Our Team
Leadership
Mr. Mel Wick, Managing Partner
Mel Wick formed GRIZ Global Solutions, LLC as an integrity-based small business that is built upon a conservative culture of legal, moral and ethical principles that specializes in blending generations of business and special operations expertise to deliver best-in-class services around the world.
As a United States Army veteran with more than 32 years’ experience in the Special Operations community, Mel was one of the original six operators and spent 16 plus years in Delta Force. Mel also served as the Command Sergeant Major (CSM) for Delta Force, for the Joint Special Operations Command, for the US Army Special Operations Command, and for the United States Special Operations Command.
His diversified career in Special Operations has built a broad base of experience and expertise in leadership, operations, planning, managing complex projects in high threat environments and building positive working relationships with indigenous personnel. He has planned, designed, and supervised the implementation of advanced special operations training courses from 1 week to 6 months in duration, planned and conducted joint exercises up to National level as well as designing, planning and conducting operational tests of special operations unique equipment.
Following his retirement from service, Mel accepted the position as Director and Program Manager for the Center for National Response. Mr. Wick turned an abandoned highway tunnel into a unique one-of-a-kind, national level, Weapons of Mass Destruction and Counter Terrorism training center, training over 10,000 DOD, Federal, State and local first responders to include numerous tactical scenarios for law enforcement teams. Mel has a Bachelor of Science degree from Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia.
Mr. Bill Cronin, Managing Partner
Cronin began his career with the United States Army serving with Special Forces units, including close to 15 years with Delta Force. After retiring from the Army, Cronin participated at various levels (angel investing through VP of Operations) in six startup companies before starting Griz Global Solutions, LLC. Cronin earned an Associate of Applied Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Norwalk State Technical College, Norwalk, CT.
Bill currently serves as a Fire Captain – New Castle Volunteer Fire Department, New Castle, NH, Director – The Station Foundation, Bozeman, MT and past President and Director – Seacoast Rotary Club, Portsmouth, NH. Past community involvement includes mentoring an early teen boy as part of Big Brothers Big Sisters, Portsmouth, NH and past chair of both the Budget Committee and Trustees of Trust Funds for the Town of New Castle, NH.
Mr. Daniel Ibach, Partner and Chief Executive Officer
Sergeant Major (Ret) Daniel Ibach lives with his wife and son in Las Vegas, Nevada. Dan served 21 years in US Army Special Operations with 14 years with Delta Force. Dan spent 3 years in Washington D.C. as Delta’s liaison to all of the U.S. Government Agencies and Departments. He also spent 1 year assigned to the British SAS and finished his career in Delta running a 3 year $100,000,000 mobile application development effort which resulted in a material solution that works across all mobile platforms and is used by all elements of the U.S. Government.
Mr. Billy Delaporte, Partner and Director of Operations
Sergeant Major (Ret) Billy Delaporte lives with his wife and daughter in Southern Pines, NC. Billy served 22 years in the Army with 17 of those years in the US Army’s Special Forces Operational Detachment – Delta. Billy completed a total of 13 combat tours split between Iraq and Afghanistan with over 800 real-world direct-action missions. After retiring in 2015, Billy spent several years teaching current Special Operations soldiers marksmanship and tactics. He joined the Griz Team in 2018.
Board of Advisors
General Peter J. Schoomaker (RET)
General Peter J. Schoomaker (RET) served as the 35th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army from 2003 until his second retirement in 2007. Prior to becoming Chief of Staff of the Army, he was the Commander in Chief, U.S. Special Operations Command from 1997 to 2000. Gen. Schoomaker retired from the U.S. Army and became president of Quiet Pros, Inc. a defense consulting company. General Schoomaker is a member of the board of directors of DynCorp International Inc., CAE, Inc. and a member of the boards of several non-profit and private companies. General Schoomaker holds a B.S. in Education from the University of Wyoming and an M.A. in Management and Supervision from Central Michigan University.
Mr. Robert Pixley
Robert “Pix” Pixley was named Chief Operating Officer in November 2016. Pix has also held the position of Director of Human Capital Management, and Recruiting and Talent Management consultant for various Fortune 500 companies in the Information Technology and Medical Device industries. Pix retired from the Army in 2003, after serving 22 years in various Airborne and Special Missions Units.
He has earned an MBA from Grantham University, Lenexa, Kansas and a BA in Organizational Leadership from Brandman University, Orange County, California. Pix also holds a Graduate Certificate in Human Resources Management from San Diego State University, Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certificate and a Society for Human Resources Professionals-Senior Certified Professional (SHRM-SCP) certificate.
Major General William F. Garrison (RET)
Major General William F. Garrison (RET) served two tours in Vietnam. Following his service in Vietnam, MG Garrison spent most of his career in special operations units, including the U.S. Army Intelligence Support Activity as the commander of its operations squadron and he has commanded at all levels including our nation’s premier Counter-Terrorism Units. MG Garrison was also the commanding officer of Operation Gothic Serpent, the military operation launched in 1993 to capture Mohamed Farrah Aidid, which ended in the first Battle of Mogadishu on October 3, 1993. He retired August 3, 1996, the day after Aidid died. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Pan American University, and a Masters of Business Administration from Sam Houston State University.
