Tommy Edwards was born and raised in Radford VA where he became well known for his athletic abilities. As a senior at Radford High School under the coaching of Norman Lineburg, Tommy earned 7 All- American awards and a commendation from the Virginia General Assembly for his achievements on the football field, qualified for the state track meet in 5 events, contributed to a regional championship baseball team, and was awarded the school fine art award. Tommy was nicknamed “Touchdown” Tommy by local sports writer Ralph Berrier and scored a staggering 57 TDs in just two years at Radford High. He signed a full scholarship to attend Virginia Tech, following in the footsteps of father Ken Edwards Class of ‘70 (Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame member), to play football for Frank Beamer (a former teammate of Ken at VT) and sister Angie Edwards Class of ’92, who competed as a Track and Field athlete. Tommy majored in wildlife biology at Tech, but longed for a creative outlet in the arts.

Nancy Hunter earned her BS degree in psychology and has over 15 years experience working with persons with mental illness. Throughout her career, she has witnessed many of the obstacles persons with mental illness face on a daily basis, to include lack of funding for quality services, misdiagnosis, medication issues, barriers to receiving appropriate medical and psychiatric care, and the stigma associated with mental illness.

Jen comes to “The Heart of Virginia” with a vast background both personally and professionally.  She wanted to be a nurse all of her life and had her first authentic stethoscope when she was three years old. Her dream became a reality when she graduated from Radford University in 1991 with a Bachelor in Nursing and a minor in Psychology.