STAFF
TOM IHRKE
PRESIDENT/CEO
After earning his Bachelor of Science from Texas Christian University and an MBA from University of Tennessee's Graduate School of Business, Tom worked in capital markets for over 25 years. He was a Senior Investment Banker in Morgan Keegan’s Financial Institution Group, before founding and managing a hedge fund with $350,000,000 in assets under management before selling his interest in 2010 and moving to Charleston. In Charleston, Tom has been involved in several entrepreneurial endeavors including an education company, a natural bioscience company, and business consulting for Carolina Capital Management. While he previously served on several boards for local organizations and served as an adjunct professor of finance at the College of Charleston, Tom currently serves on the Board of the Public Charter School Alliance of South Carolina.
FRANK BOCCIA
DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS
DEVELOPMENT/CSO
Frank, who graduated from the State University of New York with a degree in Finance, is a licensed real estate agent and a thirty-year Wall Street veteran, working with builders, banks, land developers, hedge funds and private equity firms. As director of a real estate finance group, Frank raised over $32 million dollars to purchase and then develop over 1,200 residential lots in metro Atlanta. Frank has developed a vast network among real estate groups in the Southeast and has been actively bringing drone projects to fruition throughout Georgia and North Carolina.
MJ MCGOLDRICK
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
MJ, a graduate of Lafayette College, has spent her career marketing and building brands. Early in her career, she worked in the fashion industry as an account executive, managing relationships with major sales and distribution partners for various luxury labels. MJ then transitioned to brand development when she joined Fritz Hansen, a Danish furniture manufacturer, as a brand ambassador. She parlayed this into brand ambassador roles with several European companies new to the US, successfully introducing them and developing market share. Ultimately, MJ was recruited by the Danish Consulate as a design business consultant, advising Danish manufacturers entering the US market. MJ has now joined Swampfox to help manage the business and develop Swampfox into a nationally recognized brand.
J. BLAKE PEARCE
PILOT IN COMMAND
Blake is a Charleston, South Carolina native with a degree in Geography and Economics from the University of South Carolina. He is a certified FAA Part 107 pilot and has logged many hours flying drones commercially and has honed his skills through comprehensive ground training and live flight training. Blake has extensive knowledge of advanced geographic information systems, spatial data models, and aerial photography and cartography.