Leadership Santa Maria Valley: Class of 2021 has begun!! Terri Oneschuck Program Director, Leadership Santa Maria Valley VP, Chamber Operations
Leadership Santa Maria Valley Class of 2021 has begun in an all virtual format due to COVID restrictions. Their first topic day was on Government and they heard from a varity of local government leaders with the opportunity to interact virtually and ask questions. In the coming months, the program plans to adopt a hybrid format as regulations allow. One of the challenges of the pandemic has been how do we continue to offer our Leadership program given the current restrictions? Our Leadership board of directors had many discussions and suggestions and we came up with a way to offer a quality program that will flex with whatever the recommendations and restrictions are for Santa Barbara County. There are sixteen members of the 2021 class. We held our three-day retreat virtually in mid-March. Activities that could not be done in a virtual environment have been postponed until we can meet in person. The retreat is a time to get to know each other, learn a bit more about ourselves and hear more about what is to come during the program year. I think that it went quite well. On April 2nd we had our first virtual topic day. This was our Government Day. It started out with a motivational leadership lesson from Ed Carcarey of Fuego 97.1 and Downtown Fridays. He encouraged us to find our passion, volunteer to make changes in our community, and find that person in our lives who will keep that passion going! Next we got to hear from Etta Waterfield, Mayor Pro Tem for the City
of Santa Maria and Bob Nelson, Fourth District Supervisor and Steve Lavagnino, Fifth District Supervisor from the County of Santa Barbara. We learned what is going in the City and County, what similarities they have and their differences. It was great to meet our local government leaders and have the opportunity to ask them questions. In the afternoon, Mark van de Kamp, Public Information Manager for the City of Santa Maria, showed us a video tour of City Hall. It was interesting to learn the history of the various buildings that have housed City Hall and about the current building that it is in now. Although meeting virtually has some drawbacks, we are still able to share some of the great people and opportunities of the Santa Maria Valley. In the months to come we will move to hybrid meetings. We may have our speakers in a virtual environment and then gather in a social distance format to have our discussions and eventually tour our local businesses. We look forward to getting back to being in person for the whole day soon!
Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce | May 2021
Chamber Board of Directors: 2020-2021 Executive Committee Chairman: Edgar Gascon, Hacienda Realty Chairman-Elect: Danny Deveraux, CalPortland Vice Chairman: Janet Silveria, Community Bank of Santa Maria Vice Chairman: Laurie Tamura, Urban Planning Concepts Past Chairman: Jean-Luc Garon, Radisson Hotel Santa Maria Board Members Mark Allen, Marian Regional Medical Center Ron Cossa, Tolman & Wiker Insurance Sandra Dickerson, Your People Professionals Donna Farrell, Santa Maria Town Center Karen Fothergill, Andre, Morris & Buttery Angelica Gutierrez, L & G Farms Doug Janzen, The Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center Emily Kitts, Naughty Oak Brewing Company David LeRoy, Toyota of Santa Maria Butch Lopez, V Lopez Jr. & Sons General Engineering Contractors David Merlo, Glenn Burdette Tere Paredes, Maya Restaurant Era Polly, Era Polly Real Estate Shannon Seifert, Santa Maria Valley YMCA Michelle Shipman, Searchlight Properties Kevin Walthers, Allan Hancock College Tim Williams, Digital West
The Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce is a catalyst for business growth, a convener of leaders and influencers, and a champion for a stronger Santa Maria Valley. Learn more about the Chamber by visiting www.santamaria.com.
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