Board of Directors

Aisha ward

Aisha has been raising awareness about the need for more foster parents and being a voice for vulnerable children in the child welfare system for 10 years. She was able to grow a very rewarding passion in life in the foster care world. She was first introduced to vulnerable youth while working as a Summer Camp Praise Director on the outskirts of Chicago, Illinois. This was a heartbreaking experience as she discovered that there were entire communities, hidden within developed neighborhoods, surrounded by trees. She was tasked with teaching these children but instead, the children ended up teaching her so much about resiliency and compassion. Aisha graduated from The University of Tennessee in Knoxville, TN in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a major in Management. She went on to attend The University of the Southwest and graduated in 2014 with a Master of Business Administration with a major in Finance. Aisha and her husband, Justin, currently reside in Kingsport, TN. In her free time, she can be found chasing after her son, crafting with her daughter, connecting with her beautiful bonus kids, or working out with FiA (Females in Action).

michelle oliver

Michelle is passionate about making a difference for foster children and their families. Michelle is a former foster parent, and is now an adoptive parent! Michelle and her husband David have five amazing children. In Michelle’s spare time, she can be found chasing kids, traveling, and enjoying time with her family.

lisa salyer

Lisa studied Kinesiology in college and currently works in commercial property management.  She is married and has two amazing children.  Helping children in need is something she loves to do, and being on the board at SMILE gives her that opportunity.

emily rohrbach

Emily and her husband moved to the Tri-Cities after falling in love with the region's beauty and kindness of the community. She enjoys eating almost all types of food (except crickets) and loves to travel with her husband. Emily has been to thirteen different countries on five different continents! When she isn't traveling around the world, she enjoys spending time with her two silly rescued hound dogs and watching Netflix. With her corporate healthcare business background and is looking forward to bringing her understanding of business and championing a great cause.

Stephanie Hopson, Johnson City Site Coordinator

Stephanie Hopson and her husband, Joe, are foster parents in our community.  They, along with their three children, love to raise awareness for foster care in our area. 

Stephanie graduated from ETSU in 2003 with a BS in Psychology and began working for the State of Tennessee soon after.  During her 14 years with the state, Stephanie worked with the Department of Children’s services and the Department of Health.  In both roles, she was able to advocate for children and families in the community. 

After deciding to bring their children home to homeschool them, Stephanie began working for an educational magazine for four years and was blessed to be the Director of Advertising Sales with them.  Currently, Stephanie is a homemaker, a wife, a mom, and a foster momma.  She enjoys reading and is always ready for a fun game of trivial pursuit!