Four new members were elected to three-year terms on the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation’s Board of Trustees. The new trustees are Karen M. Gravel (Atlanta), William B. Peard (Atlanta), Jane E. Royal (Madison, Ga.), and Dr. R. Candy Tate (Atlanta).

Karen M. Gravel lives in Atlanta and is a principal architect at Lord Aeck Sargent, serving as the director of historic preservation practice area. She is an expert in the rehabilitation, restoration and preservation of historic buildings and is also a LEED Accredited Professional. Several of her projects have received preservation awards from the Georgia Trust including Hill House at Andalusia in Milledgeville, the MLK Federal Building in Atlanta, Building D at Kennesaw State University, Hinman Research Building at Georgia Tech and Ennis Hall at Georgia College and State University.

Gravel has a Master of Architecture from Georgia Institute of Technology.  Her professional affiliations include the American Institute of Architects and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She is also on the Session of the Central Presbyterian Church in Atlanta and is involved with the Georgia Nature Conservancy.

William B. Peard of Atlanta is a longtime supporter of the Georgia Trust, previously serving on the Georgia Trust Board of Trustees in 2012. Peard served as treasurer and chair of the Finance Committee, and then as vice-chair before being elected chairman of the board of trustees in 2015 and a Trustee Emeritus in 2019. He has been the chair of the Trust’s Nominating Committee and Revolving Fund Committee. Peard has been the primary proponent of the Trust’s West Atlanta Preservation Initiative. Peard has always been fascinated with historic buildings and has restored five homes in Georgia with his wife, Carey.

Peard graduated from Washington and Lee University and served as a partner at Deloitte until his recent retirement. Over the years, he has worked to foster corporate and community support for the Trust. In addition to being on the Trust’s Board of Trustees, Peard also served on the board of the Atlanta History Center.

Jane E. Royal of Madison, Ga. is rejoining the Georgia Trust Board of Trustees after becoming first involved in 2012. While on the board, Royal chaired the Places in Peril committee, traveling to all 10 sites across the state each year. She also chaired the Preservation Gala in 2019 and the Madison Ramble in 2013. Royal owns and operates Madison Markets, a popular upscale antique and interiors store, the James Madison Inn and the Variety Works historic event space in Madison. She and her husband received the Renaissance Award from the Georgia Municipal Association in 2010 and were instrumental in the creation of Madison Town Park, a downtown revitalization project to add a green space and park pavilion. Royal has been involved with the Madison-Morgan County Boys and Girls Club and the Madison-Morgan County Convention Center & Visitors Bureau.

Dr. R. Candy Tate of Atlanta is the founding president and chief executive officer of Culture Centers International, Inc., whose mission is to transform communities with the collection of their history of African Diaspora institutions; to educate the community through the arts; and to sustain the legacy of the African Diaspora through historic preservation. Dr. Tate is an alumna of Emory University (BA), Georgia State University (MPA), University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee (MA), and Clark Atlanta University (DAH). She has been an art historian and has worked in arts administration for more than 30 years, currently serving as assistant director of Emory College’s Center for Creativity & Arts and an adjunct professor at Clark Atlanta University in the Art and Fashion Department. She is also a board member of Historic Atlanta and serves on the Georgia African American Historic Preservation Network (GAAHPN). She is a silver star (25-year) member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. in the Pi Alpha Omega Chapter and an active member of Ben Hill United Methodist Church Visual Arts and Veterans Ministries. She was re-elected president of the Buckhead/Cascade City Chapter of The Links which “builds sustainable futures for women and children of African descent.”

Dr. Tate has authored three National Park Service grants, bringing more than $1.5M to African American civil rights restoration projects in Atlanta, and a National Trust for Historic Preservation African American Heritage Action Fund Planning Grant for Fountain Hall, which the Georgia Trust listed on its 2020 “Places in Peril” list.