Our FOUNDER
Bob Hinkle
White Horse Black Mountain founder, Bob Hinkle, has been in the music industry since the 1960’s. During a career that spans five decades, Hinkle has been a singer, songwriter, recording artist, composer, lyricist, poet, corporate executive, consultant, music writer, artist manager, executive producer, record label founder and president/CEO. These roles brought Bob in contact with a virtual “who’s who” of the music/entertainment industry including artists such as The Band. The J. Geils Band. Etta James. Harry Chapin. Manfred Mann. The Olsen Twins. Patti LuPone Gallagher. Naked Eyes.
White Horse StaFF
2026 Board of Directors
doug Orr
Doug served as President of Warren Wilson College from 1991–2006, where he founded The Swannanoa Gathering, now one of the nation’s leading summer music programs. He is a recipient of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, North Carolina’s highest civilian honor, and later served as Interim Chancellor of UNC Asheville in 2014. Doug is also co-author of Wayfaring Strangers, a New York Times bestseller and the fastest-selling title in UNC Press history.
JUSTICE ROGERS
Justice Rogers got his degree in Criminal Justice at Rutgers, and went on to work for Federal Protective Services, ICE, and Homeland Security before retiring. These days he helps African-American people create businesses in entrepreneurial setting and anywhere else he is needed in the community.
Gareth Higgins
A native of Belfast Ireland, Gareth writes and speaks about the power of storytelling to shape our lives and world, peace and making justice,; Founder of the Wild Goose Festival, Movies & Meaning, and The Porch Magazine
Luke Largess
Luke has worked for 35 years representing plaintiffs as a civil rights and employment lawyer and has experience as a board member for other non-profit organizations.
RAMSEY HINKLE
Ramsey represents individuals and entities in a wide variety of criminal, civil, regulatory, and administrative matters in federal and state courts. He has represented individuals from CEOs, CFOs and CCOs, to traders, and bankers. He defends individuals and entities accused of securities fraud, insurance fraud, healthcare fraud, civil and criminal antitrust violations, and failure to maintain compliance systems.
Fran Leahy
Fran is a CPA and senior manager with Baker Tilly Advisory Group, where she works exclusively with nonprofit clients on tax services and Form 990 filings. She has more than 25 years of public accounting experience, including prior roles as an internal auditor in healthcare and an accounting instructor at a four-year university.
L. CECILY HINES
Cecily is a retired senior executive and general counsel with more than 20 years of experience, primarily in the global medical device industry. She later served as Senior Program Advisor at Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center and was the first chief executive of the Minneapolis Parks Foundation, leading it into a nationally respected nonprofit. She has served on numerous nonprofit and private boards, including as board chair.