CHAMBER NEWS
AND, YOU PROBABLY do not know how wonderful you are. All of Yuma County is full of warm, engaging, generous, passionate, compassionate, and welcoming down to earth people. Maybe you do not know how terrific you are because you have lived here your entire life and have nothing to compare it to. Maybe the “Yuma Way” is all you have ever known, and it seems like no big deal. I have lived (in order) in Long Beach, CA; Blue Springs, MO; Anaheim, CA; Long Beach, CA; Fountain Valley, CA; Tucson, AZ; Edmond, OK; Tucson, AZ; Prescott Valley,
AZ; and, finally Yuma. The people of Yuma are absolutely the best at creating a sense of community and caring for those in need. I have said it many times that it seems like there is an Amish barn raising here every weekend; people getting together to help one another!
As I ready for my retirement, I must thank a few people, in no particular order, who have helped me along my wonderful Yuma journey. Sam Pepper for hiring me in 1999 to take over the old Super Shopper operation, Lisa Reilly, and the terrific team at the Yuma Sun for tolerating me for over 14 years. I appreciate all the advertisers and sponsors that I had the opportunity to assist over that span, and all the members of my sales teams at both the Super Shopper and the Yuma Sun. Thanks to Lori Stofft, now at AWC, for allowing me to partner with you in countless events. To this day, I still critique the paper as if I were still there!
I truly appreciate the Chamber leadership team that hired me: Ed Shippen, Dan Fauth, Debbie Mansheim and Craig Barrows. Your trust that I could take the reins of this incredible organization and change its trajectory is treasured and I will never forget you. For the Chairs of the Board of the Yuma County Chamber of
BIZ | September-October 2020
Commerce, especially Ed Shippen and Adrian Elder that took some hot phone calls and had to run interference as I was learning on the job, I thank you. For Chairs of the Board, Matt Molenar, Art Morales, Anna Chaulk, and finally Jeff Byrd who became true partners in setting the stage for this organization to grow and flourish, much appreciation. Under your leadership, this organization is trusted, respected all over the state of Arizona, and has created a culture of “Creating Partnerships and Fostering Opportunity.”
To all the valued partners of the Chamber: “Thank you for the engagement.” It is a list that includes Julie Engel of the Greater Yuma Economic Development Corporation, Linda Morgan of Visit Yuma, Gladys Brown and Gen Grosse of the Yuma International Airport, Lucine Smith of the Yuma Southwest Contractors Association, Joanne
Kidd of the Yuma Area Agriculture Council, Janet Torricellas of the Better Business Bureau, Harvey Campbell of Better Yuma.Org, and Marissa Marquez and Rodney Short of the Caballeros de Yuma. Special thanks to Julie Engel for introducing me to the Yuma50 and allowing me to serve on that board and get an indoctrination into our Military Partners. To Ross Poppenberger, former CO at YPG and my friend Col. David Suggs, who honored me with the assignment of the Marine Corps first Auxiliary Base Commander here at MCASYuma, I am privileged to know you both, and wish you Godspeed with the new chapters of your lives. To the Chamber’s education partners: Dr. Daniel Corr at AWC, Dr. Michael Sabbath at NAU, Gina Thompson and Kevin Imes at our High Schools, the teams at the Yuma Education Advocacy Council and our business partners at the Arizona Business and Education Coalition including Clint Harrington, thanks for the engagement with the
The people of Yuma are absolutely the best at creating a sense of community and
caring for those in need.”
business community and thanks for letting me partner with all of you. I appreciate our generous media partners, The Yuma Sun, NPG TV of Yuma, El Dorado Broadcasters, Monster Media, Sun Graphics, Sign Pro and Del Outdoors. And, to our favorite education partner of all, Melissa Irr and the Yuma County Children’s Museum, it’s been fun watching you grow, and I hope I am able to come to your ribbon cutting of your facility on Main Street.
To the personal mentors, those friends that could be completely open and honest and cared for my personal success, I say THANKS! Again, in no particular order these caring individuals are Jonathan Lines, Tom Tyree, Charles Flynn, Madeleine Coil, Larry Linares, Machele Headington, Russell McCloud, Julie Moreno, Doug Nicholls, Gilbert Hernandez, Joni Brooks, Russ Jones, Phil Clark, Robert Johnson, Russ Clark, Terry Frydenlund, and Danny Bryant. I know I am missing a bunch of people that took the time to give advice and counsel, so please know that you are appreciated. To all the Ambassador Committee chairpersons, from Chandra Olague, Karina Jones, Janet Porter, Tawnee Miller, Mark Briones and Carol Brown, and to all the Chamber Ambassadors, many, many thanks for your volunteerism and for being the real ‘drivers’ of this organization. To my team, Sheryl Hehe, Tania Pavlak, and Diana Wise, I am forever in your debt and want to thank you for being the best team I have ever worked with. I guess I saved the best, for the last! To my wife, Deb, thanks for the patience while I worked many 12 to 13-hour days, EmCee’d events in the evening and for being the ultimate partner and supporting me through our Yuma adventure. To all those that have allowed me to have the best job in Yuma, thank you for having me along for the ride. It’s been wonderful. Stay #YumaStrong.