Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina elects 2019 officers

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Tags: Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina , Foundations

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The Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina recently announced its 2019 board of trustees’ officers: Thomas Otis, chair; Lisa Bernardin, vice chair; Mitch Watson, secretary; and Andy Folsom, treasurer.

Thomas Otis (Chair - pictured to the right)
Otis received a bachelor's degree in economics from Washington & Lee University and a Master of Business Administration from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Otis currently serves as vice president of Real Estate & Corporate Development for Palmetto Infusion Services, which has 16 locations in both South and North Carolina. He also serves as the chief financial officer of Mira Winery in Napa, California, and is active in commercial real estate as owner and broker-in-charge of The Otis Company, LLC in Charleston, South Carolina.

Otis is a graduate of Leadership Columbia and has served as past president of the Palmetto Chapter of the W&L Alumni Association, as an advisory board member of Salvation Army of the Midlands and on the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina Finance Committee. He currently serves on the investment oversight committee for Charleston Day School and as an alumni interviewer for the Kellogg School of Management. He also is a member of the National Association of Realtors and holds the Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) designation for commercial investment real estate.

Lisa Garnett Bernardin (Vice Chair)
Bernardin is a former juvenile justice attorney with the Children’s Law Center in the role of supervision of juvenile justice section, including statewide support and training for juvenile justice professionals. 

Previously an assistant and then deputy solicitor in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Lexington, South Carolina, Bernardin was responsible for the Family Court Division and prosecution and disposition of juvenile cases, including evaluation of charges, research of legal issues, and referrals to diversion programs; assignment of cases; coordination of cases with law enforcement, related agency personnel, victims, and witnesses; court document and docket preparation. She supervised attorneys, investigators and support staff, as well as held meetings and case reviews with family court judges, defense attorneys and agency personnel.

A graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law, Bernardin is a volunteer with the Lexington County Youth Arbitration Program and Richland County Youth Arbitration Program, and is a Dickerson Children’s Advocacy Center board member.

Mitch Watson (Secretary)
Watson graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1980 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting. 

Watson has worked in finance for more than 35 years and is currently the chief operating officer of Keenan & Suggs/Hub International. He has been on the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina Board of Trustees since 1998, and has served as a board member, board treasurer and board president.

Watson currently serves as a board member of the Cooperative Ministries in Columbia and has served on several community boards, such as Harvest Hope Food Bank, Cardinal Newman School, and the Leukemia Society of South Carolina.

John Anderson (Andy) Folsom (Treasurer)
Folsom is a graduate of Washington and Lee University and the University of South Carolina School of Law. He works at BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina (BCBSSC) as AVP, strategic investments and M&A, and also serves as president of Companion Capital Management, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of BCBSSC. Prior to this role, Folsom worked in the law department at BCBSSC as AVP and deputy general counsel. Before joining BCBSSC, he worked as a corporate attorney for Alston & Bird LLP in Atlanta.

Folsom also participates in numerous community and civic activities. Currently, he is the president and a board member of Salute from the Shore, which was organized to pay tribute to the men and women of the military on the 4th of July. He also serves as board chair of the United Way of the Midlands as well as a board member of the Columbia Chamber of Commerce and Riverbanks Zoo Society. He is also very involved with Washington and Lee, serving as the co-chair of the alumni admissions program for the Midlands and as vice president of the Columbia Chapter of the W&L Alumni Association.

About the Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina
The Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina, established in 1996, is a ministry of the Sisters of Charity Health System. The Foundation is committed to addressing the needs of the poor and underserved in all 46 South Carolina counties, and strategically uses resources to reduce poverty through action, advocacy and leadership.