JUSTIN JACKSON
CHIEF RELATIONS OFFICER
Justin Jackson serves as the Chief Relations Officer for the Dog Tag Brewing Foundation where he manages Gold Star Family programs as well as external relations, marketing, and communication efforts for the Foundation.
Prior to leaving active duty, Justin served as a United States Marine Corps AH-1W attack helicopter pilot where he flew nearly 600 combat missions totaling over 1,100 contingency flight hours across multiple deployments, including one to Iraq (2008) and three to Afghanistan (2009, 2010-11, 2012). He continues his service as a member of the selected Marine Corps reserve.
Justin is a graduate of the Marine Corps' Weapons and Tactics School, has earned a Bachelor of Science degree in History from The United States Naval Academy, and is completing his final semester as an MBA candidate at Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business.
Justin comes to Bozeman with his future wife, Shea, by way of his native Houston, Texas.
John Kuc
Chief Operating Officer
John Kuc serves as the Chief Operating Officer for the Dog Tag Brewing Foundation where he oversees the foundation's daily operations and internal processes. He works with the leadership team to develop and implement strategies to ensure the foundation grows and fulfills its mission.
John joined Dog Tag Brewing in the summer of 2014 with 21 years of operational and project management experience in the IT industry. He earned his Bachelor of Science from James Madison University and his Master of Science in Management Information Systems from the University of Virginia.
John comes from a family with a strong military tradition and in fact his grandfather introduced his father to his mother when both men were recuperating at Walter Reed hospital from injuries suffered in Vietnam. John and his wife, Erika, live in southwestern Montana and when they aren’t working can be found fly fishing, hiking, mountain biking, camping, and cross-country skiing in the mountains around their home.
Lisa Reinhardt
Office Manager
Lisa Reinhardt holds a B.S. in Environmental Science from the University of New England in Maine. She grew up in New Jersey and has been blessed to live and work in places such as Isle Royale National Park, Grand Teton National Park, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, northern Wisconsin, and Minnesota. She and her husband Hans have been happy to call Montana home since 2011. Her professional experience includes previous nonprofit office management, project management as an environmental consultant, and administrative work.
Lisa is proud to be a daughter, a sister, and a wife to US Army veterans. Her twin brother, SSG Andrew Thomas Lobosco, gave the ultimate sacrifice on 22 August 2009 when he was killed in action in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Melanie Schell
Special Counsel
Melanie N. Schell is a seasoned non-profit attorney with extensive experience as an executive-level manager, in-house counsel, communications strategist, and planned gift specialist. She works with nonprofits of all sizes and in all stages, blending her knowledge of law and best practices with non-profit sensibilities to develop mission based solutions for clients.
As Managing Principal and General Counsel for the Bannack Group, LLC, Melanie manages Bannack’s Bozeman, MT office and counsels nonprofit organizations on strategic planning, major fundraising initiatives, sound operational policies and procedures, public relations and communications, deferred giving and creative philanthropy, board/staff relations, and key organizational transitions.
Melanie also maintains a private legal practice, providing comprehensive legal services to nonprofit organizations with particular emphasis on governance, complex gift structures, contracts, real estate matters, corporate compliance, and human resources.
Prior to her consulting work, Melanie served as the Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel for the Montana State University Alumni Foundation. In that role she served as a key member of the organization’s senior leadership team and was responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day management of communications, planned/deferred giving, events, human resources, business relations, alumni relations, annual fund, real estate and property management, and legal affairs. She had primary responsibility for more than one-half of the organization’s personnel and annual operating budget.
As a former frontline fundraiser, Melanie secured over $40 million in current and deferred gifts individually and through strategic collaborations. She served as the chief operations and communications strategist for multiple fundraising initiatives, including a successful 120-day $10 million campaign during the height of the 2008 national financial crisis.
Melanie is a licensed attorney in Montana and Minnesota, where she previously practiced in the areas of estate planning and small business formation. She also spent four years in federal criminal defense.
Melanie earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Utah College of Law where she successfully competed in trial advocacy and moot court, was a teaching assistant for Torts and legal research/writing courses, and was a staff member of and published in the Journal of Law & Family Studies. She received her BA with honors in Speech Communications from Montana State University in Bozeman, Montana.
