Allison Peck Lankford
Gatton Park on the Town Branch Executive Director
Allison oversees the Gatton Park on the Town Branch project. In addition to raising the money necessary to build the park, Allison leads the planning related to design, programming, revenue model and governance structure for the future park. Until her recent focus on the Gatton Park on the Town Branch, Allison led the Community Foundation’s advancement efforts for over a decade, serving as Sr. Vice-President and General Counsel. Prior to joining the Community Foundation, Allison was an attorney at the Lexington firm of McBrayer, McGinnis, Leslie & Kirkland and Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs in Louisville. A graduate of Furman University in Greenville, SC with a degree in Sociology and Political Science, she received her law degree at the University of Kentucky School of Law.
Ethan Howard
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Ethan is currently serving as the Director of Operations for Gatton Park on the Town Branch, where he is preparing the policies, procedures, and use of the park for its opening in 2025. Prior to his role with Gatton Park on the Town Branch, he spent 15 years working on planning, project management, and economic development initiatives with Downtown Lexington Partnership, Louisville Metro Government, Louisville Downtown Partnership, and various clients across Kentucky. He’s worked on placemaking and place management issues that include downtown operations, capital projects, planning studies, business assistance, and community development programs. A native of Scott County, Kentucky, Ethan completed his undergraduate work in Business Administration and Political Science at Georgetown College and his graduate work at the University of Kentucky’s Patterson School.
Ben Shaffar
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR
Ben spearheads the $46 million capital campaign for the construction and sustainability of Gatton Park on the Town Branch. Most recently, Ben served as Director of Development at Midway University where he oversaw the $1 million capital campaign to build the institution's first-ever baseball complex and co-directed the $4 million capital campaign to build Midway's new athletics field house. Previously, Ben served as Business Development Director for the Kentucky Department of Agriculture's Office of Marketing where he assisted in administering Kentucky Proud, the Commonwealth's official agricultural marketing program. He also played eight seasons of professional baseball as a pitcher for the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Philadelphia Phillies. Ben has a Corporate Communications degree and minor in Political Science from the University of Kentucky.
Holli Powell Sturm
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
Holli has been an accountant for over twenty years, specializing in nonprofit and religious organization accounting. Most recently, she headed up her own consulting firm, providing outsourced bookkeeping, accounting, and CFO services to a portfolio of nonprofits and religious organizations, as well as providing education and coaching to individuals looking to transform their relationships with money. Holli received her bachelor’s degrees in Finance and Accounting from the University of Kentucky, and has a Master’s of Business Administration from Mississippi State University.
Michael Ades
SPECIAL COUNSEL
Michael Ades (JD) serves as the Special Counsel to Gatton Park on the Town Branch. Michael, a lifelong Lexingtonian and a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Yale School of Law, brings a wealth of experience as the counsel for many high profile projects including the Lexington Legends Ballpark, the Georgetown Toyota Manufacturing Plant, and, most recently, as the in-house counsel for the City Center Development Project in Downtown Lexington. With longstanding ties to service, Michael has a history of civic engagement including board positions at LexArts, St. Joseph Hospital, Jewish Federation of the Bluegrass, the Blue Grass Community Foundation, and more.