Director

Vanessa Oliver

A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Vanessa moved to Port Charlotte in 1988. Vanessa spent her entire childhood in Charlotte County, attending Peace River Elementary School, Port Charlotte Middle School, and graduating from Charlotte High School.

Vanessa attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and a minor in Government. Following graduation, she moved to Washington, DC, where she interned for a member of Congress and worked as a legal assistant at the office of Ken Feinberg, who was at that time administering the September 11th Victim’s Compensation Fund.

While Vanessa enjoyed her time in the mid-Atlantic, she missed both the sunshine and her family. She continued her studies at the University of Florida College of Law, where she met her future husband, David Oliver, and graduated Cum Laude with her Juris Doctor. Vanessa began her legal career in Central Florida, where she represented clients in a variety of contexts, including civil, commercial, and real property litigation, as well as local government and municipal law.

In 2012, Vanessa and David returned to Charlotte County to grow and raise their family. Vanessa became General Counsel for Ambitrans Ambulance, where she currently serves as Chief Administrative Officer. In 2014, Governor Rick Scott appointed Vanessa to the Florida Board of Funeral, Cemetery and Consumer Services. In 2019, Vanessa became one of fewer than 140 attorneys in the State of Florida to become Board Certified in Health Law. In 2020, Vanessa was elected to the Charlotte County Airport Authority Board.

Vanessa and her husband are busy raising their three children: Catherine, James, and Julian. Vanessa currently serves on the Board of Directors for the United Way of Charlotte County, is a member of San Antonio Catholic Church, and is a member and past president of the Peace River Federated Republican Women’s Forum. She is a member of the Charlotte County Bar Association, is 2016 graduate of Leadership Charlotte, past-Chair of the Charlotte Harbor Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee, past-secretary of the Economic Development Partnership, and a former Board Member for Habitat for Humanity.