Stu LaRoche - Vice President

Stu retired from UPS after 34 years of service and is currently working with Peak Resource out of Matthews, NC .   He also co-owns and serves as the Vice President of Laser 134. He and his wife Vicki founded The Next Stop Foundation, Inc. They have been married for 34 years with three very special kids, Lindsey and Tyler who are members at The Next Stop and Austin is currently an emeritus board member.

Chip Underwood - Secretary

Chip Underwood has a Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in Special Education. He has worked 31 years in public education , 27 with DeKalb School system in the Mild and Moderate Intellectual Disabilities Programs, and the last five years in Gwinnett County Public Schools. He is currently a STRIVE teacher with Gwinnett County Schools where he works with students with intellectual disabilities in community job settings. He has been on the advisory board for the Next Stop for the last year. Chip’s wife Robin is an Occupational Therapist and Assistant Professor at Brenau University in the School of Occupational Therapy. Their son Matthew is a senior at the University of Maryland majoring in Kinesiology, and plans to become a Physical Therapist.

Ben Furqueron

Ben Furqueron is a 25 year business veteran of the technology markets where he managed sales organizations spanning North America for established and startup software companies. Prior to this he spent 8 years in marketing and sales within the industrial market. In addition to The Next Stop Board, Ben also serves as a board member for his residential community. Ben and his wife Katrina have been married 27 years and have two sons, Shane and Brandon. Shane is a graduate of the University of Georgia and Brandon is a graduate of Georgia College and State University.

John Houchens

John Houchens grew up in the mountains of Southwestern Virginia. He graduated from Atlanta Christian College after deciding to pursue Christian Ministry as a vocation. He cut his teeth in ministry on the streets of Atlanta in the early 80’s and since then has served congregations in the inner-city and rural Appalachia. In 1998 John joined the staff of Walk Thru the Bible to serve as Director of Outreach North America, a program that partnered with organizations such as Prison Fellowship, Salvation Army, and Campus Crusade for Christ to reach prisons, inner-cities, and under resourced areas of North America with Christian resources and training. John later joined the staff of World Relief as Vice-president for Philanthropy.  Last year he returned to Walk Thru the Bible and now serves as Senior Vice President for Advancement and International Ministries.  John and his wife Debbie have two sons, Taylor and Ryan. Both are students at the University of Georgia.

Larry Larkins

Larry was born and raised in Indiana.  In 1967 he married his high school sweetheart Joyce.  They have three children and two grandchildren. Larry was with UPS for thirty-six years and retired in 2003.  Most of Larry's career with UPS was in Business Development, Logistics, and Loss Prevention.  UPS was growing and expanding its service areas in those years, and Larry was able to enjoy assignments in Texas, Oklahoma, New York, Canada, Utah, Ohio, Washington DC, and Georgia. In 1987 he came to Atlanta where he worked in the Southeast Region office. In the very early years Larry sold Real Estate in Indiana.  Since retiring Larry enjoys investing in real estate, buying, fixing up homes, and selling them to usually first time buyers.  "Buying a home is usually a person's biggest investment in their life.  Being a part of that is pretty cool."  Larry also enjoys playing golf, travelling with Joyce and friends, and spending time with his kids and grandkids.

Dennis Pruett

Dennis Pruett is an executive with General Electric. He has worked in the energy industry for 30 years. Dennis is a graduate of the University of Alabama and has a degree in mechanical engineering. He has been married to his wife, Regina for 24 years. Together they have two children and are expecting their first grandchild. Dennis and Regina are members of Sugarloaf United Methodist church where they are active in various service roles.

E. Scott Wood

E. Scott Wood is the principal of Atlanta’s Milestone Marketing, Inc. a full-service marketing communications firm for high technology clients. Scott began his career as a reporter for the Placentia Courier, Placentia California and California’s Donrey Media Group. Over the years he has served as a Public Information Representative for the University of California, Irvine, Director of Communications for Rockwell International Corporation’s Collins Defense Communications business and as Corporate Director, Communications, for Scientific-Atlanta’s Instrumentation Group. Scott is the publisher of www.WaterWebster.org, a nonprofit website dedicated to providing global news, data and vital links on water and wastewater issues. An attorney, Scott is a member of the California Bar Association and was also a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) for more than 20 years achieving the Accredited Public Relations (APR) designation. He and his wife Madeline recently celebrated their 40th Wedding Anniversary. They have four children. Milestone@bellsouth.net

Austin LaRoche - Founding Board Member Emeritus

After serving as the Executive Director of The Next Stop for the first year and a half of the organization's existence, Austin completed his Masters work in New Media Studies at Depaul University in June 2009.  He currently resides in New Orleans with his wife Rachael, where they have founded an online consulting firm, The Exacta Group.