top of page

2024-2025 Board of Directors

IMG_6032.jpeg

Katie Militello

President

 

Katie Militello is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) who moved to Del Mar from Buffalo, NY 12 years ago with her husband and two of their three children, who were still in high school.

Prior to moving to Del Mar, Katie was a Marketing Executive working at Fisher-Price, Mattel and for a medical device company based in Buffalo. Katie’s business skills include strategic planning, product development, marketing and sales support. After working in major corporations, Katie went on to provide marketing consulting for family-owned businesses in Buffalo. This led to her interest in counseling. When Katie moved to CA, she switched careers and participated in internship programs at hospice, Carlsbad grade schools, and the UCSD Maternal Health Clinic.

Katie first volunteered with DMCC as a facilitator for Adapting to Life Transitions, which was a peer support group for attendees adapting to changes of aging. Katie most recently facilitated the Writing Your Story program with a focus on participating in a writing circle with an understanding of therapeutic approaches, and the benefit of writing in exploration of emotions, meaning making and storytelling about our lives.

Katie has served on the Board of her local professional chapter of CAMFT, and is currently in private practice in Del Mar.

Katie graduated with a BA from Harvard University in Asian Studies, The Wharton School – University of Pennsylvania with an MBA, and National University with a MA in Counseling.

DSC_3686.JPG

Bob Gans
Past President

Bob Gans is an attorney who arrived in Del Mar from New York City 21 years ago with his wife, Melissa (a long-time Board member of the Del Mar Garden Club), and their two children, Seth (now 27 and practicing as a marriage and family therapist in Rancho Bernardo), and Leah (now 25 and the owner of clothing/jewelry boutique in New York).  Bob is a former member of the City of Del Mar Finance Committee, and served in various positions on the Board of the Del Mar Foundation from 2012 to 2020, including as President from 2016 to 2018.  Bob has also served as President of the Del Mar Schools Education Foundation, Treasurer of the La Jolla Country Day School Board of Trustees, and as a Nation Leader in the Magdalena-Ecke YMCA “Y-Guide” and “Y-Princess” Programs.  He is a graduate of Dartmouth College and New York University School of Law.

Mirsky Phyllis 2023.jpeg


Phyllis Mirsky

Secretary

Phyllis Mirsky, longtime volunteer for Del Mar Community Connections and 2022 Volunteer of the Year, has served in various leadership roles, including a previous six-year term as Secretary of the Board of Directors. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Phyllis received a master’s degree in librarianship at the University of Michigan and a BS in Social Welfare from the Ohio State University.

Mirsky’s career as a librarian spanned 40 years, most of it spent within the University of California both at UCLA and UC San Diego. Active professionally, she became one of the most influential health sciences librarians in the world, culminating in being honored as one of the Medical Library Association’s “100 Most Notable.” Those individuals identified for this honor were recognized for their significant contributions to MLA and the health information profession throughout MLA's 100-year history. Phyllis retired from UC San Diego in 2005 as the Deputy University Librarian. She currently serves as an emerita mentor to UCSD’s Chancellors Scholars, a cadre of 1st Generation students who have demonstrated academic excellence and financial need.

Phyllis and her husband Ed have lived in Del Mar for four decades.

Halenza Judd June 2023.jpg

Judd Halenza

Development Chair

Judd and his wife Susan moved to Del Mar in 1969 while both were serving as officers in the US Navy. After Judd completed 2 tours in Vietnam as a carrier pilot he left active duty and he and Susan moved to LA where he managed movie stars for 2 years.

They then decided to make a permanent move back to Del Mar to raise their family. Judd then became involved in San Diego real estate where he is still active through the family company. Judd graduated from the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis and attended Stanford University where he received a Master of Science degree in statistics.

He has served on numerous City of Del Mar committees and was on the board of the Del Mar Foundation for eight years serving as president from 2004 to 2006.

Feeney, Ann.jpeg

Ann Feeney

Ann and her husband Don Mosier moved to Del Mar from the East Coast in 1985 with their one year old son. They raised their 3 sons, who are now in their 30’s, here. Ann was born and raised in a suburb of Boston and left Boston after graduating from Newton College to go to Cornell University Graduate School of Medical Sciences in New York City where she got her Ph.D. She has have doing research in molecular immunology since then, most recently at Scripps Research Institute, where she was a Professor and where she had an active research lab for 26 years. After retiring in 2018, Ann turned to volunteer work to address the climate change crisis with SanDiego350 and with a coalition which she helped found, the San Diego Building Electrification Coalition. She is also an active volunteer with Sierra Club.

In Del Mar, Ann was a member of the Sustainability Advisory Board for 10 years and she chaired it for 4 years. She is now a member of the Parks and Rec Committee, and also a member of the Del Mar Garden Club.

IMG_2873.JPG

Ellie Haviland

Ellie grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, and then Boston. Ellie moved to San Diego to attend UCSD and has lived in Del Mar with her husband Tim for over 25 years. After retiring from her career in healthcare automation, she began her foray into public service in 2014 when she joined the Del Mar Planning Commission. Her role expanded in 2016 when she was elected to the Del Mar City Council, serving as a Councilmember until 2018, followed by Deputy Mayor from 2018 to 2019, and culminating in her tenure as Mayor from 2019 to 2020. In addition to her local leadership, Ellie has also served in regional governance. on the Board of Directors for the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) from 2016 to 2020, and as Chair and Board member of The Clean Energy Alliance from 2019 to 2020.

Passionate about preserving natural landscapes, Ellie currently serves as the Vice President of the San Diego River Valley Conservancy.  Ellie also remains actively involved with the Del Mar Community Alliance. Her professional career includes leadership roles at Asteres Inc. MedVantx Inc., DNA Dynamics Inc, and Pyxis Corporation. For the last few years, Ellie’s most exciting role has been as the coach of her god-daughter’s flag football team - two-time league champions! Ellie holds a B.A. in Quantitative Economics and Decision Science from the University of California, San Diego, where she also pursued minors in Mathematics, Urban Studies, and Philosophy.

Otchis, Wayne.jpg

Wayne Otchis
 

Wayne moved to Del Mar 20 years ago with his wife Linda.  He has maintained a CPA practice for 45 years and recently became semi-retired.  He has been a volunteer driver for DMCC and is looking forward to serving as Treasurer on the new board.  He has 2 grandsons in Texas and 2 granddaughters in Colorado, so Wayne and Linda spend a lot of time on Southwest Airlines.  He is active with Seacrest Foundation and is also active with the San Diego Chapter of the Stanford Alumni Association.  Hobbies include travel, snorkeling, and collecting old political items, especially from 1912.  He loves walking around Del Mar and also belongs to a walking group in Encinitas.  

DSC_3716_edited.jpg

Judy Schuckit

After graduating with a degree in research psychology from Washington University, Judy moved to Del Mar in 1971 with her husband Marc.  This was Judy’s first trip west of the Mississippi.  Del Mar was quite a change from Milwaukee, Wisconsin and St. Louis, Missouri. 

She worked at UCSD until 1980 when she started a small business buying and selling estate and antique jewelry. This business fits well with her deep interest in art and in history.  This interest has led to a number of lectures to the public focused on the changes over time in both the style and the manufacture of jewelry as women’s roles in society have changed over time.

Judy has served on the Boards of the Del Mar Foundation, The Friends of the Powerhouse and the Del Mar Garden Club.  She last spent seven years on the Board of DMCC as Treasurer. 

Sweedler Al.jpeg

Al Sweedler

Alan Sweedler recently retired from San Diego State University, where he was Associate Vice President in charge of the university’s international programs, Director of the Center for Energy Studies and Professor of Physics. As SDSU’s Senior International Officer he was responsible for all of the university’s international relations and agreements. Professor Sweedler’s academic expertise is in the area of energy policy and technology and environmental impacts of energy use. He has been a leader in developing energy policy and researching energy issues for over 40 years, especially in the greater San Diego region, including Mexico. He was the founding Chair of the San Diego Regional Energy Office, the precursor to the current Center for Sustainable Energy and was a founding Board member of Clean Tech San Diego. Sweedler is a 44-year resident of Del Mar and currently serves on the Sustainability Advisory Committee (SAC) and is Del Mar’s representative to the Community Advisory Committee for the Clean Energy Alliance. His wife is retired from UC San Diego where she was a reference librarian at the Geisel Library.

Walshok Mary.jpg

Mary Walshok
 

Mary Walshok is a thought leader and subject-matter expert on aligning workforce development with regional economic growth. She has authored more than 100 articles, reports, and book chapters on regional innovation, workforce development and the role of research institutions in regional economies. As an industrial social scientist focused on the dynamics of regional economic development and transformation, Walshok has studied various communities across America. She has evaluated 13 WIRED regions funded by the U.S. Department of Labor, studied three innovative regions for a National Science Foundation-funded project and assessed one region’s efforts to grow an industry for a Lilly Foundation-funded endeavor.

As head of the continuing education and public programs arm of UC San Diego since 1981, Walshok oversees programs that educate more than 120,000 enrollees annually, which translates to more than 30,000 students in over 4,400 courses. Walshok has developed outreach efforts to help accelerate the San Diego region’s economic vitality, grow the region's globally competitive talent pool and help college graduates transition to high-demand employment areas. She also helps provide access to a vast array of regional intellectual resources through the award-winning UCSD-TV and nationwide through UCTV.

During her tenure at UCSD, Walshok has played an active role in helping the University expand its local impact, national reputation and global reach. She is the recipient of numerous awards including the Kellogg Foundation’s Leadership Fellowship and was inducted into Sweden’s Royal Order of the Polar Star. She currently serves on the boards of San Diego Connect (which she helped found in 1985), the La Jolla Playhouse, the United States-Mexico Foundation for Science (FUMEC), the Institute of the Americas (IOA), the San Diego Opera, the Smart Border Coalition and the Girard Foundation.

Walshok is a native of Palm Springs, California, she received her bachelor’s degree in sociology from Pomona College in 1964, her master’s degree in sociology in 1966 and her Ph.D. in sociology in 1969 from Indiana University. She has been a visiting professor at the Stockholm School of Economics for many years and in 2004 held an international appointment in the Department of Continuing Education at Oxford University in England.

IMG_2868_edited.jpg

Glenn Warren

Glenn Warren is a retired diplomat whose postings included Kenya, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Ecuador, Argentina, and the Dominican Republic. While in Kenya, Glenn traveled to and worked in the Sudan, Eritrea, and Somalia. As a volunteer, Glenn chaired international school boards in Kenya and Zimbabwe.
Prior to his Foreign Service career, Glenn was a criminal defense lawyer in San Diego. He tried numerous felony cases, including several charging the death penalty, and argued once before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Glenn currently serves on Del Mar’s Design Review Board. His wife, Randee, is an active member of the Del Mar Garden club and has served for many years as an elementary school tutor at Case de Amistad in Solana Beach. Their son, Scott, is a fellow at Johns Hopkins University where he focuses on democracy issues.
Glenn graduated with a B.A. in political economy from Williams College, received a J.D. from California Western School of Law, and received a Master of Laws in international law from Cambridge University.

Young Tanya June 2023.jpg

Tanya Young

Tanya Young is an artist working in oil, gouache and digital media. She grew up in Chicago and moved to Del Mar with her young family in 1986. She has created paintings for homes and corporations including a commission of multiple works for the research facility and offices of Eli Lilly and Company in San Diego. Tanya’s daughter Madeleine works in Philanthropy at La Jolla Playhouse, and her husband Michael is a practicing Adult and Child Psychiatrist. An avid gardener, Tanya is serving her third year on the Board of the Del Mar Garden Club. She is very honored to join the DMCC Board!

Tanya received her BFA degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and her MFA from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She received a Graduate Certificate in Science Illustration from CSU Monterey Bay. She continues to work in both art fields, abstract and science. Tanya’s specialty in Science Illustration is the deep ocean, and she works with scientists from Scripps Oceanography where she completed an internship. In 2021 she was invited to be “Artist-at-Sea” on the R/V Falkor operated by Schmidt Ocean Institute.

Tanya’s website is tanyayoungart.com.

bottom of page