the group vice president of North America marketing, sales and service. Earlier in his career he served the same role at Ford of Europe as well as stints as CEO of Gulf States Toyota, Vice President of Sales for Nissan Europe and General Manager of Nissan Division for Nissan U.S.A. In retirement, he is chairing the capital campaign at Kids Meal Inc., a nonprofit that is feeding the 50,000 food-insecure preschool-aged children of Houston.

Lorin Gu is the founding partner of Recharge Capital. The investment fund focuses on critical sectors such as women’s healthcare, clean biotech, semiconductor enablement and fintech democratization. Prior to Recharge, Gu supported Cyrus Capital, a US $4B hedge fund, as well as Blackstone Group. He is the Founding Chair of the Global Future Council at the Peterson Institute of International Economics.

Gary Stein is the CEO of Triple-S Steel Holdings. Under Gary’s leadership, Triple-S Steel has grown from a single location to one of the largest steel service centers in the industry, with over 53 locations, more than 2,000 colleagues, and branches across 17 states, Canada, Dubai, and Colombia. What started as a small new and used steel distribution yard over 60 years ago has become one of North America’s largest distributors of structural steel. Mr. Stein serves on the American Institute of Steel Construction Board and the MD Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors.

Hong Ogle is the president of Bank of America Houston. In addition to her role as Houston President, Hong is the Southeast/Southwest Division Executive for Bank of America Private Bank. She started her financial services career in the early 90’s and has since then received many awards including Houston’s Most Admired CEO’s Award by the Houston Business Journal and Most Powerful Women in Banking and Finance: Top Team in Banking by American Bankers. She serves on the board of Greater Houston Partnership (GHP) and Central Houston Inc. and chairs the Bank of America Charitable Foundation in Houston. She is also a member of the Bank of America Global Diversity and Inclusion Council.

Robert T. Ladd is the chairman of the board of directors and chief executive of Stellus Capital Investment Corporation (NYSE:SCM). He is also the managing partner and chief investment officer of Stellus Capital Management. His professional career includes leadership positions with the D.E. Shaw Group, Duke Energy, Arthur Andersen and First City Bancorporation of Texas. Mr. Ladd is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Rice University. He is also a member of the advisory council of the McGovern Medical School in Houston.

Sandy P. Aron is the president of Hunington Properties and has been in the real estate industry for over 40 years. Founded in 1984, Hunington Properties offers a range of third-party real estate services to tenants, owners and investors across commercial, multi-family, industrial and land sectors in the Greater Houston Area. Aron is active in the Houston community where he served on the boards of the St. Francis Episcopal Day School of Houston, Congregation Beth Israel of Houston, and Jones Partnership at Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business.