James Collins, currently serves as U.S. Vice-President and General Manager of McDonald’s Greater Southwest Region.  In this position, he oversees the marketing, finance, operations, franchising, training and human resources functions for over 700 restaurants. His region encompasses a four state geographic area, whose annual sales top $1.5 billion dollars. Under Collins’ leadership, the region strives to ensure every guest receives the Quality, Service, Cleanliness and Value that they have come to recognize from McDonald’s.

James began his McDonald’s career in 1976 as a crew person in the Cleveland Region and with great success quickly advanced through the restaurant ranks.  After leaving McDonald’s to pursue other management opportunities, the ketchup in his veins didn’t allow him to stay gone for long.  Since returning to the company in 1985, James has continuously strengthened his leadership ability and strives to build strong customer focused teams in his region.

Prior to becoming Vice President and General Manager, Mr. Collins joined the Greater Southwest Region in 2001 as U.S. Vice-President of Operations/QSC.  He has also held positions as Sr. Director/Operations Team Leader of the Great Lakes Division and a variety of other operations positions including Field Consultant, Training Consultant, Operations Manager, Field Service Manager, Multi-Department Head and Director of Operations in the Cleveland Region.  Mr. Collins also served as a District Manager in the Detroit Region.

Mr. Collins has a keen focus on building a customer-centric service culture. He strives to find innovative solutions to grow sales and guest counts, all while fostering the partnership of regional staff, franchisees and suppliers.  He serves on numerous National and Regional teams including: National Chairman of the McDonald’s African-American Council (MA2C), National Franchisee Relations Team and National Relationships-Economic-Alignment-Leverage (REAL) Team.

Mr. Collins has been recognized numerous times throughout his career for his leadership and dedication to the McDonald’s System. Recent awards include recognition for “Best Field Execution” and the Pat Harris Diversity Award.

Although his current position demands a great amount of his time, he stays involved in the community by volunteering with such organizations as the Urban League of Dallas and Habitat for Humanity. Mr. Collins also sits on the Boards of Directors of the Big Brother/Big Sister of Detroit as well as the Board of Directors for the Dallas Ronald McDonald House and Ronald McDonald House Charities. He is also the founding Board member for the Tackle Myeloma Foundation. Additionally, Mr. Collins demonstrates his desire to mentor young people through his work with the National Pre-Law & Leadership Institute for Youth.

James and his wife Patricia have three children, and three grandchildren. In his free time, James enjoys golfing, listening to music, and spending time with his family.



Caryn Robey Wilson is an individual who lives to serve others. She strives daily to apply the teachings of her Christian faith through helping build financial literacy and true wealth in the lives of all. She serves as a Financial Consultant for AXA Advisors, LLC in Dallas, TX where she focuses on helping individuals "build and secure their financial futures" through risk management, business and retirement planning, and various brokerage and investment vehicles. Her company affects the lives of over 90 million customers, helping to manage over 1.5 trillion assets annually. Caryn was awarded the Fast Start Award for her dedication and passion.

Caryn was born and raised in Houston, TX where she has always been heavily engaged in the athletic world. She grew up playing competitive basketball through a well known elite basketball club entitled "The Houstonians" whom she played in the vacinity with numerous future bound collegiate and NBA players such as Daniel "Booby" Gibson, Rashad Lewis, and T.J. Ford. She was a four year letterman and three time All-District Awardee for Pearland High School Girls Basketball. Numerous college scholarships were offered, but Caryn decided to pursue academics at Baylor University. She obtained a Dual Bachelor degree in Finance and Marketing with a minor in Religious Studies. During this time is when she realized the great importance of having an alternate path beyond the sports arena and committed her work to helping others create an individual post career path.

She serves the community and participates in numerous charitable organizations such as The Boys and Girls Club, Salvation Army, The Star of Hope, Manda Ann Nursing Home, and R.E.A.C.H. She was also a coach for the Special Olympics and trained participants on a weekly basis.

Caryn's journey alongside her husband, C.J. Wilson, a cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys, is an example of the necessary transitioning in and out of the sports arena. Through L.A.W., she hopes to share her life experiences with the youth and to help promote leadership, hardwork, consistency, perseverance, and preparation outside the world of sports so that the youth will be ready to encounter the facets of everyday life once they have walked away from the whistles.



Mark Wilson was born and raised in Fort Worth Texas. He then moved to Lubbock, Texas in 1986 and attended Texas Tech University, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in Restaurant Hotel Institutional Management. Upon completing his degree, he began to work for the university in the financial aid office as a Loan and Grant Officer. Meanwhile, continuing to work toward his Masters degree in Interdisciplinary Studies which consist of Education, Public Administration and Communication, which he completed in 1995.

Upon completion of his Masters degree, he moved to Arlington Texas and began his sixteen year career with Ben E. Keith foods in Dallas Texas. He has moved throughout the ranks at Ben E. Keith starting as a District Sales Representative and then promoted to a National Sales Representative and currently holds the title of District Sales manager.

Additionally, Mark has been married for 13 years to his wonderful bride, Tonya Wilson. Together they have two beautiful girls Kennedy, age 10 and Kamryn, Age 5. Mark is very active with his girls serving as a coach for their Soccer and Basketball teams.

Mark has been a active member of the Omega PSI PHI Fraternity since 1992.



Michael S. Wilson, Attorney, founded Berent & Wilson, LP in July 2006 with the primary goal of providing unparalleled legal representation to his clients. Mr. Wilson represents individuals in business and commercial disputes, as well as in cases involving construction, real estate, negligence, personal injury, and wrongful death.  Mr. Wilson also represents numerous small businesses and provides a broad range of transactional services to both new companies and ongoing entities. 

Prior to forming Berent & Wilson, LP, Mr. Wilson began his legal career with Thompson, Coe, Cousins & Irons, LLP.  He later joined Godwin Gruber, LLP (n/k/a Godwin Ronquillo, LLP) and became one of the youngest partners in that firm’s history.

Mr. Wilson graduated from the University of Mississippi with a Bachelor of Arts in English and History, and he obtained his law degree from Southern Methodist University.  In addition to the State Bar of Texas, Mr. Wilson is a member of the Dallas Bar Association and Dallas Association of Young Lawyers.  He is a past member of the Executive Board of the Fort Worth Opera, as well as the junior board of Dallas Summer Musicals.  Currently, Mr. Wilson is Legal Counsel and sits on the board of I’m Dying To Tell You Something, a non-profit organization dedicated to enriching the lives of terminally ill cancer patients.

Mr. Wilson resides in Dallas with his wife and two sons.



Jason M. Berent, Attorney, a founding partner of Berent & Wilson, LP, is a tenacious litigator who has successfully handled hundreds of cases throughout Texas and the United States in both state and federal courts.

The majority of Mr. Berent’s practice can best be described as consumer advocacy involving representation of the “little guy” against the Goliaths of the world. Mr. Berent has particular expertise in matters involving real estate, construction, insurance and professional malpractice. Mr. Berent also serves as general counsel to a number of small to mid-size businesses and handles virtually all of his clients’ “in-house” legal needs. Mr. Berent is known for his aggressive style, his unparalleled dedication, his tactical acumen and his ability to deliver results for his clients time and time again. 

Mr. Berent earned his undergraduate degree from Georgetown University’s Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service in Washington, D.C. and his law degree from the University of Texas. Mr. Berent is a member of the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Association of Young Lawyers the Dallas Bar Association and Dallas Trial Lawyers Association. When he is not litigating, Mr. Berent enjoys spending time with his wife and two young children.

Troy Mathieu, a native of Edgard, Louisiana, received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, in 1983, and his Master of Science degree in Sports Management from Western Illinois University in 1987. After completing his undergraduate degree, he served as a marketing representative for the Xerox Corporation for two years. After receiving his Master’s degree, in 1987, he began a successful nine-year stint with the Sugar Bowl Sports Festival in New Orleans, where he worked his way up from an intern position to the top administrative post as the organization's Executive Director. As the Sugar Bowl's Executive Director, he successfully negotiated numerous multi-million dollar sponsorship agreements for the bowl, and a long-term television contract with ABC Sports that secured the organization's financial future.

Mathieu moved to the DFW Metroplex in 1996 to become the Vice President of Sports Marketing for the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce. In 1997, he was named as the Assistant Superintendent of Athletics for the Dallas Independent School District, where he served until 2006. In his role with the Dallas school district, he managed a $5+ million dollar budget and directed a comprehensive program of athletics for the District's 22 high schools and 27 middle schools, in which approximately 16,000 student-athletes participated. Under his leadership, Dallas ISD teams won eleven (11) state championships, and garnered nine state runner-up finishes. He oversaw more than $52 million of athletic facility improvements in the school district during his tenure, including the state of the art Jesse Owens Memorial Athletic Complex in Oak Cliff.

In his distinguished career, he has also served as Director of Athletics at Grambling State University in Louisiana, and Director of Athletics for the Washington D.C. Public Schools. He presently serves as the Director of Athletics for the Grand Prairie Independent School District, a position he has held since June of 2009.

In August of 2010, Mathieu was named as one of the twelve most influential people in Texas High School athletics by Friday Night Football Magazine.

He and his wife Cabrina are the proud parents of four children.



George Gervin, nicknamed "Iceman" for his cool demeanor on the court, was primarily known for his scoring talents. He led teams at both Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Michigan, and Long Beach State.

His first scoring crown came in 1978, when he narrowly edged David Thompson for the scoring title by seven hundredths of a point (27.22 to 27.15). Although Thompson came up with a memorable performance for the last game of the regular season, scoring 73 points, Gervin maintained his slight lead by scoring 63 points (including an NBA-record at the time 33 points in the second quarter) in a loss in his last game of the season.

With the scoring crown in hand, he sat out some of the third, and all of the fourth quarter. Gervin went on to lead the NBA in scoring average three years in a row from 1978 to 1980 (with a high of 33.1 points per game in 1979-80), and again in 1982. The Spurs drafted high scoring guards Oliver Robinson of UAB and Tony Grier from South Florida to take some offensive pressure off Gervin. Prior to Michael Jordan, Gervin had the most scoring titles of any guard in league history.

When he left the NBA, Gervin played for several years in Europe: in Italy for Banco Roma during the 1986-87 season, and in the Spanish National Basketball League for TDK Manresa team (he was 38 years old at the time).

Gervin's legacy has inspired other athletes, such as Gary Payton who said Gervin was his favorite player to watch as a kid. Asked to elaborate, Payton said that it was because "he was just so saucy." He was idolized by former NFL and Heisman-winning quarterback Ty Detmer. Detmer records in his autobiography that he was elated to receive Gervin's autograph one day as a youth in San Antonio.