People: Week of July 7, 2014

NBBJSTAFF

July 7, 2014

Send news about North Bay professionals to people@busjrnl.com.Agriculture

The Land Trust of Napa County gave Andy and Betty Beckstoffer its 2014 Acre by Acre Award, which recognizes the significant land conservation achievements of individuals and organizations. Following the award, the Beckstoffers were presented with a Congressional Resolution by Rep. Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, citing the preservation of more than 400 acres of land. Mr. Beckstoffer is founder and owner of Beckstoffer Vineyards and subsidiaries Winegrowers Farming Company in the Napa Valley, Mendocino Vineyard Company in Ukiah and Red Hills Vineyard Company in Kelseyville. Beckstoffer Vineyards owns about 1,000 acres of vineyard land each in Napa, Mendocino and Lake counties. He served on the trust's board of trustees 2005--2011. He worked with Mr. Thompson on legislation to conserve agricultural lands, as a result of which he received the Wine Award from Copia and Grower of the Year from Napa Valley Grapegrowers, both in 2006. The next year, he was named Agriculturist of the Year by the Napa County Farm Bureau, and awarded for industry leadership by the U.S. Congressional Wine Caucus.Construction

[caption id="attachment_94893" align="alignright" width="192"] Ryan Jackson[/caption]

Santa Rosa-based general contractor Jim Murphy & Associates added Ryan Jackson to their team of six project managers. He has a bachelor of architecture degree from Woodbury University in Los Angeles and spent more than 17 years in the California construction industry. Mr. Ryan holds a LEED Accredited Professional in Building Design and Construction credential.Employment

Sausalito-based Glassdoor hired Mutahar "Moody" Glasgow as chief marketing officer. He has more than 10 years of domestic and international digital marketing experience, most recently as the vice president of global acquisition marketing for Electronic Arts, a video game creator.Finance

[caption id="attachment_94894" align="alignright" width="173"] Richard Stone[/caption]

Richard Stone, founder and chairman of San Rafael-based wealth-management firm Private Ocean, has been named chairman of the U.C., Berkeley, Financial Planning Program advisory board. Mr. Stone began his career more than 40 years ago, when the financial planning industry was in its infancy. He graduated with the first class of certified financial planners in 1973. An advocate for client rights and transparency, he co-authored the industry's first code of ethics. His contributions to the industry were recognized in 2011, when he received the Schwab Impact Leadership Award. In addition to his U.C., Berkeley, position, he is a director and treasurer of Dominican University of California. He also serves as a member of the North Bay Advisory Board of Presidio Bank and of the Buck Institute Advisory Council.

[caption id="attachment_94895" align="alignright" width="192"] Scott Shapiro[/caption]

Warren Capital Corporation promoted Scott Shapiro to chief operating officer. He has been with Warren Capital since 2001 in various capacities, for the past eight years as senior vice president. He is responsible for sales, credit and debt placement, underwriting, funding and merger-and-acquisition financial modeling. He also oversees Warren Capital's servicing, contract administration and documentation as well as managing relationships with lending partners. In addition, he carries responsibilities for business development in the community bank, health care and franchise markets. He is a graduate of Boston College with degrees in finance and information systems. While in Boston, he worked for FleetBoston Financial, assisting on the banking side during its merger with BankBoston. A Sonoma resident, he also acts as treasurer of a local charitable foundation and has been recognized as one of the top young executives in the North Bay.Nonprofit

[caption id="attachment_94896" align="alignleft" width="192"] Leota Fisher[/caption]

PEP Housing named its new affordable senior housing complex Fisher Senior Apartments after longtime board member Leota Fisher. She is a retired hospice nurse and celebrating her 98th birthday in August. She has been an active board member since 1992, serving for several years as the secretary and currently on the board's Administration Committee. The housing complex, being developed by the city of Petaluma along with PEP, will be conveniently located adjacent the downtown transportation hub and Petaluma's future SMART train stop nearby.

Petaluma Educational Foundation appointed two current members. Maureen Highland was promoted to interim executive director, and Alicia Hansel, board president. Ms. Highland's previous role was as director of development. Graduating in 1991 from University of San Francisco, she has spent the last 24 years strategically implementing and exceeding marketing goals for prominent Bay Area organizations. A 21-year resident of Petaluma, she has been instrumental in increasing the impact of PEF's role in building partnerships with local businesses and stewarding growth opportunities for the foundation's endowments, scholarships and grant programs. Ms. Hansel, a former Sonoma State University water polo coach and graduate of U.C., Berkeley, has served in numerous volunteer positions at PEF since 2008. On July 1, she took office as the president of the board of directors, after serving as vice president for the past year.

[caption id="attachment_94897" align="alignright" width="173"] Paul Miller[/caption]

Council on Aging appointed Paul Miller director of legal services. He earned a law degree with honors at Empire College School of Law and is completing his master's degree in tax law (L.L.M.) at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. Prior to the council, he was in private practice, specializing in general civil law with an emphasis on estate-planning. The organization offers lawyer referral and senior legal services in housing, Social Security, SSI, Medi-Cal, fraud, simple wills, powers of attorney and advance health care directives for Sonoma County residents 60 years or older. Estate-planning is available for local residents older than 50.Technology

[caption id="attachment_94898" align="alignleft" width="192"] Kevin Kellerman[/caption]

Kevin Kellerman joined the Petaluma-based AVRS, a pioneer in the California DMV Business Partner Automation program, as director of education. He has 35 years of experience in automotive compliance, registration training seminars and vehicle registration processing. He founded Dealer Education Services, California's first licensed dealer vocational school. He wrote the California industry-standard Auto Registration Guidebook, published annually since 1993. He developed the vehicle-registration seminar program sponsored by the California New Car Dealers Association and trained dealers on this program for more than 20 years. His vehicle title and registration company, Auto Registration Experts, has serviced hundreds of new and used dealers since 1981. In his new role at AVRS, he will be developing programs, guidelines, certification courses and training to support the registration-services and new-car-dealer markets by forming a new association.Wine

The Duncan family appointed Nate Weis winemaker for Silver Oak Cellars in Oakville and Erin Miller as pinot noir winemaker for Twomey Cellars. Both reporting to longtime Director of Winemaking Daniel Baron. Mr. Weis is only the third winemaker in the 42-year history of Silver Oak. He is a Napa Valley native and second-generation winemaker with more than 10 years of experience at Antica Napa Valley, Aril Wines, Patz & Hall Wine and Etude Wines. In 2014, he was a North Bay Business Journal "Professional to Watch" in the annual Forty Under 40 awards. He has a B.S. in biopsychology and neuroscience from University of California, Santa Barbara, an M.S. in viticulture and enology from U.C., Davis, and an MBA from Sonoma State University. Mrs. Miller was most recently with Provingage Wine Associates, working for Evening Land Vineyards as California Winemaker and Oregon assistant winemaker and managing four boutique wineries. Previously, she worked for Hartford Family Winery and Kendall-Jackson's Vinwood Cellars. Ms. Miller earned her M.S. from U.C., Davis, and holds a B.A. in mathematics and Russian from Lewis and Clark College. Prior to winemaking, she spent nearly three years in the U.S. Peace Corps based in Niger.

[caption id="attachment_94899" align="alignleft" width="302"] Paul and Vicki Michalczyk[/caption]

Sonoma County Winegrowers named Paul and Vicki Michalczyk as winners of its 2014 Viticulture Award of Excellence. The award recognizes individual grapegrowers or grape-growing families who have made significant contributions to Sonoma County winegrowing and the greater local community. The Michalczyks have been actively involved in many of the organization's promotional and grower programs. Ms. Michalczyk is currently a member of the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission board of directors, Executive, Finance and Grower Programs committees, as well as outgoing president of the Sonoma County Grapegrowers Foundation. Mr. Michalczyk has played an important role supporting the organization's Co-Op marketing grant-funding program, which helps support various marketing initiatives for the county's 16 American Viticultural Areas, and is past president of the Russian River Growers Foundation. As members of the Sonoma County Winegrowers' marketing committee, they both have contributed immensely to the overall strategy and promotions of winegrowing in Sonoma County. In 1990 the Michalczyks purchased 30 acres of fallow pastureland on a south facing hillside four miles from the ocean west of Sebastopol and have produced grapes for Williams Selyem, DeLoach Vineyards and other vintners.