About Us

Melinda White is owner and CEO of Capitol Construction of the Carolinas, LLC. Her experience and knowledge base in this industry began 13 years ago as she began working alongside her husband, Deno White (CFO), expanding Capitol Construction. The last 5 years of her 28-year teaching career she worked in the evenings developing the framework for Capitol to be the business it is today. Then she signed up to work full-time and has been involved in every aspect of the growing process to create a business presence in the Upstate exemplifying quality, integrity, community support, customer satisfaction, and accessibility.

Capitol was built on the skills and expertise of many of her family members. As the business grew many competent and talented employees were added, Melinda was proud to see the Capitol ‘family’ expand to better meet the needs of customers. The management team combines the experience of veterans of the industry with vibrant dedicated young adults ready to conquer challenges and projects to improve the Upstate.

While working at Capitol to help this company prepare for future growth, Melinda also enjoys being a grandmother of two wonderful boys and proudly watching her 2 adult children, Christopher and Chelsea, do life with their wonderful spouses. She’s very proud to be a South Carolinian and practice many traditions of the south such as cooking, flower gardening, traveling with her family and college football; especially those Clemson Tigers.  Her faith and merciful Savior she states are what guides her through every aspect of her life and especially her leadership in this business.

Deno White is the CFO of Capitol Construction of the Carolinas, LLC. and husband to Melinda, the current owner and CEO. Deno first started a construction business in 1985 specializing in plumbing and electrical work. He then opened a delivery restaurant, Tops Pizza, Inc., which was franchised and sold after 15 years of business. After that, he concentrated his efforts in the commercial construction industry, specializing in the civil and concrete fields. In total, Deno brings over 35 years of experience in construction and business administration.

He is the proud father of Christopher White and Chelsea Rikard. Christopher is the head estimator and VP of Operations for Capitol Construction of the Carolinas. Chelsea is a legal partner at a firm in Spartanburg, SC. Most importantly Deno is the proud grandfather of two boys, Sullivan and Hunter who enrich his life every day.

His hobbies include officiating high school and NCAA wrestling, and although Deno is currently retired from active officiating he still holds positions in SC as Director of Wrestling and evaluator for Southeast for NCAA divisions. He is also the founder of and current secretary/treasurer for the Southeast Official’s Association for NCAA events.

Jared started with Capitol in 2009 as an intern, while he was finishing his Business Management Degree and his last season for the Trojans Baseball Team at Anderson University. Following graduation, Jared started his full-time position with the business, helping it grow from the kitchen table of the owner to its headquarters in the Big Red Barn. Jared has managed to quite literally work his way UP from the bottom of sewer trenches to the role of Project Manager. Throughout his time at Capitol, Jared has been instrumental in the implementation, operation, and training for it’s GPS guided machine control systems, machine purchasing, and earthwork technologies; all used to make Capitol more efficient. Jared’s co-workers often wonder out loud whether or not Jared keeps working simply because he hasn’t figured out a way for BBQ and Instagram food photos to pay the bills and provide a steady income for his wonderful wife and college sweetheart, Chelsea. All jokes aside, Jared’s passion for BBQ and cooking is only rivaled by his drive to deliver high quality work within project deadlines. As a member of Capitol’s team, he has completed many of its large-scale projects, both as superintendent and project manager. He has managed to navigate the challenging logistics that often accompany these types of projects by always developing contingencies and openly communicating with project teams. Jared loves working outside and is most often found on the jobsite versus the office, but Jared also likes to dust off and enjoy floating in Lake Keowee, cooking BBQ, playing with his Boykin Spaniel Ridley, or watching Clemson Football and Baseball with his family (unless the team is doing bad…then his family leaves his grumpy ass on the couch alone).

Chris Welborn came to work for Capitol Construction of the Carolinas, LLC in 2016. Chris has spent time in several roles at Capitol. He started out helping with Preconstruction & Estimating performing minor takeoffs and putting bids together. Chris then moved out into the field as an Assistant Project Manager assisting the other PM’s with various jobsite duties as well as managing smaller projects or projects that were 100% subbed out to subcontractors. He has finally settled in as the HR/Office Manager putting his Business background to use where he oversees all aspects of the day-to-day office operations. His time in all phases of construction has enabled him to relate to the guys out in the field while also keeping in mind the best interest of the company as a whole from a business standpoint. Chris graduated in 2009 from Furman University with a degree in Business where he also played football. Chris married Samantha Burman in 2015 and the two welcomed their first child in October of 2019, Brigdon Ryles. Chris enjoys spending time at home with family, a nice glass of bourbon, hunting, and going to Clemson & Furman games.

Jorge Bravo was born in Mexico but raised here in South Carolina where he always enjoyed working with his dad doing projects around the house which sparked his interest in a career in the construction industry. During his high school years at Landrum HS, Jorge decided to take a few construction classes at the Swofford Career Center to further explore his initial interest and decide if he wanted to pursue a career. After graduation from high school, Jorge came to work for Capitol Construction to further develop his skills and knowledge in the field. After 6 months, Jorge decided to continue his education at Greenville Technical Institute where he earned his Associates Degree in Construction Engineering Technology. Prior to graduation, Jorge returned to Capitol Construction to work as an intern on the estimating and preconstruction team which ultimately led to a full-time position. Jorge is now the lead estimator for Capitol Construction. Jorge enjoys playing soccer at the Upward Center and working on his car.

Matthew Teal has worked for Capitol Construction of the Carolinas, LLC since 2017. During his time at Capitol he has had various different roles in assisting with Accounts Receivables, Accounts Payables, Cost Accounting, Payroll and Tax Accounting; all have enabled him to developed his knowledge and skill in each area which has brought him to his current position as the Controller for Capitol Construction. Matt handles the majority of the Financials & Accounting for the company and assists with the day-to-day operations within the office. A graduate from The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina in 2016, his time at The Citadel was focused on achieving his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a focus of Finance & Accounting. Matt still enjoys going down to Charleston, SC and catching up with his Citadel brothers and going to support the Bulldogs during football season. Matt has a Boykin Spaniel named Riley. Riley is a big part of his life. Riley is now three and pretty much goes with Matt everywhere. Matt is a Lifetime Members of the Boykin Spaniel Society. A lot of times after work during the week and on the weekends Matt will be out at the golf course playing multiple rounds of golf. He is always trying to push himself to get better and get his handicap lower! But most of all he loves the game of golf and playing with friends and meeting new people out on the golf course. Matt closely follows the PGA Tour Events that are held throughout the year and pulling for some of his favorite golfer’s like Cam Smith, Justin Thomas, and Rickie Folwer. Matt also enjoys spending his time watching college football during football season.