Thompson Fetter, President

A native San Diegan, Tom is the Owner and Chairman of T. Fetter & Co., Inc., which operates as SanDiegoCarCare.com offering Chevron gasoline, car washes, convenience stores and related services in five San Diego locations. The company also owns and manages commercial real estate and Tom is the Owner and President of RV Solutions, Inc., a major RV dealership.

Mr. Fetter has devoted a substantial amount of his time to local non-profits. He has served as a Trustee and Treasurer of the Bishop’s School in La Jolla, Trustee and President of the Reuben H. Fleet Center, Director and past-President of the Western Car Wash Association, Commodore of the San Diego Yacht Club, founding Director of the San Diego Port Tenant’s Association, Member of the University of San Diego School of Law Board of Visitors. He was a volunteer at the Zoological Society of San Diego from 1984 through 1986, then as a Trustee beginning February 1986, President from 2001 to 2003, becoming Emeritus January 2007.

He earned his Undergraduate Degree from Stanford University and continued on at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford to receive his MBA in 1958. In 1963 he returned to school to pursue his Law Degree at the University of San Diego School of Law evening program. He earned his J.D. in 1967, and admitted to the California Bar in 1967.

Joseph W. Craver, Vice-President

Mr. Craver is the founder of Galaxie Defense Marketing, a national marketing company with representation in nine locations in the US. As a US Air Force combat pilot, Joe flew 265 combat missions in Vietnam and served in the Pentagon where he managed procurement for aircraft and missiles for the Air Force.

His extensive 32 years of community involvement includes Chairman of the San Diego Military Base Realignment and Closure of 1995; Chairman of the Work Force Partnership; Chairman of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce; President of the Holiday Bowl; Chairman of San Diego Convention and Visitor’s Bureau; Chairman of the San Diego Airport Authority; CEO of the San Diego American Red Cross, President of the Point Loma Rotary Club; Chairman of the Major Blue Ribbon Review 2002 and Chairman of the Public Facilities Authority for San Diego.

Mr. Craver earned his BS from Arizona State University and his MA from Stanford University.

John Morrell

A third generation San Diego, Mr. Morrell is the President of Douglas Wilson Companies, a provider of a wide range of specialized business, workout and real estate services to financial institutions, law firms, state and federal courts, property owners and similar entities throughout the United States.

Prior to joining DWC, John was an attorney with over 30 years of experience in insolvency and commercial law. Morrell has spent the past 20 years as Managing Partner and Chairman at San Diego-based Higgs Fletcher & Mack, where he will continue his affiliation as its Chairman Emeritus.

He received the United States Bankruptcy Court’s Mediator of the Year award in 2007, the University of San Diego School of Law’s Distinguished Alumni award in 2015, and the San Diego Business Journal’s Most Admired CEO award in 2011 and 2015. He is a 2013 graduate of LEAD San Diego and 2016/2017 President Elect of the Downtown San Diego Rotary Club.

John received his B.A. from California State University, Chico and his J.D. from the University of San Diego School of Law.

Robert J. Watkins, Vice President

Bob Watkins established his business consulting firm, R.J. Watkins & Company, Ltd. in 1980 with offices in San Diego, San Francisco and London. His experience includes President and CEO of a $280 million operating company and Managing Director for the San Diego office of the international executive recruiting firm of Russell Reynolds Associates.

Presently Bob sits on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committees of the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation and the World Trade Center San Diego.  He is currently a member of the Advisory Board for the University of San Diego’s School of Leadership and Education Sciences and a member of the Education Advisory Committee for the United Way of San Diego County.

Bob sat on the Board of Trustees for National University and was an Advisory Board Member for San Diego State University, School of Business. He served three terms as President of the San Diego County Board of Education and served on the Board of Directors for the San Diego International Sports Council and the YMCA of San Diego County. Mr. Watkins was Chairman of the Board of the San Diego County American Red Cross; and was the President of the San Diego Natural History Museum’s Board of Trustees.

Frank Alessi, Treasurer

As the former Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Centre City Development, for 30 years, Alessi oversaw all aspects of the company’s finances including the development and management of budgets, preparation of financial statements and audits.

Frank’s civic and community service includes Lambda Alpha International, the Urban Land Institute, Construction Financial Management Association and the California Society of Municipal Finance Officers. He has also served on the City of San Diego’s Parking Advisory Board, the Board of the San Diego Redevelopment Financing Authority, and San Diego Performing Arts League Civic Advisory Council. He earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Accounting from the State University of New York at Albany.

Allan Wassermann, Secretary

Allan has over 35 years of experience in the title and escrow industry and currently is the Senior Vice President of National Commercial Services at Fidelity National Title. Prior to this he spent 20 with Stewart Title.

Active in the legal and real estate community, Allan has served as Chairman of both the Real Property and Legislative Sections of the San Diego County Bar Association, Chairman to the California’s State Bar Conference of Delegates and was past President of the California Land Title Association. He has also been involved in a wide variety of other professional and non-profit organizations.

Allan earned his B.A. from San Diego State University and received his J.D. from Western State University.

Hal Sadler, President Emeritus

As founding partner of Tucker Sadler Architects Inc., Sadler has 50 years of experience in architectural design. He has supervised the planning, programming, design and renovations for many educational facilities, award winning residences, office buildings, medical, and recreational facilities throughout San Diego County. He is

the recipient of the 2007 American Institute of Architects, California Council Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding contributions to the architectural profession.

Beyond his achievements in architecture, Sadler has dedicated his time and talent to the growth and revitalization of San Diego by chairing numerous organizations, such as Children’s Hospital and Health Center, San Diego Parks and Recreation, San Diego Convention Center and Visitors Bureau and Centre City Development Corporation (CCDC).

Hal graduated from Arizona State University’s School of Architecture in 1952 and proceeded to USC where he obtained his Master’s Degree.

Charles Bieler

Chuck started his career at General Motors becoming the Director of Management Training at the Fremont, California plant.   Preferring not to relocate from Fremont to Detroit, Chuck joined the San Diego Zoo in 1969 in a sales and marketing capacity and four years later he was named Executive Director of the Zoo, a position he held for 13 years. He then became Director of Development for the Zoo, Wild Animal Park and Center for Research of Endangered Species and served in this position for 14 years.    Although officially retired in 2000, Chuck continues a part-time relationship with San Diego Zoo Global.

Mr. Bieler graduated from Gettysburg College and served five plus years of active duty, in the US Army achieving rank of Captain. 

Richard Bregante

A long time Point Loma resident, Richard Bregante is a retired attorney having specialized in real estate law, construction defect litigation, contracts, civil litigation and probate.

Richard has served, and continues to serve on the boards of many community organizations including Cabrillo National Monument Foundation, the Point Loma Association, Committee of 100, and the Boys and Girls Foundation as President.  Rich is a past member of the Peninsula Community Planning Board.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics Degree from San Diego State University, as well as Graduate Degrees from School of Business Administration, University of California, Berkeley and School of Law, University of San Diego where he graduated Cum Laude. 

Josh Buchholz

As the Senior Vice President of NAI San Diego, Josh’s specializes in the leasing and sale of commercial office properties in San Diego, primarily in the downtown and central office markets. Prior to joining NAI San Diego, Mr. Buchholz worked at The Abbey Company as a Property Manager for three Class A office towers in the city of Commerce, California.

Josh was recently awarded with the annual “Top 40 Under 40San Diego” San Diego Transcript award for the second year in a row and in 2012 and 2014 he was recognized as NAI San Diego’s Top Producer of the Year.

Josh is a member of San Diego Rotary Club contributing his time to the Fish Across The Borders Committee delivering food and clothing to needy families in Mexico. He also is a SIOR^® (Society of Industrial and Office Realtors) Young Leader.

He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Business with an emphasis in Latin America and Management from San Diego State University in 2003. In addition, Josh received two certificates of completion in International Business from the University of Antonio de Nebrijas in Madrid Spain in 2000 and the University of Val Paraiso in Vina Del Mar Chile in 2002.

Ray Carpenter

Ray Carpenter, a local San Diegan, is the President of R.E. Staite Engineering, an engineering general contractor established in 1938, specializing in marine and heavy construction with offices and marinas in both San Diego and San Francisco harbors. Major projects in San Diego include the Aircraft Carrier Wharf at NAS North Island and construct piers for BAE Systems and NASSCO; Ship channel dredging for the ACOE and City ferry systems in San Francisco.

Ray is an active member of the San Diego community and continues to participate and serve on the Board of various organizations including: Founder and past chairman of the San Diego Port Tenants Association; Past Board member of the Maritime Museum; Board member of the national Dredging Contractors of America; Member of San Diego Chamber of Commerce.

Having built the concrete foundations for all the bayside buildings along Harbor Drive which include the San Diego Convention Center and the Hilton, Hyatt and Marriott Hotels, Ray Carpenter has seen the development of San Diego’s waterfront during his tenure as President of one of the area’s locally-based marine construction companies.

Brian Chambers

Brian Chambers is the Vice President and Senior Relationship Manager with the San Diego Regional Commercial Banking Group of Wells Fargo Bank. Prior to his banking career, Brian spent 13 years in the commercial insurance industry.

Mr. Chambers has resided in San Diego for over 60 years and has strong interests in and ties to the community. His father, a retired Marine Corps Lt Col., was an Interim Executive Director of the San Diego Historical Society in 1966. Brian is active with several local non-profit organizations.

Debra L. Cushman-Parrish

Debby is Director of Selma Investments and Cush Enterprises and Secretary/Treasurer for the Cushman Foundation. Debby formerly co-owned businesses in the automotive and travel industries

As a fifth generation San Diegan, Debby is very proud of her family’s dedication to the San Diego community and like them, has been actively involved with many Boards and organizations. As of late, she has been most passionate about serving Girl Scouts of San Diego; as a Council Board of Director, leader for 13 years, as well as mentoring more than 20 girls who achieved their Gold Awards).

Debby earned a Bachelor of Business Administration with a Major in Business Administration from the University of San Diego.

James Fitzpatrick

Jim is the Chief Executive Officer and Publisher of San Diego Magazine, LLC. He launched sandiegomagazine.com in 1996 and he created the Custom Publishing division of San Diego Magazine. Among those publications are San Diego Pets for the San Diego Humane Society, Healthy Kids for Rady Children’s Hospital and the San Diego Visitors’ Guide for the San Diego Tourism Authority. Jim created San Diego Magazine’s digital media platform to include the digital version of the magazine, e-newsletters, and social media.

Jim is involved in many local businesses, civic and philanthropic organizations including: The San Diego Symphony Board of Directors; The Salvation Army Community Advisory Board, past Chairman; The San Diego Sports Commission Board of Directors and Executive Committee, past Chairman; The Holiday Bowl Committee; The San Diego Downtown Rotary; US Bank Community Advisory Board; The Lincoln Club Board of Directors; City and Regional Magazine Association Board of Directors, past Chairman

Gayle Hom

Gayle Hom is a third Generation Chinese American and a native San Diegan. Her immigrant roots began when her Great Grandfather came to America in 1880 to work on the California railroads. Gayle’s father is a pioneering San Diegan who served as a City Councilmember and State of California Assemblyman.

Carrying on the family tradition of public service, Gayle was the Senior Policy Advisor for the Mayor of the City of San Diego and has served on the Board of Directors for cultural foundations and non-profit institutions.

Robert A. Kittle

Former White House correspondent for U.S. News & World Report magazine and long-time editorial page editor of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Robert Kittle is an award-winning journalist with extensive experience in national, state, and local affairs.

​As a much sought-after commentator, he provided regular political analysis on PBS’s “News Hour with Jim Lehrer.” He also appeared frequently on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered” and “Weekend Edition,” along with numerous interviews on network and cable television news programs. In San Diego Kittle was a regular guest on KUSI-TV and KPBS radio and television, and hosted his own weekly public affairs program on SignOn San Diego.

 Kittle’s first book, “Franciscan Frontiersmen: How Three Adventurers Charted the West,” relates the little-known story of pioneering friars who accompanied Junípero Serra to California in the middle of the 18^th Century, was published in May 2017. Mr. Kittle is currently is researching a book on the Cupeño “trail of tears” in San Diego County over a century ago.

Bob is a West Virginia University alumnus.

Brian Mooney

Mr. Mooney has over 40 years of professional experience specializing in planning, public outreach, environmental analysis, research, and development of public policy. His extensive experience includes preparation, coordination, and completion of comprehensive master plans and resource management plans throughout California.

Brian has been recognized with both regional and statewide awards by the American Planning Association (APA), the Association of Environmental Professionals (AEP), the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and local government agencies. Mooney was inducted into the 2016 American Institute of Certified Planners College of Fellows.

He obtained his BA in Anthropology with Concentration in Urban Anthropology and Cultural Resource Management from San Diego State University and his MA in Urban History with a Concentration in City Planning in the Twentieth Century from the University of San Diego.

Frank L. Pavel

Dr. Pavel was in the private practice of oral and maxillofacial surgery in San Diego since 1984 and has placed more than 9,000 dental implants.

Frank is a fellow of the Pierre Fauchard Academy, an honorary dental service organization, past President of the San Diego Surgical Society and past Chief of Oral Surgery at three major local hospitals. Additional professional affiliations include: Diplomate American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; Member of the Academy of Osseointegration; Co-Founderof the San Diego Mini-Residency for Dental Implants; Board of Director of Southern California Orofacial Academy and a Charter member of the Institute of Dental Implant Awareness.

He attended Gonzaga University and then completed Tufts University School of Dental Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. He completed one year of post-doctoral studies in anesthesiology at Ohio State University Medical Center and trained in oral and maxillofacial surgery at the University of Southern California Los Angeles County Medical Center

Thomas P. Sayer, Jr.

Tom Sayer is an attorney in private practice and serves as General Counsel to several real estate, hotel and travel marketing companies. Representation has included handling hundreds of commercial transactions, as well as overseeing numerous lawsuits in the areas of real estate, bankruptcy, employment and commercial law.

Tom is a member of the San Diego County Bar, California State Bar and the American Bar Associations and has served as Chair of the Commercial Law Section of the San Diego County Bar Association.

Since the inception of the program, Mr. Sayer has taught the Hospitality Law course at San Diego State University’s L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality & Tourism Management. For over 15 years he has served on the Board of the San Diego Hotel-Motel Association and is Past President and Charter Member of the San Diego Downtown Breakfast Rotary Club.

Mr. Sayer is a graduate of Cornell University, where he received a BS with honors in Hotel Administration. He received his Law Degree from California Western School graduating third in his class.

Scott Peterson

Scott Peterson is one of the founders of the San Diego office of Gensler, a global architecture, design and planning firm with 44 locations. He serves as the Office Director and Workplace Studio Director, in addition to providing design and project management expertise. His experience encompasses design and construction projects for a diverse set of clients, including Fortune 500 companies, real estate developers, major law firms, the public sector and universities. Scott is also a long-standing member of the American Institute of Architects, International Interior

Design Association and NAIOP. Scott earned both his Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Architecture from Auburn University.

James Siegel
James Siegel is a shareholder with the San Diego law firm of Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek. His practice focuses on estate planning, trust administration, probate administration, guardianship and conservatorship administration.   He is certified by the State Bar of California as a Specialist in Probate Law.

Prior to joining Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek, Mr. Siegel was a partner in the law firm of Branton & Wilson in San Diego.

Jim received his BA from California State University at Northridge, magna cum laude, in 1976 and his Masters from the California State University at Los Angeles in 1977. He received his Juris Doctor from the University of California School of Law in 1986.

Ellis Smith

Prior to the founding of Messner & Smith, an investment advisor firm providing counsel to client for more than 25 years, Mr. Smith owned and managed his own investment advisory firm, Ellis C. Smith Investment Counsel. Previous to founding his own firm, Ellis was the Portfolio Manager and Administrator for the retirement fund of a large California construction company.

Ellis is a former Chairman of the Board of the San Diego Downtown YMCA and President of the Executive’s Association of San Diego. He also served as a commissioned officer in the United States Naval Reserve.

Mr. Smith graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree from the School of Business Administration, University of California Los Angeles in 1965, and pursued graduate studies at San Diego State University.

Charles Van Vechten

As Managing Director of Buchanan Design, Charlie maintains 25 years of experience in the design, branding and marketing industry. Prior to joining Buchanan Design, Mr. Van Vechten was President and Partner at Jacob Tyler Brand Communications Agency. At Jacob Tyler Charlie helped build a full-service agency with 30 employees and revenue growth that quadrupled in five years. He established himself in San Diego’s creative industry by owning and operating Van Vechten Creative for 18 year, providing clients with brand strategy, graphic design, web design and traditional marketing services.

Charlie is active in the San Diego business and arts communities. He is a past President of AIGA San Diego, the professional association for design. He is also a member of the San Diego Rotary Club and has supported the San Diego community by serving on many non-profit boards including OASIS San Diego,

Wieghorst Museum & Heritage Center, Mt. Helix Park Foundation and the Susan G. Komen San Diego Advisory Board.

A native San Diegan, Charlie earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of San Diego and a Post-Graduate Degree in graphic design and advertising from the Advertising Arts College.

Stephen P. Williams

Steve Williams is the Managing Principal and a co-founder of SENTRE, a full-service real estate investment and development firm. Steve sits on the Company’s Board of Directors and Investment Committee.   Steve also co-founded Vesta, a Mexican industrial real estate fund, with approximately 25 million square feet of leased industrial properties located throughout Mexico.

He is also a co-founder of Bandwidth Now which transforms commercial buildings into “next gen” environments, treating bandwidth as a utility and Wi-Fi as an amenity using its patent pending Building Optical Network (BON).

Steve was formerly a partner with Trammell Crow Company, where he was responsible for the San Diego division. Prior to that, he was an investment salesman for Coldwell Banker.

He is active in the community and currently serves on the Boards of the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation and CONNECT. He is the Co-Chair of the Southern California Leadership Council along with Former Governor, Pete Wilson. Steve previously served as Chair of LEAD San Diego and served on the Boards of the San Diego Chamber of Commerce, the Burnham Institute and the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center.

Mr. Williams graduated from University of California Los Angeles in 1972 and received an MBA from University of Southern California in 1974. He is a licensed CPA and licensed real estate salesman.