Christopher Meek is an American

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

and finance executive and author. Meek is the co-founder and chairman of

SoldierStrong SoldierStrong (formerly SoldierSocks) is a Stamford, Connecticut based 501(c)(3) charitable organization whose mission is to improve the lives of the men and the women of the United States Armed Forces. The mission has taken several key forms si ...

, a charitable organization which provides support for U.S. service members and veterans. He is also the co-founder and chairman of START Now!, a non-profit which provides

foreclosure Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan. Formally, a mortg ...

counseling to homeowners. He is also the managing director of global relationship management at

S&P Global S&P Global Inc. (prior to April 2016 McGraw Hill Financial, Inc., and prior to 2013 The McGraw–Hill Companies, Inc.) is an American Public company, publicly traded corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City. Its primary areas of busi ...

and a member of the Maxwell School Advisory Board at

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

Education and career

In 1992, Meek graduated from

with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

from the

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs (Maxwell School) is the professional public policy school of Syracuse University, a private research university in Syracuse, New York. The school is organized in 11 academic departments and 13 ...

. He has a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

degree from

Pace University Pace University is a private university with its main campus in New York City and secondary campuses in Westchester County, New York. It was established in 1906 by the brothers Homer St. Clair Pace and Charles A. Pace as a business school. Pac ...

. Meek was an equity derivatives trader at Goldman Sachs for 16 years before stepping down as a vice president in the securities division in August 2011. As of 2023, he is the managing director of global relationship management at

Philanthropy

Chris_Meek_accepting_the_Syracuse_University_2014_Orange_Circle_Award

In April 2009, Meek held a

mortgage modification Mortgage modification is a process where the terms of a mortgage are modified outside the original terms of the contract agreed to by the lender and borrower (i.e. mortgagee and mortgagor in mortgage states; Trustee and Trustor in Trust Deed state ...

event for homeowners and lenders at a

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut, outside of Manhattan. It is Connecticut's second-most populous city, behind Bridgeport. With a population of 135,470, Stamford passed Hartford and New Haven in population as of the 2020 ...

community center. The event led to the founding of the

counseling non-profit START Now!. According to Meek, from April 2009 to March 2011, it has helped prevent foreclosures on 250 properties. Meek also founded Soldier Socks (also called SoldierSocks, later renamed

) in 2009 after a conversation with a former U.S. Marine. It was created to help U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq get access to essential hygiene items. By 2013, Soldier Socks had sent 73,000 pounds of hygiene items, and founded the Soldier Socks Veterans Grant Foundation. In 2013, it shifted fundraising efforts to meet the needs of returning veterans: it partnered with

Ekso Bionics Ekso Bionics Holdings Inc. is a company that develops and manufactures powered exoskeleton bionic devices that can be strapped on as wearable robots to enhance the strength, mobility, and endurance of industrial workers and people experiencing pa ...

to develop a robotic exoskeleton to give paralyzed veterans the ability to walk again. As of December 2020, SoldierStrong has donated 29 exoskeleton suits to

VA hospitals The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the component of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) led by the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health that implements the healthcare program of the VA through a national ...

. He also established veteran

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

funds at the Syracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, and the

Walsh School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It is considered to be one of the world's leading international affairs schools, granting degrees at both ...

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

and at Old Dominion University. On May 22, 2018, Meek testified in front of the

U.S. House The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Subcommittees on Research and Technology and

Energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

on the topic of empowering U.S. veterans through technology.

Politics

In the summer of 2010, Meek was appointed to the Stamford Urban Redevelopment Commission. On November 17, 2011, Meek formally announced his candidacy to represent

Connecticut's 4th congressional district Connecticut's 4th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Located in the southwestern part of the state, the district is largely suburban and extends from Bridgeport, the largest city in the state, to ...

. He ended his campaign on May 26, 2012, a week after he got 27% of the vote in the Republican state convention.

Books

Meek is the author of the book ''Next Steps Forward: Beyond Remembering'' (ISBN 979-8986020808) which was published in May 2022. He has also contributed to the book, ''Voices Against Trafficking: The Strength of Many Voices Speaking As One'' (ISBN 978-1733360524) which was published in December 2021.

Personal life

Meek is married with three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meek, Chris 21st-century American businesspeople Philanthropists from New York (state) Living people Syracuse University alumni Pace University alumni Connecticut Republicans Year of birth missing (living people)