Media Advisory: National Postal Museum Announces Appointments to Museum Advisory Council

The Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum announces the appointments of Sam Bright, Karen McCormick and Chris Thompson to its Museum Advisory Council.

The Museum Advisory Council provides guidance on issues related to the strategic direction of the museum, including recommendations relating to collections, exhibitions and public education. Museum Advisory Council members help enhance the profile and the public’s understanding of the museum’s activities locally, nationally and internationally. The Council also aids the museum in strengthening its financial resources by providing leadership, guidance and assistance in the museum’s efforts to raise funds to support the museum’s activities and core operations.

Sam Bright is a seasoned Silicon Valley executive with more than 15 years of experience spanning strategy, investment banking, corporate development, market research, strategic partnerships and general management. He currently serves as Vice President of Soft Goods at eBay, leading a multi-billion dollar business unit encompassing art & collectibles; fashion, media, toys, & lifestyle; sporting goods; and the soft home verticals as well as eBay Authenticate. In prior roles, he led and scaled the strategic partnerships team at eBay, inking more than 70 deals in two years; served as a deal captain for eBay’s global merger and acquisition strategy team; and advised on $10 billion of buyside, sellside and joint venture deals as an associate at Merrill Lynch. Prior to grad school, he rose through the ranks to become the youngest industry analyst at Forrester Research – writing research and providing consulting services for chief information officers. Bright began his career leading market research and special projects at a tech and advanced manufacturing-focused business incubator in northeast Indiana. He was named to Black Enterprise's 2018 “List of the Most Influential Blacks in Technology” and to The Network Journal's 2018 “40 Under Forty” class.

Karen McCormick has nearly 40 years of experience in the mailing and postal industry. She is currently a government relations manager at the U.S. Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General (OIG), working with industry stakeholders to support current and future initiatives. Prior to the OIG, Karen was the project manager for an on-line exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum entitled, “America’s Mailing Industry.” Karen is the past-president and founder of Fulfillment Express, a mail service provider in the Boston area. For over 25 years, Karen led the company by providing highly valued direct mail and fulfillment services to hundreds of for-profit and nonprofit clients. Karen is a board member and past board chair for the Greater Boston Postal Customer Council (PCC). She was the 2004, 2010 and 2012 recipient of the “Partnership in Mailing Award” given on behalf of the Greater Boston PCC and has been recognized numerous times at the National Postal Forum for creating networking opportunities between the mailing industry, the Postal Service and its customers. She is a past board chair for the New England chapter of MSA/MFSA, now Idealliance. This past June, she was honored by the association with the Donald A. Mumma Award, the highest award of distinction Idealliance presents for excellence in industry-postal collaboration. Karen is a current steering committee member of Women in Logistics and Delivery (WILDS), as well as a past board member of the New England Direct Marketing Association (NEDMA), the National Postal Museum’s Museum Advisory Council and the College of Health and Human Services Dean’s Advisory Board at the University of New Hampshire (UNH). Karen graduated from UNH with a Bachelor of Arts degree in social work. She has completed course work at the Harvard Extension School in development, fundraising and museum studies.

Chris Thompson, senior manager and postal strategist for Shutterfly, Inc., has 18 years of experience in the postal, print, fulfillment and logistics industry. Since early 2016, Chris has been leading the postal/logistics department for Shutterfly, Inc., focusing on the Shutterfly Business Solutions (SBS) division while also supporting many initiatives for eCommerce and their most recent acquisition, Lifetouch. Chris owns the enterprise-wide relationship between the U.S. Postal Service and Shutterfly, and creates new and innovative ways to strengthen the partnership. He previously was employed at UnitedHealthcare (UHC), as a senior business process analyst on the print & fulfillment services team. Among his other duties, he managed postal affairs and vendor management for UHC. Prior, Chris worked at Advanced Response Systems (ARS). He ran the estimating department and was responsible for all negotiated contracts with suppliers and outsource partners. Chris started his career in politics securing a highly selective internship for United States Congressman Jim Ramstad and later worked for the Minnesota House Republican Caucus. Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities in 2002, with a concentration in political science. Chris is a member of the Postmaster General’s Mailers Technical Advisory Committee (MTAC) and represents the National Industrial Transportation League.

Other distinguished members of the Council include:

• Bert Berkley, Chairman of the Board, Tension
• Michael Critelli, Former CEO, Pitney Bowes (Council Co-Chair)
• Sylvia Cyrus, Executive Director, Association for the Study of African American Life & History
• Hamilton Davison, President & Executive Director, American Catalog Mailers Association
• Jason Dies, Executive Vice President and President of SMB Solutions, Pitney Bowes
• Tim Nicholls, Senior Vice President and CFO, International Paper
• John Nolan, Former Deputy Postmaster General, U.S. Postal Service (Council Co-Chair)
• Joel Quadracci, Chairman & CEO, Quad Graphics
• David Sable, Non-Executive Chairman, VMLY&R
• Hamid Salemizadeh, Vice President Postal Automation, Seimens

About the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum

The National Postal Museum is devoted to presenting the colorful and engaging history of the nation’s mail service and showcasing one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of stamps and philatelic material in the world. It is located at 2 Massachusetts Ave. N.E., Washington, D.C., across from Union Station. The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed December 25). For more information about the Smithsonian, call (202) 633-1000 or visit the museum website at postalmuseum.si.edu.

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