NEWS

Dessert Night & Annual Meeting
November 17, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.
at Skagit Valley College

Posted November 7, 2011

Please join us for our Annual Meeting and Dessert Night on Thursday November 17, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. at Skagit Valley College, 221 Weber Way, Friday Harbor.

Once a year we come together to celebrate our successes, to talk about the future, and to eat (free) dessert! We will also elect new Board members.

This year’s nominees for two-year terms on the Home Trust Board are listed here with bios. Voting will take place at the Annual Meeting.

To reduce costs, our Annual Report is also now available online.

New To The Board: Glen Bruels, Barbara Starr, Dina Melic (to be affirmed by members)

Founders Returning to Board: Jim Lawrence, Lee Sturdivant

Returning For Another Term: Molly Hogan, Sam Buck

Continuing Directors: Charles Richardson, Peter Kilpatrick, Mary Ellen Courtney, Keith Keyser

Glen Bruels
Glen is a retired senior partner at the global management and technology consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton. He served BAH for over 25 years as both a staff member and partner working primarily in the space and defense fields in Washington, DC, and Colorado Springs. Prior to that, Glen served as a naval officer and software engineer. He was the cofounder of the Colorado Springs Diversity Forum, served as a trustee of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, and recently became a member of the Northwest Regional Council of the National Parks Conservation Association. He and his wife, Deb, moved to San Juan Island in March 2011 after collaboratively designing/building a "green" home that has been used as a demonstration project in the region, and is now exercising some new skills as a budding sculptor, boater, and world explorer.

Sam Buck
Sam is a third generation islander with 5th generation grandchildren. He has been a Realtor on San Juan Island since 1988 and has a background in farming, commercial fishing and experience in the field of natural health. Sam has been involved with and supportive of the need for affordable housing since his first meeting with Larry Soll some 7 or more years ago. Sam played an important role in working with his cousins to create a win-win situation for them and the Home Trust. They saw the vision, understood the need, and together with the Home Trust expended many hours to bring it all together and become a reality. “I enjoy seeing children on the streets and in the schools,” Sam said. “Having
affordable housing insures children will always be a part of our community.”

Molly Hogan
Molly Hogan enjoys being a Salal Neighborhood homeowner, especially now that she has an "empty nest". She is committed to the work of the San Juan Community Home Trust in creating forever affordable homes. " I am especially pleased that so many young families with children are now homeowners in the Sun Rise Neighborhood," she says. She is the creator of Housing Crunch Granola, with each bag sold generating a donation to the Home Trust. She is looking forward to another term on the Home Trust Board.

Jim Lawrence
Jim has lived on San Juan island since 1973. "I bought land and pursued my desire to farm”, he said, adding "I've worked a variety of jobs from carpenter to commercial fisherman to survive through the years.” Jim married a local girl, Lisa Nash, and together they raised their two daughters and are still pursuing life on the farm. About 12 years ago, Jim says "a few of us got together and discussed the difficulty for working class people to pursue their dreams in home ownership. The disparity between wages and home prices were far too wide a gap to bridge, without some community support. As a result we started the Home Trust in 2001."

Dina Melic
Dina Melic and her husband Faim and son Alen moved to Friday Harbor in 1998, after leaving their home in war-torn Bosnia, and living for a time in Vienna. They came to Friday Harbor where Faim had relatives. Faim works as a skilled stone mason, and Dina as a house assistant. They were the first homeowners to move into Salal, in December of 2004, which fulfilled a dream of home ownership. “It is so nice to have a house and to have room for company,” says Dina, whose parents have visited several times. Dina is an avid gardener and her Salal home shows it. She was elected to the Home Trust Board at a regular Board Meeting in the summer of 2011, and must now be affirmed by the members at the Annual Meeting.

Barbara Starr
Barbara is a clinical social worker with a passion for working with people in the area of mental health. She has a private practice in counseling in Friday Harbor, and she also
works for Compass Health as an on-call Mental Health Professional. In addition, she serves on the Friday Harbor Town Council. Creativity, connection, resourcefulness and resiliency are all words that describe Barbara’s approach to her work, accompanied by a strong dose of humor. She has lived on San Juan Island for 23 years, and considers herself very fortunate to have been able to raise her son in this close community. When she’s not working, Barbara loves to work in her flower garden, go for walks with friends, and read lots and lots of books. She would love to be a world traveler some day.

Lee Sturdivant
Lee Sturdivant is a founding member of the Home Trust and due to her many contributions was made a Board Member emeritus in 2009. She also helped found Island Rec, and the San Juan Island Trails Committee. She stays involved in local politics and grassroots campaigning, with a particular interest in affordable housing and community preservation.