#Take5 – VCLA Reads 2023

Thank you to all of the VCLA alumni who took part in the First 5 Ventura County #Take5VC program, which encourages us to read, talk, and sing to the children in our lives. Some of the featured readers were Stacie Galang (cohort XX) with the Ventura County Star, Dorina Timbol (cohort XXVIII) with For The Need Foundation, Dustin Gardner (cohort XXI)…

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Our Alumni are Experts

An expert from her own cohort!  Loredana Carson, Senior Lecturer and Academic Advisor with California Lutheran University was able to call on her fellow cohort XXII member Heather Sumagaysay, Communications Manager and PIO for the City of Ventura, to lead a class on communications for public sector managers.  Heather talked about the importance of a…

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Santa Barbara News

Congratulations to Kirk Lagerquist (cohort XXVII) on being appointed as the General Services Director for the County of Santa Barbara! Kirk recently concluded a 27-year career with the United States Navy Civil Engineer Corps, where he served as the military equivalent of a Public Works Director at both large and small Navy installations. The Santa…

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New Position

Congratulations to Arturo Zaragoza (cohort XXIV), who was recently promoted to director of financial equity programs at Ventura County Crredit Union (VCCU). Zaragoza has served as a branch manager at VCCU for nine years and has more than 16 years of experience working in the financial services industry. He has been the recipient of awards…

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Non-Profit Addition

Congratulations to Mike Silacci (VCLA Class III), for joining the team at the Ventura County Community Foundation (VCCF), serving as Chief Philanthropy Officer. Mike is a former VCCF Board Member bringing years of expertise and passion in serving the philanthropic sector in Ventura County. Mike was also named VCLA’s Distinguished Community Leader in 2002.

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Fun at the YMCA

The Pacific Coast Business Times recently came out with their “Who’s Who in Nonprofits & Foundations” and it’s not suprising that so many of our alumni were included on this list. Congratulations to Margo Byrne (cohort XIII) with the Channel Islands YMCA, Yvonne Guiterrez (cohort VIII) with El Concilio Family Services, Tammie Helmuth (cohort XXVIII)…

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Board Announcement

Board Member Announcement Shari Mogridge (cohort XXVI) joined the kidSTREAM Children’s Museum board of directors in January of 2022 and serves on the Finance Committee. “Shari’s strategic insights and business acumen that she brings from The Trade Desk, have greatly benefited kidSTREAM as we prepare to open to the public & increase our impact”, states kidSTREAM…

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2022 Election Results

Congratulations to our Alumni Many in our VCLA family ran for office this 2022 election cycle, living our mission to strengthen our county. Congratulations Atticus Reyes (cohort XXVII) for being elected to the Board of Trustees with the Ojai Unified School District, Tom Means (cohort XXVIII) for being elected as a council member for the City of Moorpark,…

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A Partnership That Counts

In 2020, two longtime partners of VCLA (the County of Ventura & Mustang Marketing) connected about creating and implementing an outreach campaign for the Census 2020 count. The U.S. Census Bureau had ranked Ventura County as the fifty-ninth most vulnerable county in the nation out of 3,215 counties at risk of experiencing an extreme undercount…

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Latino Leadership Honorees

Kudos to Armando Casillas (cohort XVII) with Montecito Bank & Trust and Susy Lopez-Garcia (cohort XXVII) with Community Action of Ventura County, both of whom were honored this past Wednesday, September 28, 2022 by El Concilio Family Services at their 32nd Annual Latino Leadership Awards. Lead by VCLA alum Yvonne Gutierrez (class VIII), El Concilio…

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