ELECTORAL AREA #10 BALLOT Vote for one: Jackie DeMartini Vicki Watson Ballot must be received at SIA headquarters by January 3, 2019.
Resume for Federation Board of Directors Electoral Area 10 Name Jackie DeMartini Regular Member, SI of _Loomis Basin in Sierra Nevada Region SOROPTIMIST EXPERIENCE Member since 1998 Club - Every office in the club, except recording secretary and chaired most of the club committees at one time or another over the years including Finance and Bylaws. Region - Governor, Governor-Elect, Treasurer (2 terms), Region Membership Chair, Region Realignment Chair, Finance Committee, Conference steering committee, Soroptimist Development Retreat (SDR) steering committee, Bylaws committee Federation - Member of the Healthy Region Committee and currently on the SIA 100 th anniversary committee Attended the SIA conventions in Calgary, Philadelphia, Taiwan, San Francisco, Vancouver, Orlando, and Yokahama and was an attendee at the Leadership Training in Philadelphia. International Attend the quadrennial conventions in Sydney Australia, Glasgow Scotland and Istanbul Turkey. Silent observer to the SI Board Meeting in Glasgow Scotland and Istanbul Turkey. EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND Education: Designation: AA Liberal Arts, Sierra College California Enrolled Agent to practice before the Internal Revenue Service Ongoing continuing education to maintain E.A. license BUSINESS/PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE I have been in the accounting and tax field for more than 35 years. I started JC Bookkeeping and Financial Services 25 years ago with 1 bookkeeping client in a spare room in my home. The company has grown to over 100 bookkeeping /payroll clients and 7 fulltime employees. Bookkeeping has remained a constant, but we have added services including payroll, QuickBooks consulting, tax preparation, financial planning and wealth management. My tax practice focuses on small business and nonprofit organization. In my community I am the go-to person for all nonprofit questions regarding compliance on the state and federal level. OFFICES/BOARD MEMBERSHIPS IN OTHER ORGANIZATIONS Currently I am the treasurer of the Newcastle Portuguese Hall Association and have in the past been the treasurer of a number of other local organizations including the Placer Elementary PTC, the Newcastle Community Association and the Sacramento Area Wrestling Association. Currently I hold an advisory position regarding finance on the Loomis Library and Community Learning Center.
RECOGNITIONS RECEIVED JC Bookkeeping & Financial Services has received the local Best of the Best award for Bookkeeping and Payroll services for the last 8 years in a row as voted on by the readers of the Loomis News. Last year we received Best of the Best award for best place to work. CANDIDATE S STATEMENT Please answer the following questions in your statement. The SIA Board of Directors has identified skills and attributes that board members should possess in the position description. Please describe how your past experiences in Soroptimist and other aspects of your background, education and training provide these skills and attributes, and qualify you to serve on the SIA Board of Directors. The first attribute for any caring leader is passion. One must believe with their whole heart that what they are doing has value and is important or why even do it at all. I am passionate about Soroptimist. The second attribute is leadership. Leadership is something you are either born with or something you learn. Over the years I have learned how to be a fair, thoughtful, resourceful and encouraging leader in both Soroptimist and my business. If I hadn t learned how to be a leader and learned it well, I would not have grown my business as I have. Nor would I have been Governor of my region or nominated to serve Soroptimist on this board. How would you use your background and experience to achieve the outcomes in SIA s Strategic Plan, and our focus on increasing our collective impact as an organization? My experience in both Soroptimist and in business has shown me that a good leader should have two aspects, leadership skills and management skills to education and involve the members. Leading the organization towards reaching its goals using its mission as its focus and its strategic plan as its directions to reach its goals. This is extremely important, but sometimes overshadows what I see as the second most important aspect of leading an impactful organization, management. A good manager should have the ability to educate, encourage, promote, and engage the members of the organization, they are the people that make everything happen. The members know the mission or they wouldn t be involved. Members also need ongoing education and the tools to carry out the mission. They need the encouragement to know what they are doing is important and the support of the Leadership to be empowered to continue. Most importantly, members need to feel valued, to know their contribution is important and they are making a difference towards the mission. As simple as it seems, a Thank You or lack of one, can keep or lose a member. If a member does not feel their voice is being heard or their contribution is not valued, they will not stay. SIA had it right with the Renaissance campaign, everything we do leads to everything else we do. I believe it all begins and ends with membership. Through the members we can increase our collective impact, locally, and globally. What special qualities would you bring to the Board of Directors? Problem solving is one of my greatest strengths. Having an analytical mind allows me to take a complex problem and break it down into manageable parts. In all fairness creativity is not a strength. However, when I am in a group of creative thinkers, I become an asset. I can help make their creativity a reality through my problem-solving ability. I believe another great strength is my common sense. Good old common sense has become underrated in our society, but I believe it is one of the greatest assets a person possesses.
Resume for Federation Board of Directors Electoral Area 10 Name: Vicki Watson Regular Member, SI of Woodland in Sierra Nevada Region SOROPTIMIST EXPERIENCE Club Experience: Joined Soroptimist International of Woodland in Dec 2004. Served as 2 nd Vice President 2005-06, 1 st Vice President 2006-07 and Club President 2007-08. Served or Chaired on most club committees over the years. Region Experience: Served as Endowment Fund Coordinator 2008-10. In addition to aid in granting over $30,000 to clubs, I recommended updated and revised procedures for administering the fund. Elected to District V District Director managing 10 clubs for the 2010-12 biennium. Attended the Soroptimist International of the Americas (SIA) Leadership Conference in Hawaii in 2011. Elected to Region Treasurer for the 2012-14 biennium. During this time, I also served on the Bylaws Review committee which was successful in modernizing our region bylaws. I also took on the task of reorganizing the region financial reporting and accounting system to further align us to proper accounting practices for non-profits. Elected to Region Governor Elect for the 2014-16 biennium, served as the Conference Coordinator for 2015 and 2016, the Coordinator of the Soroptimist Development Retreat for 2014 and served as the SIA Program Chair for the region 2014-16. During this biennium, I was again on the Bylaws Review Committee in which we successfully completed a full revision of the region Bylaws, Policies and Procedures. Region Governor for the 2016-18 biennium during which we grew by two clubs to a total of 55. Clubs rallied behind my Governor s project to make dresses for the girls in partnership with Dress A Girl Around the World. Total dresses made by members of our region were over 4,000. Along with Conference Coordinator Lane Parks, we successfully gathered sponsorships to offset costs of the Conference which allowed us to provide a more professional conference without additional costs to our members. Our new region website was developed and close to launch by the end of the biennium. Currently serving the region as the Bylaws and Procedures Chair Soroptimist International of the Americas: Attended the biennial conventions: San Francisco, CA in 2010, Honolulu, Hawaii in 2012, Vancouver, BC in 2014, Orlando, FL in 2016 and Yokohama, Japan in 2018. Attended 3 Governors Round Table as Governor Elect and Governor. Soroptimist International: Attended the 2015 International Board meeting as a silent observer in Istanbul, Turkey Attended the 2015 Soroptimist International Convention in Istanbul, Turkey
EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND Graduated from University of Alaska, Anchorage with a Bachelor of Business Administration, cum laude. Graduate courses in Taxation, Golden Gate University BUSINESS/PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE Post graduate studies, practiced as a Certified Public Accountant for 10 years. Currently, President since 2009 at an independent insurance agency in which I lead over 50 employees. Trustee on corporate Pension Plan with over 5 million in assets. OFFICES/BOARD MEMBERSHIPS IN OTHER ORGANIZATIONS Omega Nu Sorority Board member 4 years with 2 years as Treasurer Woodland Chamber of Commerce Board member for 8 years with 5 years as Treasurer Wraith, Scarlett & Randolph Insurance Services, Inc. Board member for 12 years with 8 years as President RECOGNITIONS RECEIVED Woodland Chamber Member of the Year in 2008 Grand Marshall of the Woodland Parade in 2009 (in honor of community service) CANDIDATE S STATEMENT Please answer the following questions in your statement. The SIA Board of Directors has identified skills and attributes that board members should possess in the position description. Please describe how your past experiences in Soroptimist and other aspects of your background, education and training provide these skills and attributes, and qualify you to serve on the SIA Board of Directors. As Soroptimist International of the America s Program chair in 2014-16, I was responsible for educating the members of our region about the programs of SIA and I worked closely with the Program team at headquarters. For me, a highlight was being on the feedback team for the Dream It, Be It; Career Support for Girls curriculum in development. I was able to share my enthusiasm about this new program with the members of the region once it was released. The concept working as one launched by SIA during my time as Governor also resonates with me. As a small business executive, I realize the importance of branding and staying true to your strengths and core values. If we are to remain relevant for future Soroptimists, we must have an identifiable public image. On a personal note, I love to travel. I am excited about the opportunity to work closely with those from other cultures to make a larger impact worldwide for women and girls. How would you use your background and experience to achieve the outcomes in SIA s Strategic Plan, and our focus on increasing our collective impact as an organization? I have been in a leadership position in many aspects of my life, both professionally and personally. I plan on applying those skills of motivation, team effort, compromise and healthy conversations to further our objectives. My training and on the job experiences have equipped me with the ability to work with others toward a common goal. In my business, we know that a current client is easier than getting a new one, so member retention is important to me. Member retention happens when we meet member expectations. Managing over 50 employees, I ve learned much about working with varying expectations and pulling everyone together under a common goal. My dad taught me to lead by example, so for many years now, I have been a monthly giver to my favorite charity, Soroptimist. What special qualities would you bring to the Board of Directors? My background as a certified public accountant provides me with strong analytical skills and full understanding of nonprofit financial accounting. I ve had extensive experience in bylaws revisions and due to my years of managing a company I believe I have strong leadership abilities. I ve been told that I m not afraid to speak my mind, and well, I must admit that s true. I think all women should speak their mind, we just must do it in a civil and respectful matter and we will all be heard.