December 11, 2018
The Valbridge | Charleston office recently participated in the Trident United Way Day of Caring 2018. It took place at Philip Simmons High School to help the PSHS Beta Club and Renaissance Program create a food and clothing pantry housed within the school. Donations were collected including shelving, storage bins, laundry detergent, labeling tape, markers, hangers, and bags.
The goal of this project is to provide support to students, families, and community members in need of food or clothing. This project allows the community to come together and offers support for those suffering during times of natural disasters that have recently been prevalent in this area. The project is to be on-going, fueled by food and clothing drives that will be managed by the PSHS Beta Club and Renaissance Program.
Valbridge | Charleston was pleased to be able to lend a hand in helping support the community with Philip Simmons High School during this season of Thanksgiving. There was a total of nine Valbridge volunteers on site.
Meet the team:
Christopher D. Donato – Senior Managing Director
Christopher D. Donato was born in Charleston, educated locally, and graduated from the College of Charleston with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in 1973. He began his appraisal career in 1974 with the Charleston County Assessor’s Office, became a fee appraiser in 1979 with Holcombe and Fair Realtors, and started Moore, Jackson, Donato, and Santos in 1984. Mr. Donato obtained his MAI designation in 1984 and has held numerous elected offices with the South Carolina Chapter of the Appraisal Institute and served as its president in 1993. He served three years as Regional Education Liaison for Region IX of the Appraisal Institute and was a qualified instructor for both the Appraisal Institute and Appraisal Foundation. In 2011, Mr. Donato was appointed by Governor Nikki Haley to a seat on the South Carolina Real Estate Appraisers Board. He is a member of the National Association of Realtors, the Commercial Investment Real Estate Institute (CCIM) and is currently Broker-In-Charge of Atlantic Real Estate Services, LLC. Mr. Donato has developed a local reputation as a litigation expert.
In 2019 Chris will take on the role “Of Counsel” for the firm.
Pledger M. Bishop, III – Senior Managing Director
JPledger M. Bishop, III (Jody) Jody has nearly 34 years of professional real estate valuation and consulting experience. He is active with the Appraisal Institute holding the MAI, SRA and AI-GRS designations, is a Counselor of Real Estate (CRE) with the National Association of Realtors and is a Senior Managing Director of the local Valbridge Property Advisors – Charleston office. Jody is a 2014 – 2018 member of the Appraisal Institute National Board of Directors, in addition to duties as 2016 – 2018 Chair of Appraisal Institute Region IX and the 2010 Appraisal Institute South Carolina Chapter President. Jody is an Appraisal Institute Instructor and has authored several seminars on Real Estate Valuation topics.
He currently sits on the SunTrust Bank Charleston Area Advisory Board and is an I-Beam Reader for Jennie Moore Elementary School. Other professional involvement includes serving as a Rotarian for Mount Pleasant Rotary Club, 1999 – 2003 Director of the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service, and Professional Standards and Grievance Committees. He is also a 30-year veteran of the South Carolina Football Officials Association having officiated in 4 State Championship contests and the 2012 North – South All Star game.
His concentration is in complex commercial and residential property valuation and consulting with emphasis as a litigation expert witness.
Karl P. Finkelstein – Senior Managing Director
Karl P. Finkelstein is a graduate of the University of South Carolina with a BS degree in Business Administration. Karl has over 28 years of real estate experience, with the last 20 spent in the appraisal field. Karl holds the MAI designation, was a founding BOD member of Valbridge Property Advisors, and is a Senior Managing Director of the local Charleston Office. Karl also serves as Vice President of Business and Marketing for Valbridge, promoting the Company’s large footprint of National Appraisers and their wholly owned Technology company – Datappraise. Karl served the local State Chapter of the Appraisal Institute, last serving as President. His concentration is in the appraisal of complex properties as well as litigation support and consulting.
Michael C. Tawes, Sr. – Senior Managing Director
Michael C. Tawes, Sr. is a graduate of the University of South Carolina with a BS degree in Business Administration. He is a Certified General Real Estate Appraiser in South Carolina and a member of the Appraisal Institute. Mr. Tawes has more than 24 years of real estate experience in the Charleston market and is a life-long Charleston resident. He is also a member of the Charleston Trident Area Board of Realtors and an active member of Stella Maris Catholic Church.
Shaun C. Payne – Senior Managing Director
Shaun C. Payne is a graduate of Presbyterian College with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Business Administration. He holds the MAI designation and is a Senior Managing Director in the Charleston Office. Mr. Payne has nearly 20 years of real estate experience, with 15 of those spent in the appraisal field. He spent several years in the commercial real estate acquisitions field identifying, underwriting, and valuing properties across the country. He is active in and has held several positions within the South Carolina Chapter of the Appraisal Institute, and actively volunteers with numerous local youth sports.
His concentration is in the appraisal of complex commercial properties, as well as litigation support.