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ginia Beach-based GilJoy Group. His wife, Joyce, is president of the company. (GilJoy is a combination of their first names.) Since 1985, GilJoy has owned


and operated more than 70 Burger King and Pizza Hut res- taurants employing more than 2,000 people in Virginia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wash- ington, D.C. Most of those restau- rants have been sold, but the com- pany, which now has 60 employ- ees, still owns sites in Hampton Roads. Bland has been a leader


among Burger King franchisees. He served on the board of direc- tors of the company’s National Franchise Association for 10 years and was elected to five terms as president of the Burger King Minority Franchise Association. He also is a charter board mem- ber of the Burger King Inclusion Advisory Committee. Inclusion also is one of


Bland’s goals at the Urban League of Hampton Roads, which under his direction has begun several projects to assist the region’s Afri- can-American community. “The Urban League movement is all about empowering minority citi- zens,” he says. In addition to the Urban


League, Bland also serves on the boards of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Randolph-Macon College, the Hampton Roads Community Foundation and Sen- tara Healthcare. He is chairman and president of Healthy Neigh- borhood Enterprises, a commu- nity development corporation in Norfolk, and was recently named a member of the Governor’s Vir- ginia Complete Count Commis- sion, whose goal is to improve the participation and representation of Virginians in the 2020 Census. “I know Gil as a passion-


ate advocate for quality care and the Sentara mission,” says How-


ard Kern, president and CEO of Norfolk-based Sentara, a non- profit health system with facilities in Virginia and North Carolina. “His focus on social determinants in population health and health- care equity reminds us every day of our not-for-profit mission. He supported development of the Sentara Cancer Center in Norfolk for the convenience and peace of mind of our patients.” Bland is the former chair-


man of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV), where he served on its executive committee for seven years. “As chair of the State Council


of Higher Education, Mr. Bland worked to expand opportunity for all Virginians and to ensure that the quality of education they received was well worth the time and money they spent on it,” says Peter Blake, SCHEV’s director. “Under his leadership, we laid the groundwork for the development of The Virginia Plan for Higher Education, which seeks to make Virginia the best-educated state in the nation by 2030.” Bland’s past board service also


includes the Old Dominion Uni- versity board of visitors and the James Madison University Foun- dation. “Education is a gateway of opportunity for most Americans, particularly minority Americans,” Bland says. He speaks from experi-


ence. Bland grew up in the Dahl- gren area of King George County where he played on a state cham- pion high school basketball team. “My dad only went to sev- enth grade, and my mom was a high school valedictorian who ended up being a maid all her life because of the times,” he says. Bland worked his way


through college and graduate school. He earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting and econom- ics at JMU and an MBA from


Atlanta University. Bland began his career as a


commercial lending officer for the Continental Bank of Chicago. He later served as a vice president for commercial lending for the Independence Bank of Chicago before becoming a Burger King franchisee. Burger King Corp. presented


Bland with its James McLamore Founder’s Award for outstand- ing contributions as a franchi- see and endowed a scholarship in his name at JMU. He also has received an honorary degree from Longwood University for his ser- vice on the SCHEV board. In addition to his two teen-


age sons, William and Samuel, the Blands have three adult children: Robert, a college professor; Alli- son, who works at Princeton Uni- versity; and Libby, an architect and city planner. The teen boys participate in a


variety of sports, Bland says. “We find our weekends in the gymna- siums and traveling around Vir- ginia for athletic endeavors.”


Virginia Business: Why did you decide to become the pres- ident and CEO of the Urban League chapter? Bland: Urban League has four major pillars: housing, educa- tion, health and workforce devel- opment, all four of which I have spent most of my professional life directly engaged in. Secondly, it is the oldest civil rights organiza- tion in the country, and the Urban League movement is all about empowering minority citizens. I find that wholly and perfectly aligned with my own personal goals. Thirdly, our chapter is expe- riencing opportunities to be rele- vant and remain strong. I thought I had the opportunity with the various boards and affiliations that I’ve been associated with … that I could bring some assistance to the existing team and board.


www.VirginiaBusiness.com VIRGINIA BUSINESS | 19


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