Trustees
Marvin E. Ausherman
Founder and Chairman
Marvin Ezra Ausherman, a native of Frederick County, is a 1969 graduate of Thomas Johnson High School and, in 1974, received the degree of Bachelor of Architecture from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
After working in the residential home building business with his father for a dozen years, he took over the reins of the company and served in that capacity until selling the business to Drees Homes in 2003. During that time, he was a member and Chair of the National Association of Home Builders, Washington, D.C. and is a Life Director of that Association. Since 2003, he has served as President of Ausherman Development Corporation and devoted his energy and efforts to the family philanthropy endeavors, having created the Family Trust in 2000 and the Ausherman Family Foundation in 2006.
Marvin has been involved for years in many Frederick County organizations and projects for the betterment of the community. He has served on the County’s Affordable Housing Council as Chair, and served on the Boards of the Chamber of Commerce, the Community Foundation, YMCA, Federated Charities, Habitat for Humanity and others. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of the Blue Ridge Bank, and is a member of the Boards of the Frederick Memorial Hospital System and the Frederick Youth Alliance. He is a member and Paul Harris Fellow of the Frederick Rotary Club and holds membership in the Frederick Church of the Brethren.
Lisa S. Ausherman
Co-Founder
Lisa Ausherman graduated from James Madison University in 1982 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Design, specializing in the design of interior spaces for restaurants, commercial businesses and high-end residential properties. In 1988 she established her own firm, LSB Interiors in her hometown of Frederick, Maryland. She is certified by the American Society of Interior Designers and currently volunteers her professional talents to nonprofit enterprises.
Community service has always been a motivating factor in her life. She has volunteered countless hours for many organizations including three local churches, the American Cancer Society, Habitat for Humanity, Heartly House, the Rescue Mission, Kline Hospice House, and many others. In addition, she has served on boards for The Weinberg Center for the Arts, The Delaplaine Visual Arts Center, the Rotary Club of Carroll Creek, the Frederick Alliance for Youth, the Women’s Giving Circle of Frederick County and was a member of Tasker’s Chance Garden Club for 17 years.
She and her husband Marvin founded the Ausherman Family Foundation in 2006 to selectively support, both locally and globally, the needs of the underserved.
Kari A. Ausherman
Kari Ann Ausherman recently completed a Master of Arts Degree in Human Sciences with an emphasis in experimental and counseling psychology at Hood College.
Born and raised in Frederick, Maryland, Kari Ausherman had a strong interest and the desire to further the development of the field of psychology, thus dedicating extensive time and energy working with various professors on their psychological research. Additionally, she worked as a Residential Counselor and Supported Living Systems Provider for adults with developmental disabilities for a non-profit organization in Fort Collins, Colorado. During the last couple years of her undergraduate education Kari developed an interest in agriculture which led her to work on dairy farms in Maryland and Tennessee.
After receiving a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, Kari returned to her hometown in Frederick to continue working for her family’s business as she had done periodically throughout the years. For three years, she worked as the Commercial Project Manager for Ausherman Development Corporation prior to her returning to her Master’s Program. She now works for a local non-profit.
Over the course of the years, Kari has been involved in a multitude of philanthropic and professional organizations. Her memberships included those of Phi Sigma Theta National Honor Society, Psi Chi National Honor Society, Student Cattleman Association, Sigma Alpha where she served one term as Treasurer and one term as Student Representative, the CASNR Student Council where she served one term as Report Editor, the Frederick Jaycees and the NAIOP (National Association of Industrial and Office Properties). She also volunteered for events to support non-profit organizations such as the Women’s Serenity Shelter of Knoxville, Tennessee, Heartly House, Frederick Church of the Brethren and the Downtown Frederick Partnership.
Justin E. Ausherman
Justin Ausherman, a Frederick County native, attended schools at every level in the County, graduating from Thomas Johnson High School in 1996. He continued on to Mount Saint Mary’s University, Emmitsburg, Maryland, graduating in 2001.
Since graduating from college, Justin has worked in many facets of the construction industry, beginning with employment at Ausherman Homes. He moved on to hold a position for five years in residential real estate sales from 2002-2007. During this time he earned the designation of GRI (Graduate of Realtor Institute) in 2003 and his Broker’s License in 2006.
Justin joined Ausherman Development Corporation, the family business, in 2007 working in the Commercial Real Estate Development Department. He continues to reside in Frederick, where he serves on the Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity.
J. Brian Gaeng
With a banking career spanning 28 years, Brian Gaeng has spent the majority of that time with Mercantile affiliates Fredericktown Bank and Fidelity Bank, serving as president and CEO of both institutions. Earlier this year, Brian and a group of local Frederick founders formed BlueRidge Bank, which is headquartered in downtown Frederick.
As a career community banker, volunteerism has always been a major focus. He has chaired the boards of several community organizations in Frederick County, including the Frederick Memorial Health Care Systems, Frederick County Economic Development Commission, the Community Foundation of Frederick, and the Frederick County YMCA. Brian serves on the Board of Trustees of Hood College and previously was a member of the Board of Trustees of Mount Saint Mary's University. He is also a member of the Rotary Club of Frederick.
Brian has made his home in Frederick for the past 20 years with his wife, Roxie, and six children. He is a member of St. Katherine Drexel Catholic Church in Frederick. His hobbies include golf and participating in triathlons.
James B. MacGillivray
Jim MacGillivray, a native of Washington, DC, has been a Civil Engineer for more than 30 years after graduating from Bucknell University in 1976. Jim is currently self-employed and devotes most of his time to volunteer endeavors throughout the United States. He has worked most recently for Ausherman Development Corporation in Frederick, Maryland. His career has included construction, design, public works administration and management. Jim and his wife Lois first moved to Frederick in 1985 and have raised three children here.
Jim is a life director of the Frederick County Builders Association. He is a member of the Brook Hill United Methodist Church where he currently sings in the choir. Jim has served for more than two decades as a volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America. He is currently serving on the Philmont Ranch Committee and the Catoctin Mountain District Committee.
Joseph S. Welty
Joe Welty has been practicing law in Frederick County, Maryland since 1974 when he began as an associate with Rosenstock, Burgee, Bower & Philips, P.A. After having become a full principal in two years, that firm was reorganized as Rosenstock, Burgee & Welty, P.A. in 1981. This firm merged with the 200-lawyer, Baltimore-based, regional law firm of Miles & Stockbridge P.C. on January 1, 1987. Joe Welty has served on the Board of Directors of Miles & Stockbridge since 1988 and served in the capacities of President and Chairman from 1996 through 2001.
Over the period of his practice, he has focused on business, estate and tax planning; representation of businesses from formation and structuring to sale; and commercial transactions of every nature, including commercial loan transactions for banks and for borrowers. He has served on many boards over his career, and currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of the Community Foundation of Frederick County, the Board of Directors of St. John’s Literary Institution at Prospect Hall, the Board of Trustees of The Merle Thorpe Charitable Trust, the Board of Directors of BlueRidge Bank and the Board of Directors of The Family Heritage Trust Company.
A lifelong resident of Frederick County, he obtained a B.S. in Economics from Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Maryland (1971), and a J.D. from Marshall-Wythe School of Law, College of William and Mary (1974).
Nick Branic
A native of Frederick County, Maryland, Nick graduated from James Madison University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts in Justice Studies. He is currently earning a Master of Arts in Criminology from the University of South Florida and is preparing to pursue his doctorate in Criminology.
As an undergraduate, Nick became a member of the Pi Gamma Mu Social Sciences Honors Society and served as vice president of the American Criminal Justice Association (JMU chapter). He also volunteered at the Gemeinschaft Home, a transitional therapeutic community located in Harrisonburg, Virginia. The program focused on rehabilitating non-violent ex-offenders and helping them to re-establish positive social ties in the community, which contributed to lower risks of reoffending and stronger neighborhood solidarity.
Nick has continued to cultivate his passion for service and social change during his graduate studies. He is currently a member of the Criminology Graduate Student Association, which fundraises for and supports a number of local youth charities such as Guardian ad Litem, Metropolitan Ministries, and the Kinship Center. In addition, he is involved with the Lifepath organization, a within-prison reentry program that helps participants to better their lives and forsake crime through self-empowerment and communal support. As an academic, Nick has a strong research interest in offender reentry and reintegration as well as social inequalities in general, which motivates his philanthropic efforts.
Renee Lopez
Family Office Manager
Renee is a certified public accountant with 20 years of accounting experience. Renee joined Ausherman Development in 2004 as an Accounting Manager. Within a year, she was promoted to Controller, where she managed the accounting, budgeting, and tax preparation for the real estate businesses. Her responsibilities also included various accounting activities for the Ausherman family members and the Ausherman Family Foundation. After years of experience with the family, Renee created the Ausherman Family Office where she is now responsible for investment management, estate and trust management, and wealth transfer. Renee is a 1985 graduate of Lebanon Valley College and holds a degree in Accounting and Management.