2021 MBR Board Director Nominees

Rip Robbins- current interim Grounds and Maintenance Director

I am asking for your vote:

 1. I have the time, as my international travel plans have been postponed indefinitely.

 2. MBR needs the continuity, as less than half the Board will continue, and I have put in 8 months studying the circumstances, getting to know the staff, and helping improve the organization. I can augment the new Board because I am familiar with the background of most of the topics.

 3. In past 8 months, I have made the effort to fully understand Grounds & Maintenance and the people doing that work.  This is no time to drop the ball on progress, and wait for others to pick it up later.  With a Community Manager on site to monitor the projects, we can accelerate the pace for repairs and upkeep that has been delayed. 

And actually I have a personal reason:  I haven't had an opportunity to witness major repairs and improvements done.  Instead, I had to manage the multiple traumas of losing staff, re-organizing job descriptions, and replacing staff.  I want to see capital projects fully researched, and a timetable for implementation of repairs.  

The Rim is my full time home, owned since January 1998.  I graduated from WWU in 1982, and most recently worked at Skagit Valley College for 24 years (until 2018).  Thanks for your vote!

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Steve Pand- current interim Legal & Insurance Director

I am a lifelong resident of Washington and have been at the Rim since 2005.  I received my BA from the University of Washington and my JD from Seattle University. I have practiced law for over 30 years with a primary focus on Construction Contracts, Defects/Defaults Bonding and Insurance. I have had previous experience serving on the City of Covington Washington's Economic Development Council and currently serve on the City's Parks and Recreation Commission. In my spare time, I volunteer for International Childrens' Network a world children's organization helping orphan and at-risk children obtain an education. I am married and have two children. As a family, we have spent years hiking, skiing, snowboarding and enjoying the outdoors. 

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Ben Williamson- current interim Property Standards Director

As a full-time resident of the Rim I had some frustrations with the way the neighborhood had been operating for the last few years. When an opening came up in January I joined the board as the interim property standards director to try to have a positive affect on our community.  Since then I have spent 5-10 hours per week working on the position and on average receive 50 emails per week.  I have started to get a grasp on the position and how to efficiently manage the role and allow members to move forward in a timely fashion.

In the past 5 months I have caught up on the backload of work that was left for me and found ways to manage the job and come up with a working knowledge of how our rules are currently written.  The rules don’t all make perfect sense and it’s increasingly painful when you start to see areas in our neighborhood where the rules were not properly followed in the past.  All we can ask is for those to volunteer for the board to do the best of their ability in following the rules and guidelines of our HOA.

Mt Baker Rim HOA has a great deal of work to do to revisit and amend rules to be easier to understand and enforce. With a loss of our office manager and caretaker within the same year, the board has a duty to re-hire for these positions, and re-establish a staff that cares about our community. In addition, these paid positions make the roles of the volunteer board more manageable. This is an important time for our community to have a solid board to establish systems that allow our community to function efficiently with the majority of the owner’s opinions being reflected in the way the neighborhood operates. 

About me, after graduating with a BA in Outdoor Recreation I moved to Glacier.  I was on the board at Snowline Condos for 8 years where we managed to run a smooth HOA and make many improvements to our communal property. I have been a volunteer for Glacier Fire Department for 5 years and an employee of Mt Baker Ski area for 12 years.  I love the community that is Glacier because it is such a unique place. I worked seasonally for many years before committing to full time work at MBSA.  Throughout all of my years of work I have been a part of all aspects of the building process.  I have extensive experience with excavation, tree work, concrete, and all phases between framing and finish work.  I understand how difficult the building process and maintaining a place in Glacier can be and strive to make dealing with MBR HOA not the most difficult part.  We all chose to be members of a community and agree to the rules set out by our community.  It’s on all of us to communicate and keep our neighborhood going in the direction we want it to and amend rules of the process in which we operate to line up with the majority of the membership’s opinion. 
 

Eric Sankey

For 15 years, my wife and I, our two adult children, their spouses and six grandchildren have cherished every minute of our Baker lives. It is time to give something back. I would bring to the board an open mind, a willingness to learn, and a capacity for hard work. With a master’s degree in journalism and many years as a community college director of communications, instructor, and dean of the arts, I am certain I can read and write quite well, do sums adequately, and work thoughtfully with others. If elected, I thank you for the opportunity to serve our community.

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Angela Urso

Arnost Fronek

My Name is Arnost Fronek. Born and raised in former Czechoslovakia. Came to USA in 1988 and became part of MBR in 1991 when I purchased house here.

I have studied electronic and information systems and have been involved with several internationally recognized projects. I own electrical installation company specializing in security, information technology and home automation located in Seattle area.

I am avid skier, bowhunter and outdoorsman and plan to make MBR very soon my permanent home.

I would like to contribute my experience and help with implementation of information technology (IT) in our community.

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Dawn Chaplin

I  would like to introduce myself my name is Dawn Chaplin and I am volunteering for a director position on the board. My husband (Jim) my daughter (Ellena) and myself  have been a member since 1991. Have previously been on the board in different positions last one was secretary. I also am Social for the Rim I put on about twelve events a year and I am looking for members to join the Social Committee.  I am retired. I previously worked for The Royal Bank of Canada Western Visa Centre in Merchant sales and Collections 14 years. I take being on the board seriously and will represent the members to the best of my ability. I am from Vancouver B.C. Canada. I feel it is important to listen to the members and understand what they want within the community. We love the Rim it's a great get away for us and have met many good friends. Thank you.

Tom Burfield

My name is Tom Burfield, and I have been a member of the community since October 2020.  I live full time in Anacortes and spend almost every weekend and holiday at our cabin with my wife and three children.  For my professional background, I have 21 years in the U.S. Navy (active and reserve).  I retire in August from the Navy Reserves after being the Officer In Charge of a great team of officers and enlisted reserve members at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.  For my day job, I am a Senior Analyst in a consulting firm servicing a government contact supporting the training and readiness of deploying aircrew and aircraft from NAS Whidbey Island.  We purchased our home in Mt Baker last year knowing we would be staying in the area for the long haul.  The solace of the community and the respect for the members and the environment is what lead us to MBR.  I hope to continue those traditions if I am voted in as a member of this board.

Thank you for your consideration.

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Heather Hofmeister

My name is Heather Hofmeister, my family became members of the Rim community in October 2019.  I am a flight attendant for Alaska Airlines and have been flying for over 18 years. My husband, Andrew and I, along with our two kids, Maya (10) and Collin (8) live in Edmonds and spend most weekends at our cabin enjoying and exploring the Mt. Baker area. We are a family who enjoys snowboarding, skiing, biking, hiking, fishing and skateboarding. My family and I love being part of the Rim and I would like the opportunity to contribute as well as give back to this amazing community. Thank you.

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Steven Weinreich

I have been an owner in MBR since February 2020, right before the pandemic set in! So unfortunately I haven't had a chance to meet many of you in person. My wife and I live in Seattle, she's an acupuncturist and I am a physician assistant at Swedish Hospital. We were drawn to Glacier for probably many of the same reasons you were: proximity to the mountain, skiing, hiking, etc and the distance from Seattle. It is nice to get away from the city from time to time. We had a few friends in The Rim, Glacier Springs, and Snowater before we purchased our home who convinced us that Glacier is the place to be. 

I'm interested in joining the Board mainly to become more active in our new community. Since we are not full time residents, it is my hope that I can bring another perspective to the Board and the shaping of the community. I think it is important to have representation from all our community members, be they full-time or part-time, domestic or international. This to me seems the best way to shape and govern our community for the benefit of all it's residents. 

I would like to contribute as best I can to the Board and the community and help us emerge from the pandemic a stronger, happier community. Thank you very much for your consideration. 

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Rob Woods

Rob Woods has been a community bank Chief Financial Officer for 25 years, with 16 of those years serving in Whatcom and Skagit counties. He is a longstanding member of a local Rotary group, currently serving as Treasurer, and recently completed his tenure as a Board Member for the Skagit Valley College Foundation. Rob currently serves as Treasurer for the Homeowners’ Association for his primary residence, in Burlington, and has held this position for six years. 

Rob and his wife, Rachael, purchased a second home in the Rim in 2018. They fell in love with the area on a family trip four years ago and couldn’t wait to join the community. Rob and Rachael are often spotted walking their German Shephard, Bella, around the Rim during their frequent visits.

Rob has extensive experience with budgets and financial analysis. He is known for thinking creatively and listening to all sides of an issue. This, combined with his love for the Rim, make him a great candidate for an open Board position. “I look forward to serving the Mount Baker Rim Community, as we identify opportunities for improvement and discuss some of the challenges we face moving forward.”

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Jen Vinz

My husband Josh and I purchased our cabin in the Rim a year ago and have enjoyed joining the community - so many great people up here!   We have two little kiddos and labradoodles which means our lives are full of energy.  As our kids are getting to the age that they can put on some ski boots, we've made it up the mountain for some brief runs and look forward to longer ski days in the coming years.

When I am not up at the Rim I'm working in Compliance at Amazon and before that enjoyed many years working in law.  I look forward to more involvement in the Rim and would like to focus on ways to ensure drivers keep it under 15 as they drive around this little community.

I'd also like to explore adding the option of commercial composting pickup in our trash and garbage collection area so we can keep food and yard scraps out of the trash compactor and the landfills.

Thanks for your consideration!

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Marsha Wilson