About me
Jeff is a bit of a cowboy in the southeastern Virginia area marketing and advertising community – literally and figuratively. As President and Creative Sheriff of Arengee, his clients have become accustomed to his western attire – hat included - and no-nonsense way of presenting his agency’s creative solutions. He believes every marketing challenge is a chance to do something great and won’t settle for anything that won’t achieve or exceed the client’s goals. Jeff’s diversion from work is his family. His weekends are usually spent traveling with his wife of almost 30 years and their two sons hauling their three Corgi’s and horses around the country to Quarter Horse Shows where both of his boys compete on a National level in Novice and Amateur Western-riding divisions.
Education: Portfolio Center, Atlanta, Georgia - September 1982 – May 1984
Completed the Art Direction Program – covering various jobs in advertising, publishing, film, and digital media. Jeff learned to unify the vision of a project or campaign, think, design, write, and create movement experiences in pop culture. He also learned to create ideas that are as strategically smart as they are edgy and digitally dynamic.
Skills: Proficient with Mac OS, Adobe Design Suite, MS Office, Apple Keynote, Pages and Numbers. Advanced Internet skills.
Experience: In 1985 Jeff was the first to adopt an Apple computer as an ad agency production tool in Hampton Roads and one of the first to acknowledge the potential of the Internet for marketing back in 1993. And little did Jeff know that in 1997 he would be a Blog pioneer. Jeff’s website programmer couldn’t understand why he’d want a page on his website
to post thoughts, random photos and links to other websites.
1985-1989 – Group III Communications: Production Artist/Art Director
1989-1994 – Goldman & Associates: Art Director/Creative Director
1994-1997 – Ringer Design: Freelance Art Director/Creative Director
1997-2002 – Meridian Group: Creative Director/Art Director
2002-2006 – Ringer Design: Freelance Art Director/Creative Director
2006-Present – Ringer & Associates, LLC t/a Arengee: President, Creative Sheriff. Client experience includes local and regional banks, local and regional healthcare institutions, retail products and services, business to business products and services, local government, tourism, economic development, high-end golf resorts, national hotels including Marriott, Renaissance, and Radisson, equine trainers, equine associations, and political candidates for local seats, the Senate, Congress, and even one for President of the
United States.
Community Service: Throughout his entire career Jeff has donated his marketing and design talents to many non-profit organizations and community causes including: AIGA Hampton Roads, Canstruction®, CIVIC Leadership Institute, Diamonds in the Rough Equine
Rescue, Federation of Virginia Food Banks, Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore, Gosport Arts Festival, GRL-PWR, Hampton Roads Youth Center, Jerry Slemp Benefit Horse Show, March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction, Randolph-Macon Women’s Soccer Team, REACH Reads Organization, Seawall Art Show, Taste of Hampton Roads,
Virginia Quarter Horse Association, Virginia Department of Veteran’s Services, Virginia
STEAM Academy, the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America (VICA), and WHRO.
Boards: Jeff has served on several Association Boards and Committee’s including:
1989-1991 – Vice President, Tidewater Society of Communicating Artists
1992-1993 - Vice President, Advertising Federation of Hampton Roads
1994-1995 – President, Advertising Federation of Hampton Roads
1998-1999 – President, Advertising Federation of Hampton Roads
2000-2001 – Treasurer, Fairfield PTA
2000 – Marketing Committee, Virginia Zoo To Do
2001-2002 – Secretary, Fairfield PTA
2002-2011 – Marketing Committee, Taste of Hampton Roads
2005-2007 – Director at Large, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
2007-2010 – Southeastern Region Director, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
2010-2012 – Secretary, Virginia Quarter Horse Association
2012-2013 – Secretary, AIGA Hampton Roads
Awards: Beginning in 1985 Jeff has been recognized for his advertising solutions. Awards include local and regional AAF ADDY awards, HSMAI Adrians, National Credit Union League Block Buster (best in show - 2 years straight), Mobius, Telly, PIVA, Print Regional Design Annual, Healthcare Marketing Review, Financial Review, ACI International (airport
advertising/marketing), and READY – Real Estate Advertising Design of the Year.
Jeff has also been recognized for his Community Service by the Wall Street Journal as a 1996 Finalist for Disney Volunteer Educator of the Year and was designated a “Kentucky Colonel” for his 12 years of volunteer service to the Vocational Industrial Clubs of America where he served as an Advertising Design Technical Advisor/Mentor and the 1993 Technical Expert/Mentor for International Youth Skill Olympics in Taiwan.
Jeff also received the 2009 Inside Business “Entrepreneurial Excellence Award”.
2016: Has a massive heart attack, suffering a brain injury because of the lack of oxygen. Relearns to walk, keep balance, eat, and driving on his own. Slowly his memory has come back. Kind of cool to rediscover things I see as I go places I've been before. My childhood memories came back about a year ago. It was fun to reconnect with them and to see that everyone was keeping tabs on my progress.
Now he's Freelancing. Feel free to give him a try.