Board of Directors (Officers):
Judy Blaskowski, President
Judy Blaskowski works closely with her husband, Laddie, in their firm, Business-Truths® Consulting, Inc. Their three-part goal is to help business owners and professionals build a better business, have a better life, and create personal wealth through owning their business. Judy is a certified paralegal and was one of the first 35 people in the United States to earn certified paralegal specialty designation in the field of real estate. She has written grants for non-profit organizations, co-authored more than 300 articles, and co-authored the book The Step Dynamic: A Powerful Strategy for Successfully Growing Your Business, which has been endorsed by Kenneth Blanchard (The One Minute Manager). She is also the owner of an independent oil and gas company.
Judy has served as a facilitator for the Community Conversation on Race; as a Chamber Ambassador; on the Women’s Chamber and Pikes Peak Paralegals (formerly ALAC) boards; on Girl Scout, Greccio Housing and Red Cross committees; on the steering committee for the Women’s Community Leadership Initiative, and serves on the worship team at Fellowship of the Rockies. She is an alumnus of Leadership Pikes Peak and served as a speaker for the Boys & Girls Club. In her spare time, she loves gourmet cooking, skiing, hiking and just hanging out with Laddie. Judy and Laddie have two adult sons, one daughter-in-law, a grandchild on the way, and three extremely spoiled dogs (“The Babies”).
Phone: 719-260-7170 • judy@businesstruths.com
Debi Bauer, President Elect
Debi Bauer is the owner of Essence of Change, LLC, a small, woman-owned management and business consulting firm providing planning and consulting services in the areas of change management, reengineering processes, leadership training, communications and personal coaching to companies and government agencies. Ms. Bauer works with clients on mitigating risks and impacts to business associated with large-scale change, such as organizational transformation and changes in clients’ business markets. She is a certified trainer in the Linkage Inc./William Bridges & Associates programs – Managing Organizational Transition and Individual Transition in Organizations.
Ms. Bauer’s newest venture is educating people wanting an alternative to today’s chemically toxic conventional products on how they can move to green focused, non-toxic health and wellness products.
www.explorefreedom.com/debibauer
Phone: 719-649-3769 • debi_bauer@msn.com
Trish Grivalha, Vice President of Finance
Trish is the owner and sole member of Forest Financial & Accounting Services with over 40 years experience in tax, accounting, small business consulting and related fields of audit, expert witness, and litigation support. She most enjoys working with small business owners in helping them with their financial affairs.
On the personal side, Trish was born, raised and educated in California but loves Colorado. She has been here since 1996 and enjoys living in Black Forest, a far cry from the city life of California. Trish has four grown children, all of whom are married (or almost) and with children. Yes, that makes her a “grandma” to 8 grandchildren. Her hobbies include hosting family get-togethers, skiing (when she can get away) and 4-wheeling in her modified jeep. Trish's business keeps her occupied most of the time but she enjoys what “spare” time she has with her Significant other, Larry (he also has 4 grown children).
Phone: 719-495-4808 • trish@forestfinancial.net
Barbara Harris, Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations
Barbara graduated from Marquette University with a Degree in Dental Hygiene in 1973. She started her career in Illinois and after six years, moved to Colorado Springs, CO to own and operate a fast food restaurant. Shortly after moving to Colorado Springs, Barbara became a licensed real estate Broker. Barbara has worked for several of the major real estate franchises as a Broker Associate. She has also been an adjunct instructor in the study of Real Estate at Pikes Peak Community College.
In 2003, Barbara opened Harris Group Realty, Inc., a real estate firm that specializes in providing exceptional customer service, proactive marketing of home listings, and skilled negotiations for both Buyers and Sellers.
Barbara is passionate about volunteering and giving back to her community when not involved in her real estate business. Her involvement both past and present in School District Eleven, Junior Achievement, HeadStart, and Pikes Peak Area Agency on Aging Regional Advisory Council are in addition to the community drives that she spearheads to assist the citizens of the city she has called home for over 30 years.
Phone: 719-227-9900 • barbara@barbaraharristeam.com
Brianne Powell, Vice President of Programs
Brianne Powell is a marketing specialist for Farnsworth Group, Inc., a more than a century-old fullservice engineering, architecture, and survey corporation. We have a long history of providing quality consultant services to a broad range of public and private sector clientele. Farnsworth has grown into an employee-owned, multi-discipline company with a staff of more than 300, located in 17 offices across the nation. Today, Farnsworth offer services in energy and water efficiency, building commissioning, sustainable design, LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and EnergyStar® services, civil, mechanical, electrical and structural engineering, railway track and bridge, land surveying, geographic information systems, global position systems, and architecture. Ms. Powell is a LEED Accredited Professional and earned her MBA in Finance and Accounting from Regis University.
Ms. Powell is also the owner of BreeDesigns, LLC, which has been helping non-profits and small businesses develop their web presence since 1998. www.breedesigns.com
Phone: 719-590-9194 • bpowell@f-w.com
Debi Willmer, Vice President of Hospitality
Originally from the Midwest, Debi graduated from Michigan State University with a Liberal Arts degree. Shortly after graduating, she went to work for Ford Motor Credit Company, the finance arm of Ford Motor Company, at their Lansing, Michigan branch office. From there she transferred to the Miami, Florida branch where she spent several years working and having fun in the sun. Then it was off to Atlanta, Georgia where she held several positions at both the Ford Credit Atlanta Regional Office and the Atlanta North branch. After three years in the south, she moved to the Windy City, where again she held several positions in multiple branch offices in addition to the Chicago Regional Office. And finally, in 2007 she made her final move with the company to Colorado Springs.
Debi is currently temporarily retired and enjoying life with her husband and their two four-legged children (two very spoiled cats named Sammy and Dexter). She enjoys hiking, reading, cooking, and music.
Phone: 719-260-0484 • dwillmer@aol.com
Gayle Votaw, Vice President of Communications
Gayle graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a degree in Finance in 1989. She then went on to get her MBA from Rivier College in Nashua, New Hampshire while raising 3 teenage boys and working full time. During this time she worked in various cost accounting jobs working her way up the Senior Financial Analysts. Gayle retired from finance when she moved to Colorado. After several year of retirement, she realized she needed to give back to society. She started a home based business by becoming a consultant with Arbonne International. She is now helping men and women understand good skin care and makeup as well as building her team and showing other women an alternative to corporate America.
Phone: 719-522-0457 • gaylecs@comcast.net
Gina Kaiser, Vice President of Correspondence
Gina R. Kaiser is the President/CEO of Kaiser Advertising, which is a full-service advertising agency specializing in proven research-results driven advertising. We work with clients needing a full marketing and advertising campaign, to clients that just need our services based on a project-by-project basis.
Phone: 719-339-9017 • gina@kaiseradv.com
Past Board of Directors (Officers):
Cris Carter, Past President
Cris Carter joined the Colorado Springs Express Network of the American Business Women's Association prior to the network chartering and became a member of the Formation Committee. Cris is proud to be the first elected President as the Express Network chartered on August 8, 2008.
Cris graduated from the University of Florida with a Juris Doctorate degree in 1981 and was a litigation attorney for over 20 years. Cris added a Series 7 and 66 to her resume when she became a financial advisor. Presently she works for New England Financial, a MetLife Company.
Cris is married to Payton and together they have 4 children living in 4 states including Florida, Georgia, Texas, and Colorado. Cris understands that she has been abundantly blessed and that is the reason for giving back to women and her community through facilitating a monthly Business Women's Breakfast, being an Ambassador for the Alzheimer's Association and active membership in the Cheyenne Mountain Newcomer's Group, the Senior Resource Council, the Southern Colorado Women's Chamber of Commerce and the El Paso County Bar Association.
Barbara Harris, Past Vice President of Marketing
Company: Harris Group Realty, Inc.
Job Title: Broker/Owner
Awards:
Sales Awards: Century 21 of Southern Colorado Sales Achiever Club, Executive Club Award from Re/Max International, 100% Club Award from Re/Max International, Hall of Fame Award from Re/Max International, Pikes Peak Association of REALTORS Classic Award
Community Awards: Honorable Mention for the Mary Jean Larson Community Service Award; Community Service Award from Colorado Springs Retired School Employees Association, Colgate Alliance for Youth Award for Volunteerism, National Head Start Association Alliance for Youth Award, Austin Bluffs Sertoma Service to Mankind Award, Sertoma District Service to Mankind Award, and Navy Seabee Veterans of America, Inc. Certificate of Appreciation for Supporting Seabee troops serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Civic Work:
Current: Coat the Community coat collection for Homeless people, Dump & Donate-collect gently used clothing and household items for Springs Rescue Mission, Junior Achievement classroom volunteer instructor, Chairperson for Crystal Apple Teaching Excellence Award Committee, Board member for Regional Advisory Council of Pikes Peak Area Agency on Aging, Co-Chairperson of the Barbara Club
Past: School District 11 Literacy Employability Subcommittee member, School District 11 Accountability Committee Member/chairperson of Bristol Elementary, West Middle School, Holmes Middle School; REALTOR task force committee member for School District 11; Pikes Peak Association of REALTORS (PPAR) External Communications Chairperson, PPAR Community Relations Committee member & Vice Chairperson, PPAR Internal Communications member, PPAR Member Benefits Vice Chairperson, PPAR CARHOF committee member, Colorado Association of REALTORS Public Relations Committee, Office School/Community Relations Advisory Council member & Chairperson for School District 11, School District 11 Bond Oversight Committee member, School District 11 Boundary Study Committee member, Colorado Springs, Citizens for Quality Education Committee member, Council for Promoting Senior Resources member, Pikes Peak Community Action Agency member of the Transitional Housing Program, Drive Smart Child Car Seat Drive committee member, Head Start Volunteer providing dental screenings & dental education to children and families.
Cynthia Leonard, Past Vice President of Communications
Cynthia is the owner and professional photographer with Cynthia Leonard Photography. She is currently a member of the Peterson Air Force Base Spouses Club, the Photographic Society of America, JPG Photography, and the Professional Photographer's Association. Cynthia has an Associates degree in Business and her Bachelor of Science degree in Administration.
Cynthia is a proud military wife as her husband is in the Air Force and presently stationed at Peterson Air Force Base. Cynthia has 3 children, all of which are adults. Cynthia and her family relocated to the Springs from Wyoming, where she was President of the military spouses organization.
Although Cynthia loves to travel and has been feeding that passion through her husband's military career, Cynthia considers Kentucky her home.
For a sample of Cynthia's work you need only look as far as the officers photos on this web page.
Sharon Crumpton, Past Vice President of Programs
Sharon recently relocated to Colorado Springs from Texarkana, Arkansas where she spent many years actively giving to community endeavors and raising her family. Sharon is presently a marketing and sales associate with Tansi's Distinctive Furnishings & Apparel, a unique boutique that caters to business women. Sharon is also a member of the Cheyenne Mountain Newcomers Group.
Sharon's prior civic involvement is remarkable and includes being a member and an officer of the Junior League of Texarkana; President of the Junior League Sustainers; a Den leader and Den Leader Coach for the Boy Scouts of America; a graduate of the Texarkana Chamber of Commerce's Leadership program; Chairman of an Executive Committee of the United Way of Greater Texarkana; Lifetime Membership of the Tri-State's Chapter of the American Red Cross; Treasurer, Member of the Literacy Council of Miller-Bowie Counties from 1990-1994; appointed to the Governor's Council on Adult Literacy in 1991; elected and served as Secretary to the Vestry of St. Mary's Episcopal Church; served as Secretary, Fundraising Chairman and President of St. Mary's Episcopal Churchwomen; the public relations and fund raising chairman of the Fayetteville Symphony Guild; and a member of the Chamber of Commerce, serving on the Diplomats Committee.
Colorado Springs hit gold when Sharon decided to relocate here to be close to her son, daughter-in-law, and three beautiful granddaughters.
Sr. Joanne Moeller, Past Vice President of Finance
Sr. Joanne has a PhD from the University of Minnesota, a MS from Stout State University, a MPS from Loyola University in New Orleans, and a BS from Viterbo College in LaCrosse, Wisconsin.
Sr. Joanne was a teacher for 25 years beginning in first and second grades. Thereafter she spent ten years teaching high school and then went on and finished her teaching career by teaching on the college level.
After teaching, she ministered nine years in a large parish in Cedar Rapid, Iowa as a Family Life Minister. Sr. Joanne then moved into Retreat Center ministry where she was the Project Manager for the building and beginning of Prairiewoods in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She ministered at Prairiewoods for six years and then moved to Colorado Springs where she became the Executive Director of the Franciscan Retreat Center, where she has been for the past six years. During her time at the Franciscan Retreat Center, the budget has increased by 25% and two of her employees have been named "Employee of the Year" by Experience Colorado Springs. She loves the Retreat Center ministry because it brings her in touch with many interesting people.
Zoe Mills, Past President Elect
Zoe currently works in sales and marketing with the Andy Holloman Agency, American Family Insurance. Zoe has worked in the insurance industry since 2005. Previous work experience includes co-ownership of a construction company, web design, custom knife making, and Cosmetology.
Zoe also spends many hours studying while pursuing her graduate degree in psychology. Zoe is currently working towards becoming a Licenses Marriage Family Therapist.
Zoe performs civic work with a local Hospice and Mountain Springs Church. Zoe has received training in the Prepare/Enrich program that helps couples, whether engaged or married, to have a more fulfilling relationship. She recently attended a seminar in Child Play Therapy.
In her spare time, Zoe enjoys the beautiful Colorado scenery on her motorcycle.