This year there were four candidate positions open on the Chamber Board of Directors. Last week we had six confirmed candidates. On March 20, due to unpredicted reasons, two of them were no longer eligible. Therefore, according to our by-laws, a ballot will not be mailed out to the membership. The four remaining highly qualified candidates will fill the four available positions. They will serve the 2015/2018 term.
We would like to introduce you to the newest members of the Angel Fire Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Please make plans to join us at our quarterly membership breakfast meeting on Wednesday April 22, 2015, 8:00 am to 9:00 am, when they will take the oath of office and be officially seated on the board.
John E. Hail Jr., Hail’s Holy Smoked BBQ & More
John E Hail, Jr. is the co-owner and co-operator (with his wife, Wendy Hail) of Holy Smoked BBQ & more! He has been a resident of Moreno Valley for 3 ½ years. For the first year John and Wendy were property managers of The Retreat at Angel Fire. He is also an active member and elder of Moreno Valley Community Church.
John grew up on the north end of the Toledo Bend reservoir in Deep East Texas on the Louisiana border. In 1984 he started his 5 ½ year military career in the U.S. Air Force as a Heavy Equipment Operator (later crossed trained to a Pest Control Specialist) in the 27th Civil Engineering Squadron at Cannon AFB, Clovis, NM. Sergeant Hail received an Honorable Discharge in 1990. He spent several years using his military training to advance in a number of jobs and positions. He worked for Ecolab Pest Elimination (Pest Control Specialist), City of Desoto, (Senior Maintenance Tech, Traffic Signal/Sign Tech), Texas Department of Transportation (Roadway Maintenance Tech/Sign Tech), New Mexico Department of Transportation (Highway Maintainer), Mitsubishi Power Systems (Wind Turbine Tech/Lead Tech), and Mesalands Community College (Director/Instructor of Wind Energy Program). John has an Associates Degree from Mesalands Community College in General Studies. He has other training and education from U.S. Air Force, Amarillo College, TEEX (Texas Engineering Extension), OSHA 10 & 30 Hour/ Trainer, and much more.
John and Wendy have seven grown children & eleven grandchildren; Jack (Easton, Ethan, Christian), Jessica (Alyssa, Leah, Connor), Rachelle (Kearstin, Brody), Johnny, Tamara (Hailee), Kimber, and Dustin (Xaylor, Skyleen). He looks forward to serving the community as a board member to promote Angel Fire and the Moreno Valley and increase recognition and revenue through business growth and events. He believes the future of Angel Fire is the continue unity between the Angel Fire Resort, the Village of Angel Fire, the businesses of the Moreno Valley and of course all residents.
Leland (Lee) R. Hopson, Colonel (USAF, Retired), AAFPO Board of Directors
Lee sought to serve on the Board of Directors, simply put, to get more involved in the community. Lee retired from the military in 2007, completing a 35-year Air Force career spanning work in security forces, communications and intelligence, from small units to the Pentagon. He commanded troops stateside and deployed to Southwest Asia. During Lee’s service, he garnered experience as a police officer and desk sergeant; in computer systems and program oversight; in budget development and evaluation; in human resource management; and in infrastructure maintenance and improvement. As a deployed support commander at a remote Kuwaiti base, he was responsible for the infrastructure, from dining facilities to power and utilities to morale and welfare programs. He believes his varied experience will be benefit to the board, the chamber and the Angel Fire community, as a whole.
Lee has a BS in Business and Management and a MS in International Relations. He also has taught computer science at the community college level.
Lee’s hope for his term on the board is Coordination, Cooperation, and Collaboration-Consensus building for the good of the community’s businesses, residences, and guests.
Brenda Johnson, Brenda Johnson Property Management
Brenda has lived in the Moreno Valley for 31 years. She has watched our area go thru highs and lows. She says, “It seems I have always been in customer service most of these thirty-one years.” She became a Real Estate agent in 2004 and a Property Manager in 2006. She has served several years as Treasurer for one the local Churches. She has also served on our local MLS committee since its beginning in the Moreno Valley. During her time in the Valley, Brenda has watched others serve and grow our Village into the amazing community it is today. She remembers how Angel Fire use to work together to bring very successful events and the tourism revenue these events brought to our businesses. She would like to help resurrect this type of community well-being.
As a Real Estate & Property Management Company owner, with plenty of experience as an employee, she is ready to help make a difference. She said, “When I started my business in 2013, someone told me the Chamber was the best advertising money he spent. The statistics the Chamber sends to me at the end of the year are good. They refer member businesses to the visitors who call their office, walk-in the door of their office, email them directly and who browse their website looking for information about Angel Fire. And as a member I am part of the community of businesses who work together to promote Angel Fire and the surrounding areas in a unified positive manner. I have not been disappointed with my investment. And now, as a member of the Board of Directors of the Angel Fire Chamber of Commerce, I WANT to serve and have input in our areas planning for the future.”
Donna Klassen, Incumbent, The First National Bank of New Mexico
Donna Klassen is the branch manager for The First National Bank of New Mexico Angel Fire office and was recently promoted to Vice President. She has been with FNB since April, 2009 starting out as a loan officer at the Raton office before transferring to the Angel Fire office in September, 2011. She has been in banking and mortgage financing for more than 20 years and spent 8 years in the title insurance industry.
This will be Donna’s 2nd term on the Chamber Board and she is also an active member of the Angel Fire Rotary Club. In addition, she is a trained disaster action volunteer; is an active member of the Christian Motorcyclists Association and holds the position of Vice President for the Sangre de Cristo Riders chapter; and served on the steering committee for Grow Raton and was actively involved with establishing the by-laws.
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