2009-2010 South Metro Denver Board of Directors

Mark Ryan, Snelling Professional Services
2009-2010 Chair
www.snelling.com

Mark Ryan and his wife own the Snelling Professional Services franchise in Littleton. Mark has an extensive background in recruiting, hiring and marketing, in addition to industry specific positions. Mark is currently the Chair-elect of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. He is also involved in other community service projects. Mark was a Senior Vice President at a Fortune 500 company prior to buying the franchise. He has won numerous performance awards over the course of his 30 year business career. His favorite quote is "Winners never quit and quitters never win". Mark and his wife, Judy, have 3 teenagers. In his spare time, Mark enjoys skiing, golf and reading history. He also recently completed his PADI dive certification.

John Brackney, South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce
President & CEO

Following a time-honored family tradition, John was born. This event took place in what is now Centennial Colorado, and he grew up a block from where he currently resides and attended Littleton high school. John continued on to the University of Northern Colorado, where he earned a Bachelors' degree in political science. Not yet drained from years of academia he attended the University of Denver where he received a law degree. His formal education completed, he embarked on repaying student loans.

John enlisted in the Colorado National Guard and later attended Officer Candidate School, attaining the rank of Captain. He served as the Company Commander of the 147th Combat Support Hospital. During his 12-year tenure he was privileged to twice receive the Meritorious Service medal.

John was elected to his first term as Arapahoe County Commissioner in 1996, and was selected as Freshman Commissioner of the Year by his colleagues across the state. Re-elected to a second term, he served as chairman of the Arapahoe County Public Airport Authority, and as president of the Arapahoe County Water and Wastewater Authority. He was one of the founders of the City of Centennial, a city he is proud to call home.

In his spare time he is a volunteer fundraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis society and serves on the Board for Littleton Public Schools Foundation. In his spare spare time he enjoys yard work (really?) and, in an attempt to keep his weight down, runs an occasional marathon. No information about John would be complete without mentioning the people most important in his life, his wife Meredith and daughters Taylor and Jordan. Meredith has provided him with endless support and years of friendship, and his girls keep him on his toes and constantly entertained.

Nicole Ament, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck
Vice Chair, Economic Development Group
www.bhfs.com

Ms. Ament is a Shareholder in Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck’s Denver office and a member of the Real Estate and Land Use groups. Focusing on commercial real estate transactions and land use development, her representative transactions include real estate acquisitions and dispositions, financing, public-private partnerships, development and governmental approvals.

Ms. Ament recently represented the developer of Fitzsimons Village in its negotiations with the City of Aurora and the Aurora Urban Renewal Authority, resulting in the largest urban renewal incentive package in the City of Aurora. The incentive package will facilitate the redevelopment of a 35 acre site into a mixed use development with retail, offices, residential and a hotel and conference center. Additionally, Ms. Ament has led negotiations with local governments on notable development projects, including Landmark Properties' development of 1,700 acres at Denver International Airport which involved negotiations with the City of Denver, the City of Aurora, Denver International Airport and four separate school districts.

Ms. Ament has also represented multiple corporations in large real estate portfolio acquisitions, dispositions and financing. Ament shepherded KSL Capital Partners' $1.8 billion acquisition of ClubCorp. She provides ongoing representation to ClubCorp in relation to its 170 golf courses, country clubs and business clubs. Ms. Ament actively represents Vail Resorts on real estate development including acquisitions, entitlements, association formation, and all other aspects of new development.

Ms. Ament is a graduate of the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and Trinity University. Ms. Ament serves as the chair of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Group. She was named to the 2008 Class for Leadership Denver and the 2006 "50 for Colorado."

Dean Murphy, American Civil Constructors
Past Chair
www.acconstructors.com

Dean Murphy is the Director of Business Development for American Civil Constructors. ACC works in light and heavy civil service construction projects with a focus on rehabilitation, reconstruction and reclamation of bridges, tunnels, highways, water and utility projects, landscaping and other infrastructure services. ACC has branches in California, Colorado, Texas and Washington, and the home office is headquartered in Denver.
As an active member of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce, Dean serves on the Board of Directors as the chairman of the Economic Development Group. He feels that part of any person's job is to contribute to the whole and that the more dialed in to the Chamber a company is the more effective the business can become.

A native of Tennessee, Dean and his wife, Kathy have two children, Madison and Jesse. Dean graduated from Lipscomb University in Nashville with a business degree and he moved to Colorado in 1990 after various stops in other parts of the country. According to Dean, the people of Colorado are an accepting community and open to others, and he enjoys the vibrant business climate as well. Before making his way to Colorado, he was a partner in a large landscaping business called Ground Effect.

Dean works so he can hunt and fish, and he has fly-fished in both the ocean and in rivers. He also has a long list of hobbies, including golf.

L.G. Chavez, Jr., Burt Automotive Network
Executive Committee Member-At-Large
www.burt.com

Lloyd G. Chavez Jr. is President and CEO of The Burt Automotive Network. The Burt Automotive Network has grown from $526 million in revenues in 1995 to $1.630 billion in combined sales in 2003 under the leadership of Lloyd. Burt ranked nationally as the 12th largest dealer group in revenues and the largest minority-owned and operated automotive dealer group. Burt ranked regionally as the second largest dealer group, second largest private business, the largest e-dealer group and the largest minority-owned business in Colorado.

L. G. Chavez, Jr. has 15 years of Ph.D. level academic biological research at major national research institutions and over 12 years of industrial biological research. He has significant experience in managing the relationships with several start-up technology companies, research institutions and pharmaceutical companies. His background has also involved intellectual properties management, new product and technology acquisitions and strategic alliance formation. Currently his focus is on development of new business opportunities, strategies, technologies, acquisitions and relationships for the largest automotive group in the Rocky Mountain West with automotive manufacturers and support companies.

A Colorado native, L. G. attended Arapahoe High School and the University of Colorado, and he has an extended academic background. He also attended the University of Virginia where he earned a PhD in microbiology and immunology.

L. G. and his wife Linda have four children: Lia, Misha, Joshua and Mary. The Burt Automotive Network was established in 1939. L. G.'s father, Lloyd G. Chavez has been associated with Burt since 1950, first as a salesman, then manager and as an owner since 1966.

Tammy Fernandez, University of Phoenix
Vice Chair, Executives in Leadership
www.phoenix.edu/colorado

Tammy Fernandez currently serves as the vice president and campus director for University of Phoenix – Denver. Her responsibilities include managing almost 500 faculty and staff members and overseeing all academic, enrollment, finance, corporate development, and marketing for the University’s five campus and learning center locations in Lone Tree, Aurora, Fort Collins and Westminster. As the need for non-traditional education continues to increase, she is also responsible for expanding the University’s footprint in the Denver area.

During her 10-year tenure, Fernandez has held many prominent positions at University of Phoenix, including regional director of marketing and enrollment for the New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Iowa, Oklahoma and Arkansas campuses. An accomplished leader and champion for education, Fernandez has been recognized by the University with numerous awards for exceptional service, top performance for growing her team and the campus and the impossible dream award, which recognizes people that think outside the box to get the job done.

She also makes significant contributions to the local non-profit and business community. With a passion for giving back to the community, she led the Denver campuses to donate more than 400 hours last year volunteering at various organizations such as the Denver Rescue Mission, Habitat for Humanity, The Children’s Hospital, the Salvation Army and the Colorado Humane Society.

In addition, Fernandez is an active member of the South Metro Women in Leadership Board, South Metro Leadership Program, the Aurora Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Aurora and the Student Leadership Board. She is also the Vice Chair of Leadership Initiatives for the South Metro Chamber of Commerce, is the Membership Director for the Aurora Chamber of Commerce and is on the Board of Directors for the YMCA. She is also a finalist for The Denver Business Journal’s 2009 Outstanding Women in Business Award, which will be announced next month.

Under her leadership, the University has been selected as a 2009 winner of the prestigious Alfred P. Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility, presented by a national organization that recognizes companies that make work manageable and successful, and was a recent finalist for the Aurora Chamber of Commerce’s Business of the Year award.

Fernandez is a graduate of University of Phoenix, earning a bachelor’s of arts in management as well as a master’s degree in business administration. .

John Stickel, Wingate by Wyndam Hotel
Vice Chair, Events & Visitors Bureau
www.wingatehotels.com

John began working in the hotel industry while completing his studies at Montana State University in Bozeman, MT. Although he graduated with a degree in Business Finance with a minor in Economics, John soon discovered a passion for hospitality and never looked back. With his operational experience and familiarity with the Wingate brand, John found a spot on the opening team for Wingate by Wyndham-Denver Tech Center in 2003. Once the hotel was up and running, John quickly from Front Desk Manager to General Manager.

Since joining Bozeman-based Oasis Management as a consultant in 2005, John has been part of the opening teams for the new Wingate by Wyndham hotels in Henderson, NV and St. George, UT. He sees each as an exciting new challenge, and looks forward to helping many more hotels to optimize their revenue performance and operational efficiency.

John became a partner in Oasis Management in January of 2010, and while he remains the GM of the Denver Wingate, he has assembled an excellent team of hotel professionals at the property that allows him the ability to devote time and attention to each hotel that Oasis manages.

Ken Bacon, Littleton Adventist Hospital
www.mylittletonhospital.com

Mr. Bacon has 12 years of service with Centura.Most recently he served as president and CEO of Parker Adventist Hospital since 2001.He also held positions as budget and finance manager, director of managed care for hospital contracting finance systems for Porter Adventist Hospital, Parker Adventist Hospital Centura Health from 1991 - 1996.In 1997, Mr. Bacon moved to Texas, where he served as chief financial officer and then president and CEO of Texas Medical Center until his return in 2001.

Mr. Bacon holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Union College in Lincoln, Neb., an MBA from Southwest Texas State University and a CPA from the State of Colorado.

Gary Barbosa, Lockheed Martin
www.lockheedmartin.com

Gareth “Gary” Barbosa is the Director of Human Resource (HR) Systems and Workforce Planning & Staffing for Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. Gary Barbosa has been with Lockheed Martin since 1999. He began in Enterprise Information Systems as the Director for HR Business Partners and previously directed Compensation, Benefits and Employee Services for Space Systems Company. He has 23 years of HR experience, including corporate and field assignments. In addition to his organizational and functional responsibilities, Gary Barbosa has participated on a number of corporate teams focused on shaping the HR profession and the Lockheed Martin workforce at large. He is also a member of the Corporate Hispanic Leadership Council charged with improving the professional pipeline of talent in the industry and company. Gary Barbosa’s previous experience includes Electric Utility and Management & Business Consulting.

Mr. Barbosa is an active Board Member on the Colorado – Math, Science, Technology & Engineering Education Council (COMSTEC) and the South Metro Denver Board and STEM Committee. In addition to civic responsibilities each of these boards are focused on improving the K-16 educational pipeline.

Gary Barbosa is a graduate of Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science in Finance. Gary Barbosa also has a Masters of Business Administration from Nova Southeastern University.

Jean Barker, Kaiser Permanente of Colorado
www.kp.org

Jean Barker is Executive Director for Sales and Account Management, Colorado Region, for Kaiser Permanente. As America's leading integrated health care organization, Kaiser Permanente is focused on delivering accessible health care to the public. Jean has been with Kaiser Permanente for 20 years, where she began her career as a financial analyst. She also worked in strategic planning, product development and marketing before earning her present position in 2002. Jean's responsibilities include accountability for all sales and account management activities, as well as representing Kaiser Permanente to the community and interfacing between the market and the company.

Jean graduated from Michigan State University with a B.A. in medical technology and earned an M.B.A. in business administration from the University of Oklahoma.

A resident of Cherry Knolls, Jean and her husband, Cliff have three children, Sam, Carrie and Alex. Jean and her family like to ski at Winter Park and enjoy getting together with their neighbors. She also spends her free time reading and cooking.

Cheryl Braunschweiger, ALMC Mortgage
www.almcmortgage.com

As a successful business owner and community leader, Cheryl Braunschweiger is known and respected for getting things done with a degree of skill and enthusiasm that bring out the best in those around her – colleagues, clients and friends. The name of her business, ALMC Mortgage, reflects Cheryl’s philosophy and personality. She says it stands for All Loans Must Close –a reflection of her determination to do whatever it takes to serve her clients. Cheryl has been in the mortgage lending business for 15 years.

A natural leader, you’re most likely to find Cheryl at the forefront of whatever she’s involved in, helping the people she’s working with come up with solutions that work for best for them. She approaches work – and life – with passion, integrity, solid business judgment and a commitment to contributing to the community and those she works with.

Her areas of expertise include general management, business start-up and ownership, financial management, marketing and sales, business planning, and community leadership.

Cheryl is a member of the Board of Directors of the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce and chairs what is widely recognized as the best leads group within the Chamber. She’s a former chairperson of the City of Aurora’s Business Advisory Group. She was nominated as “Outstanding Woman in Business” by the Denver Business Journal in 2008 and has received numerous other awards and recognition for her outstanding accomplishments.

Lisa D'Ambrosia, Minor & Brown
Vice Chair, Small Business Development Center
www.minorbrown.com

Lisa is an experienced transaction attorney who advises her clients in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, commercial real estate, private equity and financing transactions.

Prior to joining the Minor & Brown team, Lisa graduated cum laude with distinction from the University of the South in 1989 with a B.A. in political sciences. She continued her education in the M.B.A. program at the University of New Orleans. Lisa graduated cum laude from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1993 and earned her Legal Masters degree in Taxation from New York University School of Law in 1994.

A true believer in community involvement, Lisa is also an active member of the South Metro Chamber of Commerce Economic Development Committee. In addition, she is a sponsor of many community and national charitable organizations including: The Children’s Hospital, The Leukemia Foundation, The March of Dimes, The American Liver Foundation and The National Kidney Foundation.

Lisa is the mother of three wonderful girls who help ensure that life never slows down. They remind her daily that everything you need to know in life you truly learn on the Kindergarten playground.

Lisa is a member of both the Colorado and the Denver Bar Associations.

Gayle Dendinger, CAP Logistics
www.caplogistics.com

Gayle Dendinger is the President and Chief Executive Officer of CAP Logistics. He has been in the expedited freight services industry for over 30 years. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska and has done post-graduate work in entrepreneurship at the University of Denver.

Recognizing the need for a venue for Colorado CEOs and leaders to be able to better work with each other, he founded The Colorado Business Roundtable in conjunction with the 23 roundtables of sister states and the National Business Roundtable in Washington, which advises the President.

His personal motto is that, “It is good business to be a good neighbor.” As a result, he has supported the Colorado Department of Education in Lesson Study, Denver Public Schools in Distance Learning using 2-way satellite transmissions, and the Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce in the development of WBE Certification. Internationally, he has been involved with moving and delivering a substantial amount of text books to 40 schools in South Africa and winter coats and other supplies to U.S. allies in Eastern Europe – Romania, Poland, and Albania.

A great believer in the power of collaboration, he has co-developed software to magnify the results of cooperative efforts and has co-written a graduate level course with Colorado Christian University, which was taught collaboratively with approximately thirty business and civic leaders in the Fall of 2004.

As an admirer of Buckminster Fuller, Mr. Dendinger has created the ICOSA™ award, modeled after the icosahedrons, a 20-faceted polygon, which was simultaneously awarded by twenty community leaders to twenty individuals for their work in the progression of the No Child Left Behind Act.

CAP Logistics is the recipient of the 2008 Denver Metro Chamber Small Business of the Year, 2008 Governor’s Export Award, 2005 US Department of Commerce Export Achievement Certificate, 2005 Colorado Ethics in Business Award and 2004 Colorado Performance Excellence Foothills Award (State Baldridge Award for Excellence in Approach).

Michael Hommel, Designs by Sundown
www.designsbysundown.com

In 1985 Michael Hommel started Designs by Sundown in his parents’ garage with a college buddy.  More than 20 years later, his business has become one of the biggest landscape architecture firms in the state, offering a full menu of design services for the outdoor experience:  waterscapes, patios, fireplaces, and outdoor kitchens.

Designs by Sundown was named the South Metro Denver Chamber's Small Business of the Year for 2008.

Rick Koontz, Wells Fargo
www.wellsfargo.com

Rick Koontz is Senior Vice President and Business Banking Manager for Wells Fargo's Business Banking team for the South Suburban Denver market. He is based at Wells Fargo's Highlands Ranch location and manages a team of nearly 25 financial services professionals. Koontz has more than 25 years of financial services experience and has worked for Wells Fargo and its predecessors for over 20 years, the majority of which has been spent in Business Banking in the South Denver market.

A native of Kansas, Koontz has a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and an M.B.A. from Wichita State University. He and his wife, LeAnn, have two sons, Kyle and Jared.

Peter Moore, Polsinelli Shughart PC
www.polsinelli.com

Peter Moore is a partner in the Denver office of Polsinelli Shughart PC, a national law firm with 16 office locations stretching from Washington DC to Phoenix, Arizona. Mr. Moore focuses his practice on commercial and real estate transactions.

During his twenty-nine years of practicing law in Denver, Peter has been the lead attorney in the following representative transactions: • Asset sale of an eighteen-store chain of sporting goods stores • Stock sale of a Minnesota manufacturing company • Acquisition of numerous commercial printing companies for a national consolidator • Purchase and sale, under a variety of structures, of numerous Colorado businesses • Lead counsel for the wind-up in sixteen states of a 90-store national equipment rental company • Reorganization and wind-up counsel for several law firms and businesses.

Peter currently serves as outside general counsel for numerous Colorado-based businesses. Mr. Moore is dedicated to helping the community. He currently is a member of the Board of Directors of Geneva Glen Camp and is a past Board member of the Swallow Hill Music Association. He is a founding member of the Bench and Bar Society for the Mile Hi Chapter of the American Red Cross, a member of the Colorado Lawyer’s Committee’s Homeless ID Task Force, and an active member of the South Metro Denver Chamber’s Economic Development Group, Legislative Action Committee, and Business Leaders for Responsible Government.

Peter is a graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service (B.S.F.S. 1978) and the University of Denver College of Law (J.D. 1981). He lives in Greenwood Village, Colorado with his wife Gina and their three children, Patrick, Brian, and Lisa.

Karen Newman, University of Denver Daniels College of Business
www.daniels.du.edu

Dr. Karen L. Newman assumed her position as dean of the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver in May of 2005. Before that she was the dean of the Robins School of Business at the University of Richmond for six years. Prior to becoming a dean, she served on the faculty of Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business for 15 years where she was Associate Dean for Graduate Business Programs from 1993-1996.

Dean Newman is the co-author of the book Managing Radical Organizational Change, published in 1998, and the co-editor of the book, Handbook of Cross-cultural Management, published in 2002. She is the author or co-author of about 40 scholarly articles and book chapters on topics such as organizational change, workplace commitment, cross-cultural management practices, and organizational careers.

While Newman served a

t the University of Richmond, the Robins School of Business undertook an ambitious strategic plan to become a top choice school for students. The number of faculty increased by 20%, teaching quality improved, research quality made great strides, student-faculty research was developed, the number of students studying abroad quadrupled, class sizes declined by over 10%, and the curriculum was made more rigorous. Dean Newman led a complete overhaul of the MBA program, energized the Management Institute, and undertook a capital campaign for an addition to the Robins School Building.

Dean Newman earned the Ph.D. degree in behavioral sciences and an MBA from the University of Chicago's Graduate School of Business. She earned a B.S. degree with honors in economics from Purdue University.

Wendy Woods, Nexus Financial Services
www.myhdvest.com/wendywoods

Wendy Woods grew up in Ohio and received a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics from the University of Toledo. She relocated to Colorado in the mid-1980's and pursued a Master's Degree in Computer Information Systems from the University of Phoenix. After 20 years in the Information Technology field, Wendy changed careers and became licensed as a Financial Advisor.

Wendy currently resides in Morrison, Colorado with her husband, Tim Cousineau, and her menagerie of 2 dogs, 2 cats, and a bird. She loves skiing, snowshoeing, hiking, biking, and camping. When confined to the indoors, Wendy enjoys reading and crafts.

Bret Yoder, Clifton Gunderson
www.cliftongunderson.com

Bret Yoder's bio information will be available soon.