Executive Staff
David J. Walton – Chief Executive Officer of Goodwill Industries of East Texas, Inc.
Email: david.walton@goodwilletx.com
David graduated from Dickinson College with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and History. He then went on to obtain his MBA in Finance and Marketing from The Wharton School. Additional education includes AGPAM, VA chapter, CPAM, Patient Accounting. He has also completed Goodwill Industries International’s Executive Director Training Program.
Other accomplishments:
• David speaks Spanish and has travelled extensively in Latin America
• From 1963 until 1965, he worked as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guayaquil, Ecuador
• From 1978 until 1985, he volunteered at the Burke Rehabilitation Institute in Westchester County, NY
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Mary Cowan – Director Of Mission Services
Email: mary.cowan@goodwilletx.com
Mary Cowan, SPHR, joined Goodwill Industries of East Texas, Inc. in 2003. She began her career at Goodwill as the Director of Human Resources. In 2005, Mary assumed the role of Director, Organizational Development and her area of responsibility expanded to include the Career and Counseling Services Division. In 2009, she became the Director of Mission Services and the Commercial Services Division was added to her area of accountability. Presently, she is responsible for Human Resources, the Career and Counseling Services Division and the Commercial Services Division. Mary attended the University of Southwest Louisiana and the Goodwill Industries International Executive Development Program. Prior to joining Goodwill, she worked in for-profit manufacturing as a Corporate Human Resource Executive. Mary is a dog lover and resides in Tyler with her German Shepherd, Bella.
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Gail Gray – Director Of Retail Operations
Email: gail.gray@goodwilletx.com
Gail is a lifelong resident of Tyler, Texas. She has been with Goodwill Industries of East Texas since 1998. She started as a manager of the Tyler South retail store and was promoted to Area Manager of two stores in 2001. She then added two additional stores 3 months later. She became Regional Manager in 2002, overseeing 8 retail stores. In October of 2003, Gail was promoted to Director of Retail Operations. Goodwill then added 6 Longview stores in January of 2009 and she is currently the Director of Retail Operations for all 15 stores.
Gail loves Goodwill’s philosophy of “A Hand Up, not a Hand Out” and finds this inspirational in her quest to continue to grow all East Texas retail operations.
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Lauren Shoemaker – Director Of Finance and Administration
Email: lauren.miller@goodwilletx.com
Lauren was raised in Tyler, TX and graduated from Robert E Lee High School in 1993. She received her BBA in Accounting from Texas Tech University in 2001. She went on to receive her CPA license in 2009 and became the Director Of Finance for Goodwill Industries of East Texas in August of 2009. Lauren enjoys all the people she has met at Goodwill and feels strongly about Goodwill’s Mission and working toward it’s success.
