Events

Author Manny Pacheco has enjoyed a growing acclaim through his Forgotten Hollywood Book Series, now included in the library collections of the Hollywood Heritage Museum, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, American Film Institute, among others. He's currently in production to turn his literary work into a Forgotten Hollywood Documentary. A Southern California television and radio personality for over three decades, Manny was on NBC's Santa Barbara, co-hosted the Daytime Emmy-nominated In Studio on KCOP, and he currently hosts Forgotten Hollywood, a weekly syndicated radio program on the 90.1 FM KBPK, and a web-based television show on the TherapyCable Channel. He is also a weekend traffic anchor on KNX 10-70 News Radio.

Amanda Hunter will discuss the GWPOP (Good World Power of Peace) Movement and Dr Vicki Radel will discuss the Rotary International Foundation.

Amanda Hunter is the Founder and Executive Director of GWPOP, a grass root peace movement created to mobilize millennials and help them become a powerful element of peaceful change. GWPOP organizes events to bring young people together face to face in open spaces to engage in and experience inTent Talks, music, art and food. For more information visit www.gwpop.org .

Amanda was home schooled in London in a curriculum based on the London School of Business and Homeopathic Medicine. She served as President of the Riverside Telephone Company and is currently President of the California Map Art Company and the Sweet Inspiration Chocolate Company.

Dominik Knoll is CEO of the Redondo Beach Chamber of Commerce. He holds an MBA with specialization in Strategic Management and Leadership. He has worked in several capacities for large and medium-sized corporations, and has been featured in national and international publications. A native of Italy, he is fluent in English, German, and Italian.

The Rotary Club of Redondo Beach Community Foundation Board will present several proposed revisions to the organization's bylaws for the members' consideration and discussion. The vote to approve the changes will take place at the Annual Rotary Club Assembly on December 12, 2018.

Paul Samaras has a Bachelors degree in Political Science and a Masters degree in Public Administration from Cal Poly Pomona.  He has worked for 17 years as a professional planner and is certified by the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP).  He is currently employed by the City of El Segundo and holds the position of Principal Planner.  He has a passion for long-range and transportation planning and is currently collaborating with several other South Bay cities to develop common regulations for Shared Mobility Services (bike-share and scooter-share).  He is a Redondo Beach resident and, for the last 12 months, a member of the City’s General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC).

The Rotary Club and Foundation members will vote on (1) the 2019-20 Board of Directors for the Club and (2) proposed changes to the  Community Foundation Bylaws that were presented at the club meeting on November 14, 2018. 

Please join your Rotary colleagues for our annual holiday celebration. The Surf City Theatre Group will present several holiday themed skits and Sue Johnson and MaryAnne Stickler will lead us in a group singalong of holiday favorites.

Christian Horvath is a Husband, Dad, Volunteer, Public Servant, Business owner and the TEDxRedondoBeach organizer. He currently serves as the Redondo Beach Council Member for District 3 / Mayor Pro Tem and is trying to affect lives with kindness, empathy & long-term solutions. He also serves as the SouthBay Cities Council of Governments 1st Vice Chair and Transportation Committee Chair. During his 3.5 years he has been focused on bringing a long-term, forward-thinking, sustainable and proactive vision to his city and region including topics like municipal broadband, CCA, environmental safeguards, homeless initiatives and improved public transportation.

For more info visit: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christiananthony/  or  follow him on Facebook: @horvath.rbd3   Twitter: @HorvathRbd3

Dr Peters will kick off the club's new Healthy Rotartian Program with a presentation titled Three Health Pearls From Your DNA.

Judge Andrew Kauffman was born and raised in the Los Angeles area and has been a Redondo Beach resident since 1985. He received his undergraduate degree from USC and his law degree from UCLA. He has been married for 36 years and has two grown children.

Judge Kauffman has held the following positions:

Deputy District Attorney from 1975-1985

Commissioner of the South Bay Municipal Court from 1985-1989

Judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court from 1989-1995

Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court from 1995-2011

Arbitrator and Mediator with Alternative Resolution Centers from 2011-present

Theresa Plakos has been the Public Relations Director at Cancer Support Community Redondo Beach for 9 years. Her primary responsibilities consist of working with the local media as well as outreach to the medical and non-medical communities throughout the South Bay and surrounding areas to spread the word about Cancer Support Community’s many valuable free programs, services and fundraising events. Theresa came to work for Cancer Support Community after a good friend was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. Her passion for the work was further fueled by the loss of her father and Stepfather to lung cancer several years ago.

Information about Cancer Support Community Redondo Beach can be found at http://www.cancersupportredondobeach.org/

Sharon Rose is a Community Services K9 Specialist. She has worked for the RBPD for 30 years in various civilian roles, starting with jailer, promoting to jail manager, then evidence manager which included ancillary positions such as PD facility manager, fleet manager, and radio and equipment manager. When the opportunity for the first Facility Dog handler was suggested by the Chief of Police, she jumped at the chance. Sharon and Facility Dog Meredith have been a team for one year. Meredith was donated by Canine Companions for Independence, one of the oldest and most respected organizations who breed, raise and train service dogs for recipients within the United States. They work with officers in the role of peer support, with the community as a victim advocate, with the schools for student outreach, and with the senior centers, care centers, rehabilitation centers, and the Courts to help bring smiles and laughter.

Luz Diaz, instructor of Walk In Dance Out, is especially known for her graceful, joyful, and elegant dance abilities and has been applauded by her dance community for her teaching approach. Her vision is to "Enhance relationships through dancing" by encouraging feelings of joy and wellbeing, facilitating romance and true friendships.

If you want the fun and romance of Ballroom dancing, call on Luz. Luz after competing and obtaining first place in the 1984 California Emerald Ball, and under the rigorous training of the iconic Lou Schreiber, World First Place Winner- Teacher Competition, representing Arthur Murray Dance Studios, she learned how to teach Ballroom, and realized that social dancing is more fun and has continued teaching dance with passion and humor for over 30 years. However, her student’s testimony is the best part of her curriculum, from “Thank you for bringing dating back into our lives; it gets more fun dancing with each other!” to “Every time I walk in [into the dancing hall] I start feeling happy” or “I have been to cruises around the world because I’ve learned and it is fun to dance.” 

Through the years Luz has served as a hospital chaplain and a grief counselor in the greater Los Angeles area. Since retiring, she volunteers with the local organ and tissue donation organization.  She holds degrees in MA, EdS and a Certification for Bioethics Studies from Loma Linda University, California. Her love for humanity, however, has found its best expression in her dancing and in her teaching, making the joy of social dancing available so others can Walk In and Dance Out!

In lieu of our regular lunch meeting, our Young Professionals Group will host their quarterly evening meeting for the whole club. It will beheld from 6:30-9:30PM at the Hey 19 Public House located at 4525 Calle Mayor, Torrance, CA 90505. Hors d'oeuvres will be served and there will be a cash bar.

Judith  Norton received her B.A. in Speech Communications from California State University Long Beach, continued studies at the USC Annenberg School of Communication and earned her Master of Education degree from CSU-East Bay. She has a background in teaching at the college level and as a corporate trainer. Later in her career she became involved in instructional design, specifically designing courses for online learning.

Quite by accident she started creating memory books for the aging parents of baby boomers. A new design focus was formed when she realized how much she enjoyed learning about her clients’ lives. She’s gone on to create printed coffee-table books for their families that include access to their oral histories. This is a priceless keepsake for families.

The focus of her presentation will be a do-it-yourself approach to telling your story. She’s available if an individual needs her, but her main focus is encouraging individuals to tell their story.

As we age gracefully, we realize the importance of telling our story for our families. What do we want to share with them? What nugget of information will explain where they came from? What would you do differently? And, what would you do more of? Perhaps it's time to tell your story.

Dr. Nicole Bosson is the Assistant Medical Director at the Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agency. She is an Assistant Clinical Professor at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and adjunct faculty in the Department of Emergency Medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, where she is the EMS Fellowship Director.  

Nicole began her medical career working in prehospital care, first as an EMT in Boston, Massachusetts and subsequently as a Fulbright scholar at the Service d’Aide Médicale Urgente (SAMU) in Paris. She came to Los Angeles after training in emergency medicine at NYU/Bellevue in NYC to complete a 2-year fellowship in EMS and Disaster Medicine at Harbor-UCLA and the Los Angeles County EMS Agency.  

Nicole is among the first to be board certified in EMS Medicine by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. She is actively involved in EMS research, education, and policy development. She regularly instructs at the J. Michael Criley Paramedic Training Institute. Since 2016, she has served on the California State Scope of Practice Committee for the Emergency Medical Directors of California and has worked on several state and national task forces related to EMS and quality initiatives. Dr. Bosson is a certified Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Medical Team Manager and member of California Task Force 2. She deployed with the team to the Nepal and Mexico City earthquakes.

In her spare time Nicole enjoys food tourism and running marathons to make up for it.

Jonathan Harris is the founder and CEO of Political Navigation, a political advocacy and policy consulting firm in Los Angeles.

Jonathan worked twelve years in Washington, DC as a policy and government affairs expert for several national non-profits. He has organized grassroots activists for state campaigns and on college campuses. He has worked as writer and editor for policy think tanks, a registered lobbyist on Capitol Hill, and as a reporter for Time Magazine in New York and Jerusalem.

Jonathan’s expertise is in two key areas. He began his career in Middle East foreign policy, with a focus on Salafi-jihadist groups such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda. Jonathan worked as a researcher and reporter for TIME magazine in Jerusalem and New York and as a managing editor at the Middle East Forum in Philadelphia. Jonathan has lived in and traveled extensively throughout the Middle East, including Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, and the Palestinian territories. Jonathan’s articles have appeared in TIME magazine, National Review Online, The Washington Times, The New York Post, the Middle East Quarterly and various online sources.

More recently, Jonathan’s focuses on facilitating American political advocacy, specifically education and training for students, non-profits, activists, and business owners on how to promote and defend their own interests with their elected officials. Jonathan’s newest initiative is AP Citizenship – an advocacy training course for high school seniors.

After receiving his B.A. in History from the University of Illinois, Jonathan did graduate studies in Religion and Middle East history at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Jonathan lives in Marina del Rey with his wife Elsa, a professor at Otis College of Art and Design. Both are active Rotarians.

Nancy Weisel

Nancy was born in NY- in a little town called Wantagh on Long Island. She’d like to say it was a bustling metropolis however it was a sleepy little town of houses built after WW2. She lived in one of those houses (with one bathroom) until she went away to college, so she always had one place to call home. She attended Boston University undergraduate, earning a degree in Sociology, and then went back to school at night for a Masters in Finance. She's not sure how it happened but she ended up in the finance field her entire career.

Her journey to the West Coast started in 1990 working for Merrill Lynch and living in Manhattan, when they relocated her to Dallas where she met her husband Jim. He is a cowboy from Oklahoma who was doing some work on her house. After 5 years in TX Merrill offered her another relocation to CA which she and Jim  could not turn down. Given that she had only been to CA once before, she had no idea where to live and what to look for. All  she knew was that price wise compared to TX you got half as much for twice as much. That relocation led her to a home in Redondo Beach and subsequent finance positions here in CA. She recently took an early retirement package from her last company and is now looking forward to the next phase of her life, one thatr will involve the Redondo Beach Rotary Club..

Caitlin Crommett is a Millennial, a 2015 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, and a speaker on generations in the workplace. Her interest in generational connection began at age 15, when she started a foundation called DreamCatchers, which serves to fulfill the final Dreams of hospice patients through chapters run by youth in high school or college. She saw a need for greater cross-generational connection- something that is rarely shared between these typicallyelderly patients and young people in our society today. This sparked her passion for facilitating greater connection and communication between all generations, in the workplace and in the world.

In 2016, Caitlin published a book called “How to Attract Millennials to Your Workplace: And Actually Keep Us!”, focusing on new techniques and strategies for engaging Millennial employees and volunteers, and has been a guest writer & “generational expert” on several websites and blogs. She runs a YouTube channel called “Generation WHAT?”, where she posts weekly videos helping people and organizations solve generational issues in the workplace.

Caitlin has spoken across the country spreading the DreamCatchers mission and sharing strategies for greater generational connection in the workplace, with the hopes of creating a more connected world. She is launching a comprehensive online platform to provide people with a place to improve their workplace culture & productivity through increased generational connection and understanding. She currently resides in Los Angeles, where she as serves as president of DreamCatchers Foundation while growing her speaking business internationally.

Learn more at www.CaitlinCrommett.com

Mike Stark

Mike has a BS from California State University, Long Beach, and executive certifications in Supply Chain Management from the University of Tennessee and MIT.   Mike also attended the Leadership at the Peak course at the center of Creative Leadership in Colorado Springs.

Mike began his career with the Los Angeles based Von’s Companies, Inc. holding roles in human resources and retail operations.  Following Vons, he spent thirteen years in various areas of executive responsibility for Exel plc, a London, England based global supply chain solutions company holding a number of executive roles in operations; leading the technology and non-foods retail sectors; and responsibility for human resources for the Americas and much of Europe.  Mike has also served on a number of boards of directors; most recently on the Board of Directors of Chatsworth Products, Inc., a California based global manufacturer in the telecommunications industry.  At CPI Mike was the chair of the Executive Development and Compensation Committee.

Mike recently retired as COO of American Financial Network Advisory Services, LLC, a full service wealth management firm working corporations and their executive management teams in devising and executing wealth management strategies that increase the valuation of their firm. 

Mike is also a Reserve Commander and hostage negotiator with the Redondo Beach Police Department and has been recognized as the Reserve Police Officer of the Year for the State of California.  He has co-authored two books; one on the history of the Redondo Beach Police Department and the other on the history of Vons Grocery Company.

Mike, Tracy and their four adult children and their families, including 3 grandchildren reside in So California.

Jason Owens

Jason Owens is a 8th generation native of Southern California, where his Great….Grandparents arrived to the Los Angeles in the early 1800s.  He works in the Dental industry serving dentists in the success of their private practices.  Jason also serves as a board member of the Children’s Dental Center of Greater LA, and the Friends of Banning House Museum.  He prides himself in practicing service leadership in all he does.

In his spare time, Jason enjoys sailing offshore races, studying California history and spending time with he’s wife Joni, and two daughters Reilly and Ruby.