Bill Backer
The late Bill Backer was the Advertising Executive responsible for many famous ad campaigns of the 20th Century, including the iconic "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" ads from the 1960s and 70s. His commitment, passion and skill helped guide the messaging and strategy used in the campaign against Disney.
Tracey Shafroth
Tracey was the Executive Director of the Prince Charitable Trusts during the campaign against Disney's America. Under her leadership, the Trusts channeled all of its charitable giving to fighting the park.
Chris Miller
During the Campaign, Chris was a young lawyer working for the fledgling Piedmont Environmental Council. Since those days, Chris has become PEC's President, and overseen the protection of a huge amount of land in the Piedmont.
Cate Wyatt
Cate Magennis Wyatt was the Secretary of Commerce for the Commonwealth of Virginia when Disney unveiled their plans. Cate was the first person in the public sector to see those plans—Disney executives literally rolled them out onto her conference table.
Sandy Hillyer
Sandy worked for a transportation planning group called Citizens Against Gridlock that formed during the campaign against the park. Their primary focus was how Disney's proposed edge city would snarl traffic in one of the busiest metropolitan areas in the country.
Fred Prince
Fred Prince is a trustee of the Prince Charitable Trusts, a family foundation that gives to organizations supporting humanities, the arts, and the environment. During the fight against Disney's America, Fred and Tracey Shafroth decided to channel all of the Trusts' funds towards defeating Disney. Since the campaign, the Trusts have continued supporting issues of environmental and land-use concerns in Virginia's Piedmont and around the world.