Meet The Team

Hiwot Solomon | In-Country Assistant

Hiwot has been with Ordinary Hero since the beginning. After spending years working alongside our teams as a volunteer and translator, she officially joined the OH team in June of 2018 as our in-country assistant, helping purchase and organize mission market donations. She also helps lead and translate for our teams that travel to Ethiopia. Hiwot has a Bachelor of Arts in Marketing Management from St. Mary University in Addis Ababa, but beyond that, a huge heart for the people in her community.

Ryan Dorr | Chair of the Board

Ryan Dorr is the Chief Information Officer for HCA Healthcare’s Physician Services Group where he leads a team supporting the providers within physician practices, urgent care centers and many hospital-based specialties. Ryan adopted his youngest daughter from Ethiopia, which sparked Ryan’s heart for orphans and hurting children around the world. Ryan was deeply impacted by hearing how Ordinary Hero was making a difference in the lives of children and families in Ethiopia, and is excited to play a part in making a difference. Ryan resides in Franklin, TN with his wonderful wife of 20 years and four children.

Ray Guzman | Board Member

Ray Guzman is the founding CEO of SwitchPoint Ventures, an innovation enabling entity making AI investments in organizations that seek transformation through machine learning. In this role, Ray is responsible for all aspects of the business and for overseeing the company’s interests in its portfolio companies. Prior to founding SwitchPoint, Ray served as the Senior Vice President of Analytics at Intermedix, where he was responsible for leading a large globally distributed analytics business unit. A strong leader with a history of successfully building and developing organizations, Guzman thrives in simplifying the complex. A philanthropist at heart, Guzman also gives of his time, talent, and treasure to many charitable organizations, including board service. Guzman and his wife of 24 years, Nakisha, reside in Franklin, Tennessee with their five daughters.

Linda Howard | Board Member

Linda Edell Howard has almost 30 years of experience in the areas of entertainment, new media and technology, and domestic and international intellectual property law and is the leader of the Entertainment/New Media team. She joined Adams and Reese in 2001 and opened the firm’s Music Row office. Linda Edell Howard is proud to count among her clients many members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame; Songwriter’s Hall of Fame;Canadian Music Songwriter’s Hall of Fame; Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame; Musician’s Hall of Fame; and Country Music Hall of Fame, as well as many Grammy winning producers and artists. In 2016, Linda Howard was named Billboard Women in Music: 100 Most Powerful Executives.

Melissa Smith | Board Member

Melissa has been a Nashville resident since 2006, and her time in Nashville has included obtaining a Masters Degree in Business Administration from Lipscomb University and working in the Healthcare industry for the past nine plus years. She is currently working as the Acquisitions and Infrastructure Services Manager at HCA Healthcare. It wasn’t until Melissa’s first trip to Ethiopia in 2015 that she realized how special the work of Ordinary Hero truly was and that she was meant to play a larger role in helping people change the world for one. Each time Melissa travels to Ethiopia she is reminded of what an incredible organization Ordinary Hero is and how blessed she is to be a part of this family.

Shane Putty | Board Member

Shane is the husband of Founder, Kelly Putty, and resides in Brentwood, TN with his wife and nine children, four of which are from Ethiopia. Shane is an experienced entrepreneur of 25 years, and has bought, sold, and started businesses from 0. He is currently 2 years into a start-up, app-based, on-demand Dry cleaning & laundry pickup and delivery service in the Greater Nashville area. He says, “I am really interested in how to use business to make a difference in the world while making a profit. I am fascinated by building giving into the framework of businesses, making it a lever of success just like customer service or product quality. Adopting from and serving in Ethiopia has been one of the biggest privileges of my life and because of this I’m very passionate about the work of Ordinary Hero.”

Andrew Orr | Board Member

Andrew’s first visit to Ethiopia was in 2014 and he’s still inspired by the experience. “All of my senses were fully activated and my faith grew to new heights. We went to make a difference for the families we sponsored, which we did, but they also transformed our family. The need in Ethiopia is overwhelming and ever present, but it is possible to change the life for one individual and one family, which then, has an unbelievable ripple effect.”   

Andrew completed the Young Leaders Council Williamson County Class in 2018 and started with Ordinary Hero as a board intern. He lives in Franklin, TN with his wife, Jennifer, and two children and works as a City Planner for the City of Franklin.

Chris Carrico | Board Member

Chris Carrico is the Vice President of Internal Audit for Delek US Holdings, a publicly traded downstream energy company based in Brentwood, TN. Chris has a Bachelor’s Degree in accounting and management from Lipscomb University and is a CPA and a certified internal auditor. During the process of adopting his son Daniel from the Democratic Republic of Congo, they developed a deeper understanding of the global orphan crisis. Chris says, “I am deeply honored and humbled to be a part of Ordinary Hero and the work that they’re doing in Ethiopia. My hope is that we continue to increase awareness of the great need, as we strive to live out the words in Psalm 82:3, ‘Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and oppressed.’” Chris and his wife Claire reside in Franklin, TN with their three children.

Brian Loar | Board Member

Brian Loar is the VP Sales for Contender Solutions, an IT Consulting company focused on Digital Transformation. Prior to Contender Solutions, Brian has led commercial & revenue teams for 20+ years in the oncology & pediatric space including digital health, SaaS, capital equipment and Enterprise software. Brian shared, “I have been lucky in my career to be with mission driven companies that have a positive impact on the patient population served and Ordinary Hero’s mission is aligned with my passion path of serving and enabling human flourishing.” Brian lives in College Grove, with wife of 23 years and a daughter and son.

Sloane Scott | Board Member

Sloane is the VP of Strategy for Freeman. For 30+ years, she's been creating brand partnerships and experiences for companies like IBM, Cisco, Salesforce, EA, Oracle, Patagonia, Pepsi, Cover Girl, Clorox, Fiat, Herman Miller, and many others. She's a wingman, creator, and passionate storyteller. And a co-founder and creator with side hustles that tap her curiosity. Her home is filled with her husband, Eric, her four dogs, and eclectic artwork.

Tamara Conniff | Board Member

Tamara Conniff is Partner and CEO of AMR, Amplified Music Rights. She has served in a number of high-profile leadership roles in the music industry, most recently as EVP Business Affairs for Jay-Z’ Roc Nation Music Publishing. During her term, Roc Nation Publishing picked up a number of Grammy awards, including Song and Record of the Year and Best R&B Song. Conniff also launched two successful joint ventures in Nashville: Rhythm House with award-winning hit songwriter Jesse Frasure and Home Team Publishing with country superstar Thomas Rhett. She started her career as a journalist and was the first woman and youngest person to ever hold the position of Editor-in-Chief at Billboard.