ASSOCIATE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

 Elaine Heard, Associate

Elaine “Laney” Heard grew up in Tampa, Florida, and graduated from Vanderbilt University here in Nashville.  She then recieved her JD degree at University of Miami Law School in Coral Gables, Florida.  After graduation, she returned to Nashville where she opened a successful law practice specializing in criminal defense. In addition to being an avid Commodores fan, she is Chairman of the local non-profit Brown Dog Foundation, is a Board Member of The Miss Millie Foundations, member of the National Commodore Club and the Nashville Kiwanis Club.  She is also the proud mom of two feline children, Monroe and Roxie.

 Les Jackson started his first Mail Boxes Etc. location on June 1, 1996 and effectively became an entrepreneur on that day.  As a partner or sole owner of franchises, Les has owned as many as five locations of what is now The UPS Store and currently is the owner/operator of The UPS Store at 2817 West End Avenue in Nashville, TN.  Les pioneered a program with The UPS Store franchise that provides  summer storage and UPS shipping for college students over summer break or as they study abroad. As a franchisee, Les is consistently ranked in the top 100 stores out of 4300 domestic locations and is currently a Gold Level performer within the franchise.

Prior to The UPS Store, Les worked for 16 years in Sales & Marketing positions with various companies including Cummings Signs in Nashville, TN; Cutler Industries in Bristol, PA; and Acme-Wiley Corporation in Elk Grove Village, IL. His first job out of college was as a Marketing Management Trainee for Life Investors Group in Chattanooga, TN in 1980. He is married to Jane Foreman Jackson, a Nashville native and has three children: Charlie and Bryan Jackson of Nashville, TN and Janie Jackson of Dallas, TX.

Les is active in Kiwanis Club of Nashville (Downtown), Kiwanis International, Nashville Sports Council, and City Salesmen Club. He has held leadership positions in these organizations and considers service an important part of his life. Les is a member of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Nashville.

He is a 1980 graduate of The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa with a major in Marketing and minors in Advertising and English. He received the Elton B. Stephens Sales & Sales Management Scholarship while attending Alabama. Les grew up in the small town of Boligee, AL (near Tuscaloosa), played football and baseball in high school, and is an avowed sports nut!  His spare time revolves around sports, including The University of Alabama NCAA College Football team, the Tennessee Titans NFL Football team, and the Nashville Predators NHL Hockey team to name a few.

Andy Lee has been involved with Bootstraps since 2002 as the “man behind the woman” when his wife Diane served as one of The Downtown Kiwanis Club original Board members. He has served as Board member in an official capacity since 2010.

Andy left the safety of corporate America to buy a printing business here in Nashville in 1991 which he and his wife managed together for 7 years.  It has been said of Andy that he is a man of great fortunes and misfortunes.  Like many of the Foundation’s scholars he believes the old adage “What doesn’t kill you makes you a better person.”

Andy considers himself somewhere between semi-retired and self underemployed.  He is a Real Estate Investor amongst many other entrepreneurial activities.  When he isn’t working to further the cause of The Bootstraps Foundation he is a volunteer with CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) as an advocate for children whose birth parents are unable to care for them.  He also serves on the Board of the Vanderbilt Bridge Club, volunteers with the Phoenix Society (Burn Survivor Peer Support) and Vanderbilt Hospital Burn Center.

Andy enjoys teaching people how to play and enhance their card playing skills at the Bridge Club and maintains his status as an FAA Certified Flight Instructor.