Ryan, Stephen photo
Founder's Note: I am personally honored to announce that my friend, and long-time supporter of Operation HOPE, Mr. Stephen Ryan, Esq., Partner, McDermott, Will & Emery, is a new member of the Operation HOPE national board of directors.  Steve has a long and distinguished history with HOPE, and was even responsible several years ago for securing a multi-million dollar grant commitment in support of our work from one of America's largest companies.  That grant and the work we did with it, subsequently resolved and modified hundreds of millions of dollars of mortgages for those caught in the grips of the subprime mortgage crisis.  And so, it can easily be said that the almost $500 million in modified mortgages, and the more than 130,000 clients and customers that we have served through the Mortgage HOPE Crisis Hotline — is also part of the Stephen Ryan legacy too.

Mr. Ryan provides a broad range of representation, including lobbying, litigation and counseling services to high-technology corporations in regulated industries.  He heads the federal lobbyists, government policy advocates and federal government contract lawyers of the firm.  

Mr. Ryan has broad experience in all branches of our government.  He served as General Counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs (GAC), chaired by the Hon. John Glenn.  He managed the Committee’s staff of attorneys and investigators and devised and participated in a number of legislative initiatives, primarily relating to procurement, ethics legislation, and the organization of government agencies. He served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the DC Office, and as Deputy Counsel of the President's Commission on Organized Crime. He clerked for two years for a Federal Judge, and has practiced law for 31 years. He is routinely listed as one of Washington DC's 'best lawyers', and has received numerous other professional awards and distinctions. He taught for almost a decade as an adjunct Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law School.  

Mr. Ryan has been constantly active in civic and religious institutions. He was the founding Chairman of Operation HOPE's Mid-Atlantic Board and remains a member of that Board and has served Operation Hope in a variety of capacities since March 2000. He is currently a Board member of the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, DC, and heads its annual 'Will on the Hill' fundraiser, where Members of Congress appear on stage.

Steve previously served as an advisor in Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Russia during the 1990's for rule of law projects. He has previously served as President of the Gonzaga College High School Father's Club, and as the founding and now past Co-Chair of the Advisory Board for the Canonization of Mary Virginia Merrick, the first person ever considered as a candidate for sainthood from the Catholic Church's Washington, D.C. Archdiocese.  

Steve is a graduate of Cornell University and the University of Notre Dame Law School.

 

John Hope Bryant is a thought leader, founder, chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE and Bryant Group Companies, Inc. Magazine/CEO READ bestselling business author of LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass) the only African-American bestselling business author in America, and a Member of the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability for President Barack Obama.  Mr. Bryant is the co-founder of the Gallup-HOPE Index, the only national research poll on youth financial dignity and youth economic energy in the U.S. He is also a co-founder of Global Dignity with HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland. Global Dignity is affiliated with the Forum of Young Global Leaders and the World Economic Forum. 

 

 

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