Black Flag Collaborative and Black Flag Collaborative Initiative, a 501c3, were founded in 2023 by Mitchell McElroy and Dara Summers. Our goal is to positively impact people's lives by leveraging our unique experiences and by building and inspiring a community of service-minded individuals who want to make a difference in the world.
Born in Meridian Mississippi, and raised in and around Birmingham Alabama, Mitchell was exposed to sales and relationship building at a very early age. “Some of my earliest memories are going out on the road, making sales calls with my dad who was a manufacturers sales rep in the furniture business. I was probably 5 or so and I can remember listening in to the conversations and discussions. Totally boring for a little kid but pretty priceless for a grown man.”
When it was time to go to kindergarten, his parents decided they were smart enough to teach the basics and that decision to homeschool resulted in his high school graduation at 15. More importantly, it allowed for his exposure to construction with an apprenticeship beginning at age 13. This apprenticeship would lead to a journey throughout the construction trades with a brief stop at The University Of Alabama Birmingham. Ultimately, his work in residential construction led to an opportunity to test his customer-facing skills in an outside sales role for a very successful stone fabrication company.
The resulting success of that decision and the relationships that developed became the genesis of Black Flag Collaborative. “I just realized that I wanted more out of what had become my career. How I was raised and how I’d learned to work is a little unusual and allows for what I believe is a somewhat unique perspective on things. I wanted to use my experiences to positively impact people around me. It was taught to me early on that what you owe to those who come before you pay to those who come after. I want to help people however I can.”
People who know Mitchell well agree that he has a special gift for connecting people. His energy is infectious and his desire to help people is evident in both his professional and personal life.
When he’s not working on progressing any of his projects, he can be found doing what he loves the most - spending time hanging out with his wife Mandy and his two children Michal and Mackenzie. Playing music in multiple bands with his brothers and on Sunday mornings in his church with their father has always held a special place for him creatively and artistically. Recently he has been involved in helping to raise funding and support to drill wells in Kenya which has helped to bring clean drinking water and subsequent infrastructure to thousands of local residents. Mitchell enjoys traveling and has been known to take a 16 hour road trip for a great steak.
Dara graduated from the University of North Georgia with a BA in Political Science and Business. She began a successful sales career in the home industry and found a passion for strategic partnerships and building and leading high-performing sales teams. Dara was instrumental in helping her company to successfully weather the financial crisis of 2008-2010. Under her leadership, the company became the most reputable in the industry and won Best Places to Work accolades. Dara believes in hiring the very best, setting a clear roadmap on how they can achieve success in their role, and ultimately empowering them do their job.
Dara has served in CMO, CRO, COO, Vice President, Advisory Board and consultant roles, and been involved in both sides of several acquisitions. To Dara, the thing she treasures the most from her career is the relationships she's built - with co-workers, clients and vendors. She has countless examples of hiring someone at the beginning of their professional careers, helping them develop and grow, and now she enjoys cheerleading their successes as they lead their own teams, top the leaderboards and run their own businesses.
Dara loves living in the North Georgia mountains with her husband Justin and son, Liam. Justin is the love of her life and makes her laugh harder than anyone she's ever met. She lives her life with the intent to "build a life that you don't have to take a vacation from." Dara raises very spoiled chickens, loves spending time outdoors and is obsessed with her nieces and nephews. Fall is her favorite season, she loves snuggling on rainy days and playing in the snow. Seeing the Aurora Borealis is high on her bucket list.
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