Board Members

Deborrah Jeffreys Gruder

founder & executive director

Even though the idea for Scott-Free was born out of the willingness and actions of one, its success will be realized because of the enthusiasm and generosity of an entire community who stepped in to make sure that a child would know the fun, freedom and camaraderie of a camp environment. For many years Deborrah has participated in non-profit organizations to benefit others. Encouraging individuals and businesses to purchase and enjoy daffodils in late February, during the American Cancer Society’s Daffodil Days, proceeds to benefit those battling life-threatening cancer. Deborrah was one of the original members of the Assistance League of the Triangle (ALTA), the organization that gave birth to Operation School Bell and for the past 7 years has been an active member of the Walnut Terrace Angel Tree, which provides Christmas for young children and is the sister organization to Scott-Free. both encouraging children to embark on “Journeys Urging Mammoth Possibilities.

Leigh Adams White

founding board member

Leigh White is a native of Knightdale, North Carolina.  Growing up, Leigh was a competitive soccer player and inline roller speed skater.  Her love and drive for soccer enabled her to continue to play the sport at Belmont Abbey College and then NC State University.  Leigh received both her undergraduate degree and master’s degree from NC State University.  Leigh lives in Clayton with her husband and their 3 children.  Leigh is the principal at Meadow School in Johnston County Schools.  She has always had a passion for children and believes that all children can be successful.  

Ashir Gruder

board member

Ashir Gruder is the Executive Producer and Sr. Director of Media at SEI Studios based in New York City. Over the past decade his work has appeared on TV-One, Discovery ID, MTV, The History Channel, The National Geographic Channel, A&E, The Bio Channel, SpeedTV and the Food Network. His passion for telling stories adds to his desire to help those in need. Ashir is a valued member of the Scott-Free organization, as a consultant, promotional coordinator, and webmaster.

Beatriz Illanes Riehle

board member & CFO

Originally from NYC, Beatriz graduated from Adelphi University with a Business Management Degree concentrating on Finance. Her career years in NY encompassed being a NASDAQ Securities Trader and at TD Waterhouse and E*Trade as an Account Executive. She decided to take a break from her career to raise her children, and that eventually brought her to Raleigh, NC in November 2009.  As career woman at heart, she still involved herself in several endeavors that helped her raise her children and still be involved in creating strategies that help small businesses in the local Raleigh area. This includes being a Director of a child care facility as well as managing a salon.  She recently had returned to the Finacial Services Industry currently working at Wells Fargo. Beatriz started volunteering
at The Scott-Free Scholarship Foundation soon after her arrival and since 2010,  Beatriz has been engaged in many facets of the organization including business development, event planning, community outreach as well as spearheading the Latino Outreach Program that has enabled Scott-Free to further assist families in need.

Her tireless volunteering to our organization has brought her to accept a board position in 2019.  She brings her knowledge of working in small businesses, her strong commitment to helping the community and most importantly, her love of helping the children of Scott-Free.

Robin Oelrich

board member

Robin was born Dayton, Ohio.  Growing up, Robin lived all over the world including Germany and Italy.  Robin was a competitive soccer player until he received a knee injury that took him out of the sport. Robin still loves soccer and coaches both a boys and girls middle school team in Johnston County.  Robin also currently is active in Taekwondo where he has received his black belt. Robin received his Bachelor’s Degree in Middle Grades Education from NC State University.  Robin lives in Clayton with his wife and their 7 children.  Robin is a teacher in Johnston County Schools. Robin has always been passionate about teaching and believes
that he has to give 100% every day to reach every student.

Blair Seymour

board member

Blair is a Raleigh native who worked as a summer camp counselor with the city before graduating from Fayetteville State University as a member of Psi Chi, the National Honor Society for Psychology. Her current position as Research Manager for Beaker, Inc. (an executive life science recruiting company) has her based in Raleigh while supporting recruiters across the globe. She works on projects for some of the biggest names in the life sciences industry. As a Member of the Raleigh Midtown Rotary Club, Blair currently sit on the Board of Directors and serve as Fundraising Co-Chair and is a Paul Harris Fellow. 

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    Deborah Jeffrey Gruder
    Founder & Executive Director

    Even though the idea for Scott-Free was born out of the willingness and actions of one, its success will be realized because of the enthusiasm and generosity of an entire community who stepped in to make sure that a child would know the fun, freedom and camaraderie of a camp environment. For many years Deborrah has participated in non-profit organizations to benefit others. Encouraging individuals and businesses to purchase and enjoy daffodils in late February, during the American Cancer Society's Daffodil Days, proceeds to benefit those battling life threatening cancer. Deborrah was one of the original members of the Assistance League of the Triangle (ALTA), the organization that gave birth to Operation School Bell and for the past 7 years has been an active member of the Walnut Terrace Angel Tree, which provides Christmas for young children and is the sister organization to Scott-Free. both encouraging children to embark on “Journeys Urging Mammoth Possibilities.


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    Leigh Adams White
    Founding Board Member
    Leigh White is a native of Knightdale, North Carolina. Growing up, Leigh was a competitive soccer player and inline roller speed skater. Her love and drive for soccer enabled her to continue to play the sport at NC State University. Leigh received both her undergraduate degree and master's degree from NC State University. Leigh White lives in Clayton with her husband and their 2 year old daughter, Addison. Leigh is an assistant principal at Clayton Middle School. She has always had a passion for children and believes that all children can be successful. "They may forget what you said but they will never forget how you made them feel." -Anonymous

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    Joni Porter
    Founding Board Member
    Joni Porter is a personal trainer at o2Fitness, Raleigh, N.C. This is Joni's passion, and she is grateful about her life and work because she can wake up everyday and love what she does. It allows her to be creative and help give her clients a vision about their own bodies and health. Similarly with the Scott-Free project, she is excited to be a part of helping kids in need reach a goal that empowers them.

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    Mike Riehie
    Board Member & CFO
    Michael is currently works for Morgan Stanley as an IT Financial Analyst and he recently moved to Raleigh from New York City with his wife and two young sons. During high school, Mike was involved in band, drama and hockey. He still plays hockey every week and believes that athletic and artistic activities are a safe and positive force in young lives.

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    Michael Osborne
    Board Member & Publicist
    Michael Osborne grew up in North Raleigh and was a close friend of Joshua and the rest of the Gruder family. He graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in 2007 with degrees in Journalism and English. Michael now works as a BlueCross BlueShield agent in Raleigh. He is putting his Journalism skills to use with Scott-Free by working on their Media Relations. His articles on Scott-Free have appeared several publications, including Mid-Town Magazine and Cary Living.

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    Joshua Gruder
    Board Member
    Joshua is a graduate of Loyola University New Orleans with a degree in Advertising, and a minor in marketing. Joshua has done volunteer work in Raleigh growing up as well as New Orleans during college. Joshua has developed the logo and other artistic work for Scott-Free as well as spearheading all internal and external marketing efforts. He is very excited to be a part of Scott-Free honoring his father and assisting children in their pursuit of a special experience.

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    Ashir Gruder
    Board Member
    Ashir Gruder is a television producer living in New York City. His work has appeared on The History Channel, The National Geographic Channel, A&E, The Bio Channel, SpeedTV and the Food Network. His passion for telling stories adds to his desire to help those less fortunate. Ashir is a valued member of the Scott-Free organization, as a consultant, promotional coordinator, and webmaster.

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    Blair Seymour
    Board Member
    Blair is a Raleigh native who worked as a summer camp counselor with the city before graduating from Fayetteville State University as a member of Psi Chi, the National Honor Society for Psychology. Her current position as Research Manager for Beaker, Inc. (an executive life science recruiting company) has her based in Raleigh while supporting recruiters across the globe. She works on projects for some of the biggest names in the life sciences industry. As a Member of the Raleigh Midtown Rotary Club, Blair currently sit on the Board of Directors and serve as Fundraising Co-Chair and is a Paul Harris Fellow. She is getting married in October, and has a 4 year Schnoodle named Bella.