meet the chamber < Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce

2009 Board of Directors

Edward Roe, President

Edward Roe, Director of Operations for the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa was appointed to the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce board of directors in November, 2005. Edward joined the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa from his most recent position as Director of Rooms at the Fairmont Kea Lani Maui, which he held since November, 2002. A graduate of the Birmingham College of Food and Domestic Arts, BTEC (Birmingham, England) and Southfields College of Further Education (Leicester, England) Mr. Roe manages a staff of over 250 colleagues.

Sean Cutting, Director

Sean grew up in Sonoma with his parents and younger sister, attended El Verano and Altimira and graduated from Sonoma Valley High School in 1987. He attended UCLA majoring in Economics, spent four years as an investment consultant. Sean attended MBA school at the Marshall School of Business at the University of southern California, graduating in 1997 with Honors. Post-MBA school, Sean worked for several international banks. Sean joined Sonoma Valley Bank in 2001. Sean has since become the Bank’s Executive Vice President/Chief Leading Officer, overseeing the entire leading team and other operations at the Bank. Civically, Sean is a member of the Executive Board/Treasurer of the Boys & Girls Club Valley of the Moon, a member/Board Member of the Sonoma Valley Rotary Club, and past board member of the Sonoma city Opera. He also just finished a stint as coach of his daughter’s under 8 girls soccer team this fall. Sean lives with Perrin Cutting, his wife of 11 years, and their two children, Grace and Sam.

Susan Reber, Past President

Susan Reber of Mission Hills Mortgage Bankers has lived in Sonoma for 23 years. In addition to her Chamber involvement, she serves on the board of directors of the Sonoma Plaza Kiwanis Club and Congregation Shir Shalom. The mother of three children, she also has served on the High School Site Council and as the Girl Scout Area Coordinator.

Tamara Dunn, Treasurer

Director, External Relations & Major Events - Hanna Boys Center. Tamara has worked in nonprofit management for over nine years. Before working at Hanna Boys Center she worked for the Volunteer Center of Sonoma County where she was the director of development overseeing the largest Human Race in the nation and all aspects of fundraising & public relations for the center.
She is currently a member of the Santa Rosa Chamber Advocacy Council, Director, Listening for a Change of Sonoma County, Committee Member of the Membership Committee at the Charles M. Schulz Museum. Tamara is a Sonoma County native. She lives in Santa Rosa with her husband Mark & eighteen year old daughter Ashleigh

Carl "Chip" Allen, Director

Chip Allen has spent much of his legal career litigating real estate, construction, insurance and business disputes in large and small law firms in the Bay Area. As part of his move to Sonoma in 2000, Chip opened a private practice with a focus to provide in-depth knowledge for business planning for small businesses and estate planning for individuals and families. He is part of Wealth Counsel, a national organization of estate and business planning attorneys.Chip is currently an Ambassador of the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce and a graduate of Leadership Sonoma Valley. He is a Board member of Sonoma County Habitat for Humanity, President of the Sonoma League for Historic Preservation and Chairman of the Sonoma Valley Citizens Advisory Committee. Chip also volunteers with the Sonoma Valley Film Festival and is a member of the Sonoma Valley Chapter of BNI. Chip and his wife Jeanne have a Golden Retriever, Tiona, who they puppy-raised for Canine Companions for Independence, and came back to them as a pet when she was released from CCI.

Armando Ceja, Director

If you've tasted Ceja Vineyard's award-winning wines, you already know a lot bout Armando Ceja: honest, tasteful, intelligent and full of life. Being born into a seasonal farmworker's family and a mother and grandmother who took pleasure in cooking and in the vocabulary of aromas and tastes, and working beside a top-flight vineyard worker-his father- from the age of six. After earning and associate degree in chemistry, de graduated in 1985 from UC Davis witha a BSc in oenology.

Dale Downing, Director

Dale moved to California from Mississippi in 1945 and has lived in the Sonoma County area since then. In 1968 he bought into a partnership with his brother-in-law, Don Shone, to establish Shones Country Market in Glen Ellen. The two partners currently own Sonoma Market & Glen Ellen Village Market. He actively participates in the operation of the markets. While living in Glen Ellen, Don served as a volunteer with the Glen Ellen Fire Department and acted as assistant Fire Chief for four years. He has been an active supporter and sponsor of Sonoma Valley Youth sports teams and currently serves on the Board of Directors of Sonoma Valley Bank.

Lillian Meyers, Director

Lillian is the founder and president of Meyers Financial, and the owner of Sonoma Beauty Supply. She has been providing financial services to clients in and around Sonoma and throughout the United States since 1985. She is a Board Member of the Sonoma Valley Hospital Foundation, past board member of the Valley of the Moon Teen Center, Valley of the Moon Vintage Festival and the Valley of the Moon Boys & Girls Club. Lillian is also currently a member of the Sonoma Valley High School Boosters, Rotary Club and a past member of the Soroptimist International of Sonoma Valley.

Amanda Smith, Director

Amanda Smith is the Director of Marketing for Mary’s Pizza Shack, a locally owned Sonoma business since 1959. As a relatively new resident of Sonoma, Amanda offers balance and fresh eyes to the company’s long history as Mary’s prepares to celebrate its 50^th Anniversary in 2009. Prior to joining Mary’s, Amanda was marketing director for Patina Restaurant Group, which operated fine dining restaurants in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York, and catered such notable events as the annual Emmy Awards Governor’s Ball and the Independent Spirit Awards. Prior to that, Amanda was based in San Francisco, where she marketed such landmark destinations as the Exploratorium museum and Sony Metreon.

Joshua Townsend, Director

Joshua Townsend currently Manages the Governmental Relations Department for the Northern Region of Pacific Gas and Electric. He oversees public affairs, governmental affairs as well as charitable giving. Prior to his work with PG&E he worked in the State Assembly as District Director, Press Secretary and Legislative Aide for a number of elected officials including the Speaker of the Assembly. Most recently he was the District Director for Assembly member Jared Huffman. He has also worked in a number of national public relations firms including Public Strategies and Burson-Marstellar. He was the Communications Director for Steve Wesley's' successful run for State Controller in 2002.

Jerry Wheeler, Director

I have worked at Infineon Raceway for the past four years and have learned the unique needs of a larger business; but I also have intricate knowledge of the specific challenges facing smaller businesses, because for many years I have worked with my husband to manage and grow his company. I am a past board member of the Valley of the Moon Boys & Girls Club, Sonoma Community Center and am currently a trustee for Speedway Children’s Charities. SCC has distributed over nearly $1.7 million to Sonoma County youth organizations since 2002.

STAFF

Jennifer Yankovich, Executive Director

jennifer@sonomachamber.com
Jennifer is serving her 6th year as Executive Director working with the Board of Directors to guide the Chamber's work to promote and support the Sonoma Valley business community. Jennifer was born and raised in Sonoma. She is a graduate of Sonoma Valley High School and UC Davis. Prior to the Chamber, Jennifer was the Community Development Manager for the County of Sonoma.

Kathy McKenna Perry, Executive Assistant

kathy@sonomachamber.com
A third-generation Sonoma native, Kathy Perry has been with the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce since 1999 and is responsible for office management, bookkeeping, historical information, and supervision of interns. She also coordinates the Leadership Sonoma Valley program. Kathy holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics from California State University, Sacramento.

Laurie Decker, Economic Development Project Manager

Laurie Decker, a Sonoma resident since 1993, guides the Economic Development Partnership Project, a joint program of the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce, the City of Sonoma, and Sonoma County. Prior to taking on this role, Decker worked as a manager with the City of Vacaville for more than 15 years. Her wide range of responsibilities have included city-wide budget development, public information, establishment of leadership development programs, regulatory compliance, operational audits, and special project management. She has also worked for the cities of Lafayette and Sacramento, and for a management consulting firm in Washington D.C.

Yaquelin Alvarez, Membership/Marketing Manager

membership@sonomachamber.com
As the Chamber’s Membership/Marketing Manager, Yaquelin Alvarez helps members take full advantage of the many Chamber resources available for promoting their businesses, from attending Business After Hours networking events to submitting articles for Sonoma Valley Business. As a bilingual representative, she can also assist Spanish-speaking members with translating marketing materials, filling out forms, writing business briefs, and other administrative needs. She has worked at the Chamber since 2002.

Betty Tinsley, Volunteer

Betty Tinsley has been volunteering at the Sonoma Valley Chamber since 2003. She answers the phone in the mornings and helps with various office tasks. She is retired and has lived in Sonoma for the past eight years. A member of the Sonoma Mission Lions Club, she was previously the secretary for a maritime union in San Francisco.