The Business Development Committee connects MEDA with public and private funding partners who invest in the organization’s mission and vision for Maryland’s future. Aside from spreading the word of MEDA’s impact throughout the state, this effort yields the financial support necessary to allow MEDA to provide quality services to all members.
For more than 50 years, MEDA, Maryland’s only economic development association, has evolved into a powerful force, providing valuable benefits and services to its partners. Today, our vibrant membership holds key leadership positions in local and regional economic development organizations, as well as cabinet-level positions in state agencies. Our members work for virtually all of the state’s 23 counties and the City of Baltimore, leading private companies and non-profit agencies, all of whom have a stake in Maryland’s prosperity.
Our partners recognize that MEDA members propel Maryland’s economic success. As a result, they view MEDA as a valuable networking and training resource for the economic development community. MEDA sponsorship benefits include access to this diverse group of members and partnership with an organization strategically positioned to heighten visibility in Maryland.
Committee members serve a one-year term beginning in May after the MEDA Annual Conference.
Jerry T. Sanford is a seasoned executive with three decades of public and private sector experience in economic development, public private partnerships, business development and corporate growth. Prior to joining The Harbor Bank of Maryland, Mr. Sanford held senior positions at the Maryland Department of Commerce, Alexandria (VA) Economic Development Partnership, Washington Gas a WGL Company and the Montgomery County (MD) Economic Development Corporation. He has been involved in impactful and transformational projects with capital expenditures totaling over $1 Billion dollars with companies such as Sodexo, Amazon, Choice Hotels, and Merck (EMD). Mr. Sanford also serves on the Board of Directors of the Maryland Economic Development Association, Sons of the American Legion Squadron 41 and Employ Prince George’s. Mr. Sanford’s community service also includes 33 years as a volunteer firefighter/EMT in Montgomery County, MD. He has a B.S. in Business Management from the University of Maryland Global Campus with additional education in economic development and real estate development.
John Stalfort is the managing principal of the Miles & Stockbridge’s Washington, D.C. office. He serves as counsel to commercial and investment banks, political subdivisions, economic development agencies, for-profit and not-for-profit entities (including health care institutions, secondary schools and other 501(c)(3) organizations), corporate trustees and bond purchasers in all types of tax-exempt and taxable bond transactions. He has served as bond counsel in connection with many of the most significant economic development projects in the State of Maryland and the Greater Washington region for more than 40 years. Included in these projects are the public-private-partnership (P3) financing of the Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore’s harbor, the Chesapeake Hyatt Resort development (a 400-room hotel, golf course, spa and resort in Cambridge, Maryland), the National Harbor project (a 7,000,000-square-foot, mixed-used community along the Potomac River), the National Aquarium in Baltimore, the Purple Line light rail project in Montgomery County and Prince George’s County, Maryland and the redevelopment of Washington’s Union Station. A particular focus of his practice are land-based infrastructure transactions, including special taxing districts, tax increment financing districts (TIF) and community development authorities in the Mid-Atlantic Region as bond counsel, developer’s counsel and underwriter’s counsel. These transactions have included the first two special taxing district financings in the State of Delaware and the redevelopment of downtown Columbia, Maryland. Several of these transactions have involved transit-oriented development projects (TOD’s). John’s practice also involves equipment leasing and finance transactions in which he represents operating lessors, corporate and municipal clients as lessees and financial institutions acting as a lender, lessor, buyer, seller or trustee. These transactions have included single-investor structures, leveraged lease structures and synthetic lease structures. He also serves as counsel to financial institutions in connection with asset-based lending and commercial finance transactions and secured real estate loans. John is a former member of the Firm’s Board of Directors and former Chair of the Firm’s Business Department. John lives in Washington, D.C. and Maryland with his wife, Anne, and has two children, Elizabeth and Doug.
Andy Fish was appointed as the Senior Director of Finance Programs at the Maryland Department of Commerce in July of 2017. At Commerce, Andy and his team are responsible for the delivery, management and compliance efforts of the State’s economic development toolbox of finance programs. Prior to joining Commerce, he served M&T Bank over a 30 year career, supporting corporate and institutional clients throughout the bank’s footprint in a variety of development and leadership capacities.
Andy is a graduate of the University of Richmond and Loyola University in Maryland. He served on the boards of the Riderwood Parent Teacher Association, Cylburn Arboretum Association and the Maryland Family Network. He has been a Maryland resident for over 40 years.
Nick Henninger-Ayoub serves as Director of Project & Program Development at the Maryland Economic Development Corporation (MEDCO). In this role, he assists with new projects and programs to support statewide infrastructure, real estate, and financing strategies that advance Maryland’s competitiveness and inclusive growth. Nick plays a central role in administering the Maryland Business Ready Sites Program (MBRSP), a first-in-Maryland grant program to accelerate site readiness and attract large-scale business investment across the state. His background includes policy leadership at the Greater Baltimore Committee (GBC) and research and data analysis at the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore (EAGB), in addition to previous international work in development economics. With a B.A. in Economics and M.P.P. in International Development from the University of Maryland College Park, and an M.A. in Political Science from Boston University, Nick brings a data-informed, partnership-driven approach to shaping Maryland’s economic future.
With over a decade of experience in communications and marketing, Victoria Zelefsky is a seasoned professional specializing in growth marketing, crafting multi-channel digital strategies, managing complex communications strategies and dissemination, and spearheading social media campaigns for multimillion-dollar companies. Currently, Victoria serves as the Vice President of Marketing & Communications for the Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation in Annapolis. In this role, she offers guidance and oversight on program initiatives and communication strategies that help AAEDC attract and retain businesses in Anne Arundel County.
Prior to joining AAEDC, she was the Director of Brand and Communications at The Menkiti Group, where she directed all marketing and public relations initiatives for the enterprise, including both The Menkiti Group and Keller Williams Capital Properties.
Victoria is a member and featured writer for the exclusive Forbes Communications Council, where she shares her insights and expertise on marketing and communications topics. Additionally, she serves as the Creative Director for Kurv Agency, a national digital marketing agency, overseeing content creation, approval, and distribution for major clients.
Passionate about creating impactful and compelling content that engages and informs audiences, Victoria also excels in leading and developing talented teams of marketers. She has been recognized as a 2022 Top Women Leader in Maryland by Women we Admire, an Acquisition International Influential Businesswoman of the year, and was an Inman Innovator finalist for a marketing campaign she spearheaded about Women’s History Month.
As a classically trained opera singer, Victoria earned a master’s degree in music from the Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University, and a bachelor’s degree in music from the University of Northern Colorado. Today, she continues to perform across Maryland and has made regular appearances each year as the national anthem singer for the Baltimore Orioles since 2015.
