Tifie US Office
Danny Raymer – Director
Don Olsen– General Counsel
Eric Workman– Shipping
Ed Alvarez– Art Director
Robert Workman has been married for 30 years to his wife Angé, and they are the parents of 8 children and 7 grandchildren. Robert grew up in the agricultural community of Lovell, Wyoming. He grew up learning to be self-sufficient. He has experience in animal husbandry as well as with agricultural equipment.
Robert's business background includes building a worldwide arts and crafts business that started with 6 employees. His business now employs over 900 in the US, in addition to nearly 3000 indirect employees through partners, primarily in China. Robert has 20 years of experience setting up trade relationships with China and the USA, as well as Western Europe, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
Fraser Bullock is a managing director and co-founder of Sorenson Capital. He was the president and CEO of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee for the Olympic Winter Games of 2002. The Salt Lake Games are widely recognized as one of the most successful and best operated in history.
He was an original partner of Bain Capital, and in 1996 he founded Alpine Consolidated, LLC, a company specializing in effecting business consolidations, where he served as managing director until 2002. In this capacity, he sourced companies for consolidation, raised the requisite money, and negotiated terms. Fraser received a master of business administration and a BA in economics from Brigham Young University.
Ron Zarbock received his MBA through the University of Utah and Thunderbird in Geneva, Switzerland, in International Management and Distribution in 1995. Ron has built several successful businesses in the distribution industry and has developed and managed strategic business plans focusing on management training and team building. He is a member of national industry boards, which oversee e-commerce, business management, and publication. Ron realized that the best way to help the needy was to teach personal accountability and economic stability. Ron has extensive experience in fundraising, fiscal development, and the development of micro business and credit programs. He has assisted thousands with his humanitarian efforts domestically, in Peru, Mexico, and Africa.
Jim Thornton is president and CEO of Provo Craft & Novelty, Inc. He was previously president of the Consumer Products Division for Apogee Enterprises, and earned his master’s degree from Notre Dame. He believes in surrounding himself with great people and then empowering them to make decisions, allowing them to become a high performance team. Jim believes in enabling others to acquire the skills needed to improve their lives. He has sponsored a school in Uganda and a group home for battered women and children. He also created a children’s book program for inmates to record books on tape for their children, and he and his wife are co-founders of Itagg! the world. He is also involved in the Detroit-based Heidelberg Project, an urban rebuilding program involving youth.
Danny Raymer lives in Mapleton, Utah, with his wife and 3 of their children. Scattered across the western states are their 5 married children and 16 grandchildren. Danny's professional background is in information technology and university level academics. He spent 15 years working as technical manager for the Personal Care Products North America facilities for Weyerhaeuser.
In 1995 he took the position of Assistant Director of Computer Operations (Division of Continuing Education) at Brigham Young University. There he completed his master’s with the Marriott School of Management and is finishing a PhD with the School of Agriculture and Biology. He is also an adjunct professor at 2 universities.
Don Olsen received his Juris Doctor from the Brigham Young University’s J. Reuben Clark Law School. In addition to his role as Tifie’s legal counsel Don works as General Counsel for Provo Craft & Novelty, Inc. Prior to coming to Provo Craft Don worked as an attorney with the law firm of Jeffs & Jeffs in Provo, Utah.
Don enjoys the challenges that come with Tifie’s operations in multiple countries and varied legal systems. He has made several trips to the Congo on behalf of Tifie and enjoys the association that comes with people from varied backgrounds joined to accomplish something good. He and his wife Rachel are residents of Springville, Utah and they have two girls.
Phil Malula, his wife, Jeannette, and their 4 children are currently residing in Salt Lake City, Utah, in the United States. Phil Malula is a native of the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa. He is the son of a tribal chief in the province of Bandundu. As a teenager, Phil was sent to a Catholic seminary (Seminary of Kalonda), where he studied linguistics. Later, Phil received a law degree from ULK in Kinshasa and moved to the United States, where he received a degree in business from Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah. In June of 2006, while on a business trip in China, Phil met Robert Workman and participated in the organization of Tifie Humanitarian.