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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. |
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Jeff Holwell, Director, Economic Development Group * Events & Visitors Bureau The new EDG Director has a firm grasp of the area’s economic development needs with remarkable credentials encompassing many aspects of economic development. He has held posts as Director of Business Development for the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade (OEDIT), Business Development Representative for OEDIT, and held the position of Manager of Public Affairs & Economic Development for the South Metro Denver Chamber. He has also served as Community Services Manager for the Town of Superior, Colorado. While Director of Business Development at OEDIT, Holwell managed the State of Colorado economic development program, which included work with statewide economic development organizations, businesses, and local governments to execute business recruitment, land development, and retention and expansion initiatives in Colorado. He supervised several state-run business development programs including the Community Economic Assessment program, the Colorado Customized Job Training Program (Colorado FIRST), the Colorado Companies to Watch business recognition program, the statewide business retention and expansion (BRE) initiative, and the Colorado Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) program. Several major corporations were expanded or relocated to Colorado under his leadership at COEDIT. These included Vestas Wind Systems (2,500 jobs), United Launch Alliance (1,000 jobs), DaVita (500 jobs), A belief in community involvement is evident in Holwell as he has also served on a number of boards including Economic Development Council of Colorado, Metro Denver Sports Commission, RTD FasTracks Citizens Advisory Committee, Colorado Brownfields Foundation, and the Greater Littleton Youth Initiative. Holwell received his Bachelor of Arts degree in History & Economics from the University of Colorado at Boulder and his Master of Public Administration with a Concentration in Economics and Public Finance from the University of Colorado at Denver. Prior to accepting the position with the Chamber he was Chief Operating Officer of the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum. |
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Marcia McGilley, Director, Small Business Development Center * Rocky Mountain Clean Tech Open |
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He began his career as a Sales Executive with Pitney Bowes and worked his way up to the position of Area Sales Manager. Brian left the Pitney Bowes family to become the General Manager for InfoUsa, managing a team of professionals in their Denver office honing his sales, marketing and people skills to a fine edge. Brian now is The Director of Public Policy and Senior Marketing and Visibility Consultant for The South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. The hard-charging leader also coordinates the Chamber’s Legislative Action Committee and Business Leaders for Responsible Government. Brian is also the Founder of the Chamber’s Renewable Energy Taskforce, Professionals Reaching Out, Mentoring Program and the Chamber’s Young Professional Group, H.Y.P.E., (Helping Young Professionals Excel). Brian currently serves on The State of Colorado’s, State Energy Sector Partnership and was an original charter signer. He is also the Employer Outreach Coordinator for Colorado with The Employer Support of Guard and Reserve. Brian has previously served on the Advisory Board of Goodwill Energy Advisory Board, the planning board of The American Indian College Fund annual gala, and The Leadership team of The Rocky Mountain Clean Tech Open. Brian is married and has a son, Stephen, and a daughter, Jessica. When Brian is not working with South Metro Denver Chamber’s members to be incredibly successful, he can be found in tailgating during the Denver Bronco’s season, cooking gourmet food in the parking lot. During the the football off-season, Brian can be found in the streams of the Colorado Mountains, prospecting for gold. |
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Ali Recek, Senior Marketing and Visibility Consultant Ali Recek graduated from the University of Colorado (Boulder) in 1986 with a B.A. in Psychology. She then went into a post-graduate program at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (San Francisco campus) to pursue a Merchandising & Marketing degree and was the recipient of the esteemed Cyril Magnin Award for Merchandising Excellence. Ali has spent many years as a B2B outside sales consultant specializing in providing practical and extraordinary printed marketing media. Although her career in printing was dynamic, she chose to apply the vast marketing experience that she gained in printing to expand her husband Art’s already successful real estate team. She first sought to create branding, logo recognition and a database for ongoing marketing. While assisting Art of The Recek Team at Keller Williams Realty it was necessary to become a Broker Associate, so she did so, and began her own successful “book” of clients. Ali joined the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce to help current and future investors of the chamber to build strategic relationship alliances with other businesses throughout Colorado. Her straight forward, friendly ability to grasp what people need, and then creatively bring together a plan of action will be an asset to everyone she consults with. Her capability to look at “the big picture”, allows her to remain a positive addition to all of her relationships. Alas, all work and no play is a bad equation. When not bouncing warm energy off the chamber walls, Ali can be found searching with her son, Alika, and husband, Art, for the deepest, steepest snowy mountains in Colorado, or frolicking on the beaches of her beloved islands of Hawaii. Hiking, mountain biking and snow shoeing are other ways Ali likes to unwind. |
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Ken Wyble, Marketing & Visibility Consultant Ken is a true renaissance man - multimedia designer, world traveler, chef, politician -- but when he joined the Chamber and later became a part of the team, he found his calling. Ken has a sixth sense about business models and how to grow them and is a natural at connecting the right people and businesses. To say he's passionate about advocating for his clients might just be an understatement. Ken takes food VERY seriously and, when not competing internally with Brian at a staff BBQ, you can easily find him talking shop with the creatives and restaurateurs in the Chamber. To be in a position to learn from and promote artists, thought leaders, and entrepreneurs is, Ken has found, idealic. Ken lives in Southeast Aurora with his wife, Sarah, and young kids, Jonathan and Averil. Sarah works at OppenheimerFunds as a Documentation and Communication Specialist and Ken is quick to refer to her as his ‘significantly better half’. Ken enjoys taking his family on road trips and finding creative ways to pass the time. |
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Ellen Evans, Marketing & Visibility Consultant Ellen is our newest MVC at the Chamber. Born and raised in Chicago, Ellen received a BA in Journalism/Mass Communication from the University of Iowa and will always be a Hawkeye at heart. Her professional background includes over 10 years of Administrative Assistant experience. Most recently Ellen was an Administrative Assistant for the Southeast Business Partnership in Englewood. Her duties at the Chamber include database management and special projects. “I enjoy the challenges and opportunities volunteering offers as I search for a permanent position,” says Ellen. In her spare time, Ellen enjoys tennis, hiking, and her new passion Zumba. |
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A child of the corn, Taren was born in Omaha, Nebraska and came to Colorado after a short period in California. Aurora, Colorado has been home for the past 14 years, so she feels like a native. Loving Colorado and wanting to stay close to family, she attended the University of Denver, Daniels College of Business. Business being in the blood and winning International DECA awards for marketing/advertising as a high school senior, earning a bachelors degree in marketing with a minor in communications was the perfect fit. Since then she has employed her knowledge as the events coordinator at Bellco Credit Union and in a sales capacity for proprietary education with ESM. Taren is looking forward to taking the Chamber’s events to the next level; a level that will bring great value to the members while also drawing in the outside community to learn what this amazing chamber is about. Taren’s first love in life is her adorable son Riley, who has learned to share her passion for basketball and hockey, go DU Pioneers! Unwinding on the weekends is best done with a good movie (anything but horror please!). After living abroad in Rome as a student, Taren has also discovered a love of travel and plans on much more of it in the future; suggestions always welcomed. |
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Terry McElhaney, Manager of Communications Born and bred in Littleton, Terry has a real passion for his hometown. Graduating from Littleton High School in 1970, he had already completed 6 of the 27+ job descriptions he would eventually accumulate before arriving at the South Metro Chamber. After a stint in the Navy as a communications electrician on a minesweeper (“Yes… any ship can be a minesweeper – but usually only once.”), he followed his ambition of being a high school counselor to Adams State College. Somewhere along the line he discovered photography and from the little town of Alamosa, he went to the big city of Los Angeles. Graduating from the Art Center College of Design with a degree in photography, Terry returned to Colorado and began shooting everything from foaming brew to mountain panoramas to super models for Coors Brewery. He switched his focus to computer graphics in the early years when a single computer took up the whole room and watched as the computers shrunk while their capabilities grew. All the while, Terry maintained an entrepreneurial spirit by sprouting several home-based businesses and gaining a MS in Systems Management. In 1999, his sister convinced him to drop everything and become partners in the burgeoning coffee business. At one point operating four coffee bars throughout the south metro area, they have settled down and are now focusing their attention on Romancing the Bean. “Littleton’s Hometown Coffee Shop” is located at the downtown Littleton light rail stop inside the 135-year-old D&RG railroad station. Shifting gears back and forth from coffee to communications, Terry still spends a few hours a week making caramel mochas and true Italian machiatos as well as being actively involved in the Historic Downtown Littleton Merchants Association. He also occassionally gets in a scuba trip to 'big water', but now his passion is getting the word out about the South Metro Chamber and it’s bevy of great member companies. |
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Sandy Teigen, Office Manager A Centennial resident since 1978. Sandy graduated from Arapahoe High School in 1981 and currently living in Littleton. She has three children: Nichole, a University of Denver graduate; Sarah, a Metro State College graduate; and Tyler, a Chatfield High School Graduate who is currently serving in the USMC. Sandy has a long career in Business Management and Operations. Her experiences cover Diversity, Human Resources, Labor Relations and Corporate Operations. Sandy’s hobbies include traveling, golf and wine tastings. Along with her family and friends, The Susan B. Kolman Race for the Cure is one of her passions. Her favorite quote: “ Your word this the only thing of value you have.” . |
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Patrick Pratt, Executive Assistant to the CEO A cold wind blew that January morning as Patrick Pratt was born into the world. Denver, Centennial and the Washington Park area all remember Patrick as a friendly, yet tenacious young man who developed an interest in the political arena early. While in college, at the University of Colorado Denver, Patrick served as the youngest member of the Centennial Home Rule Charter Commission, a group of 21 community leaders who drafted the city’s constitution. In 2010 Patrick graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies and immediately began his young career helping others. While scooping frozen confections at the counter at Bonnie Brae Ice Cream and working in the City Manager’s Office at the City of Centennial, Patrick continued his drive toward perfection. He was bitten by the economic development bug during his tenure with the City of Centennial which led him to the Chamber. Patrick is interested in politics and current affairs. He also loves live music, art, cooking and eating good food, and standup comedy (something he has tried his hand at). Patrick is eager to work closely with the South Metro business community as a Business Growth Advisor at the Chamber despite those cold winds which continue to blow… |
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Danielle Findley, Administrative Assistant to SBDC Director Raised in Aurora, Danielle graduated from Rangeview High School before moving to Greeley to attend the University of Northern Colorado. During her four years at UNC, Danielle became actively involved in the campus community. She pledged and was inducted into Alpha Kappa Psi Professional Business Fraternity, where she held numerous leadership positions, including Vice President of Membership and Vice President of Alumni Relations. Danielle also worked for two years as a Student Manager in the Colorado Business Resource Center. Throughout her time in the CBRC, Danielle trained over 120 student volunteers to work in the office and help entrepreneurs find the resources they needed to open their businesses, while also assisting potential small business owners in performing feasibility analysis on their business ideas. After graduating from UNC’s Kenneth W. Monfort College of Business in 2009 with her BS in Business Administration (Management emphasis), Danielle returned to the Denver area to be closer to her family and to begin working with the SBDC. In addition to her work with the CBRC, Danielle’s previous experience includes internships in the front offices for both the Colorado Mammoth and Denver Outlaws lacrosse teams, five summers with the Golf Division for the City of Aurora, as well as ongoing work with the State of Colorado’s Board of Law Examiners. She enjoys spending her free time travelling, playing volleyball, and going to or watching any professional or collegiate sporting event she can. |
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Ted Sautins, Receptionist Teodors Juris Sautins - AKA ‘Ted’ is new face at the chamber and will generally be the first face greeting visitors through our doors. Teodors is a Latvian name, both parents emigrating to the United States during WWII. Ted has a passion for all sports, particularly college football. (Being the “newbie”, he won’t tell you who his favorite team is - not wanting to offend anyone early on in his career at the chamber) but his dog’s name might give you a hint. USA soccer and Pro football are also high on his list of sport fanaticism, although anything involving running, kicking, full body contact, swimming, checking, passing, dribbling, skating, goals, etc. interests Ted. The sports theme reaches into Ted’s philosophy regarding giving back to the community as he has been head coach of the University of Denver Mini-Mite (ages 4-6) Hockey for 5yrs, Assistant soccer coach for the Littleton soccer association for 7yrs and a volunteer for junior achievement for 4 years. When not working extremely hard to make your chamber experience a positive one, he likes to spend time with friends, family, and his cocker spaniel Buckeye… |
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Crystal Danzanbaljir, Bookkeeper Crystal was born and raised in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia with her parents and one brother and one sister. After high school, she continued her education at the Institute of Foreign Language and graduated with a BA in English. She came to the US in 1996 and has resided in Colorado since that time. Continuing her education at National American University, she graduated as Valedictorian, with a BA in Management and International Business. She also received a MBA in Accounting from Colorado Technical University. "I am excited about my opportunity to work as a bookkeeper for the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce. When not working at the Chamber, I work as a Mongolian Interpreter. I also enjoy spending time with my son Mitchell, hiking, reading and cooking." |
