executive directors

Ray Herring is the current Regional Director of Athletics Development at the University of Notre Dame. Over his career there, he has raised over almost $100M to support different initiatives, capital projects, and endowments for the University. Herring is in the Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame and is a Melbourne, FL native who attended Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy. 

At Holy Trinity, he accomplished being a four time all-state football player, and received a full scholarship to play for the Fighting Irish in South Bend. He has two undergraduate degrees from Notre Dame - computer applications programming & sociology, and an MBA in management from Florida Institute of Technology. He is also a graduate of the prestigious Sports Management Institute executive program.

In 2010, Herring was the first hired to help build Brevard County's new college football team - Florida Tech Football, and was the Defensive Backs/Recruiting Coordinator for three years before becoming a college athletic administrator.

Herring has always wanted to give back to the Brevard County community in an even better way, and that is how the 321Empowerment Inc. organization came to fruition. His goal is to simply work with the best and brightest leaders in Brevard County to help create purpose and a clear vision for our youth.

Hurlie Brown is a graduate of the University of Miami with a degree in Business Administration, and also attended Merritt Island High School. Brown has a tremendous amount of experience leading the youth in his high school and college coaching careers. As the current Head Football coach at Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy, Brown comes with over 25 years of coaching experience on the gridiron. His tremendous experiences have helped him be recognized as Brevard County Coach of the Year in 2022, Cape Coast Conference Coach of the Year in 2021, Dairy Farmers Class 5A Coach of the Year in 2021, and Brevard Sports Network Coach of the Year in 2021. 

As a college coach and player, Brown coached in the National Championship (1992 Miami vs Alabama) and won two National Championships as a player (1989 & 1991 - U. of Miami). He has coaching stops at Lafayette Louisiana (2006-2010), Florida International University (1999-2006), and back at his alma mater the University of Miami (2010- 2015).

Matt Williams is the Managing Principal and majority owner of Matthew Development, a full-service commercial real estate investment firm based in Melbourne, FL. Developing over $100 million worth of real estate across Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina, Matt brings both strategic vision and hands-on leadership to every project.

Born and raised in Melbourne, FL, Matt attended Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy, where he was the first quarterback of the school’s newly formed football team. He continued his academic and athletic journey at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, playing varsity football, participating in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and earning induction into the Mortar Board honor society.

Beyond his professional work, Matt is deeply invested in his community. He serves on the Board of Neighbor Up Brevard and the Greater Melbourne Chamber of Commerce, and is an Ambassador at Rock Harbor Church. Matt’s commitment to both his business and his community reflects his passion for fostering growth—whether through commercial development or by giving back to the people and places in Brevard County.

Alex Goins is a District 1 Councilman for the City of Cocoa, and has been employed by ABC Land Clearing and Development for 21 years, where he is currently the construction manager. He is a graduate of Rockledge High School and Bethune Cookman University in Business Administration, where he was a  4 year football scholarship defensive back. 

He has been a member of the City of Cocoa Board of Adjustment, the Tourism Development Council of Brevard, the Brevard County Youth Football and Cheerleading board , the NAACP, and is currently the business manager for Mid Florida Football and Cheer, and the Cocoa City Council. 

Goins has won the 2016 living legends award, 2017 Legacy award, 2023 Angel of Hope Award (TLOD) , 2023 National association of Social workers Florida Chapter Elected official of the year , and the 2023 Brevard county black History Hero award. 

Anthony Smith is a Christ follower and prioritizes faith, family, and community in his life. In addition to his professional and family commitments, Anthony has been deeply involved in youth sports, volunteering his time with Viera Youth Football, Holy Trinity JV and Varsity Football, Viera Community Basketball, and Palm Bay Youth Basketball.

He is an accomplished software engineer, research scientist, and educator with over two decades of professional experience. He was employed at L3 Harris as a software engineer and research scientist before transitioning to academia, where he serves as an Associate Professor in Computer Engineering at Florida Institute of Technology (FIT).

Kenny Johnson graduated from Bayside High School and went on to play collegiate football on a full athletic scholarship at Charleston Southern University. While there he earned his bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and pledged Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Upon an early graduation, he returned home to Brevard County where he worked as a juvenile case manager, juvenile detention officer, teacher, coach, mentor, and personal trainer. In 2016, he started his own business called Top Notch Training of Brevard, Inc., whose mission has been to provide area residents access to affordable and effective health and wellness plans, so they may exceed their fitness goals through education, nutrition, and safe action.

Since 2013, Kenny has been dedicating his time and efforts to mentor and educate the youth of our community through self-organized mentor programs at schools, his place of business, and other community events. One of his first acts as a councilman was creating a Youth Advisory Board for high school students to have a platform to share their ideas and perspectives on how to continue improving our city. He also established Palm Bay’s Annual Black History Event; a Business Assistance Web Page to teach potential business owners everything they would need to start a business in their community; Palm Bay’s Inaugural Veteran’s Day Parade; and a Civil Citation Program to provide law enforcement additional tools to address the possession of misdemeanor crimes. He is also currently working with organizations on addressing homelessness, the opioid epidemic, and affordable housing. Kenny understands what’s important and that's co creating a community of prosperity.

Anthony “Mitch” Mitchell is Owner/CEO of “Mitchell Athletic Training Systems” with 30 years of coaching, training, and development of current and former collegiate, high school, and youth athletes in North Brevard County. 

Mitchell is a Titusville High graduate and proud University of Michigan alum. At Titusville, Mitchell was a 2-time State Champion at QB (1982 and 83), where his #15 jersey is retired. He was also a 1st Team All-State in 1983 and 1984, and was honored as being a 1st Team All-USA All-American 84’. In 2018, he was inducted into the Space Coast Hall of Fame Inductee 2018 (Football). 

While attending University of Michigan, Ann Arbor as a 4-year scholarship recipient in football, he earned a B.A. degree in Sport Management and Kinesiology, and played in 2 Rose Bowls, Fiesta Bowl, and Outback Bowl. His personal goals are to continue giving back to his community, and the youth by touching as many lives as possible in a positive way. 

Michael Williams graduated from the University of Florida. Although he graduated with a Bachelor Degree in Civil Engineering and continued on to become a licensed Professional Engineer in the State of Florida, he pursued a career in Construction. In 1987, Mike decided to start his own construction company, M. H. Williams Construction, Inc.

As hard as Mike has worked on his career, he is also deeply committed to giving back to the community. He has served on many boards including Young Life, Melbourne Police Athletic League, Exec Board of United Way, Exec Board of the Economic Development Commission of the Space Coast, Home Builders and Contractors Assn of Brevard, Board of Overseers member of the Florida Institute of Technology College of Business, Brevard County Building Construction Advisory Committee – still serving, Associated Builders and Contractors Association, and the Rock Harbor Church Leadership Team. 

Mike was also one of the founding Members of the Construction Industry Advisory Board that was formed to initiate a B. S. of Construction Management Degree at Florida Institute of Technology (FIT).

A few of his local Brevard County awards are the Melbourne-Palm Bay Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year award for 1995, Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame Laureate 2006, 2007 Business of the Year – Florida Today – Volunteer Recognition Awards, Economic Development Commission of the Space Coast Volunteer of the Year 2011, Founders Forum Entrepreneur of the Year for 2012, and the Home Builders and Contractors Hall of Fame 2022 inductee.