Jill Hammons, Co-Chair
Jill Hammons is Director of Membership at the marvelous USS Midway Museum, providing excellent service and attentive care to almost 11,000 members located in all 50 states and 10 countries. Prior to that, she was the Director of Special Events at UCSD's Scripps Institution of Oceanography, where she worked for almost 28 years. She proudly has done events for heads of state, royalty, and world leaders as well as celebrities, top scientists and noteworthy researchers. Jill is very community-service oriented, having served on the boards of Executive Women International, the International Special Event Society and Passionfish. She has received three special awards for her service:The Gina Cesena Gold Key Award, given by the Hotel-Motel Association; Event Solution Magazine's Spotlight Award for Samaritan Service; and the SD Business Journal's "Women Who Mean Business" Social Service Award. Jill's "thing" is kids as evidenced by her wonderful 14-year volunteer relationship with Paul Newman's famous camp, The Hole in the Wall Gang. As one of the founding members of ARTS, she has been on board since 2002, and completely believes in the organization's vision and mission: giving children and their families who are facing life's tough challenges A Reason to Survive!

Saundra Knight
Saundra Knight leads Marketing Operations at Kyocera Communications, Inc. where she is responsible for integrating Marketing efforts between Channel Marketing, Brand and Advertising, Marketing Communications and Public Relations, and serves as the liaison between Marketing and Sales, Business Development and Product Planning. Saundra has been involved with non-profit organizations since 1998, beginning in Monterey, CA, serving as an independent consultant providing CRM support for local children’s charities, serving on Board Committees for the Pacific Grove Arts Council, and operating as the publicity chair for the group’s annual fundraising efforts.

In 2001 Saundra moved to San Diego where she worked as the Community Relations Program Manager for Sempra Energy, managing the company’s Matching Gifts program, Volunteer Incentive program, scholarships for employee’s children and the employee-operated 501(c)(3) organization, Energy for Others. Additionally, Saundra was responsible for managing a number of relationships with San Diego charities including the San Diego Symphony, the Maritime Museum and Volunteer San Diego.

Having worked both for and with the non-profit community for a number of years, Saundra is passionate about maintaining an active role in philanthropy.

Sesh Krishnamoorthy
Sesh Krishnamoorthy is a product manager at Qualcomm where he is responsible for defining and driving radio transceivers solutions for next generation wireless devices. Sesh believes that every child has the potential to overcome their difficulties but they do need a helping hand. He hopes that his work with ARTS will allow him to play at least a small role in providing opportunities to children in need. Sesh is also a child advocate (CASA) helping neglected and abused children placed in the San Diego foster care system. Sesh has a degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering from the University of Madras, India and a Master's degree in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Tech. Sesh loves to run, hike and play racquetball.

Rob Mills
Rob Mills was born in Champaign, Illinois in 1971. Rob loves to play sports and in high school he lettered in basketball, football, baseball, and golf. He went on to study at the University of Colorado where he received a Bachelor's degree in International Affairs. After graduating, Rob moved to Chicago and worked for two years at American National Bank. As a member of their exclusive Management Training Program, Rob gained experience in personal banking, investments, and banking operations.

Rob's desire to live on the west coast inspired a move to Tucson, Arizona where he spent a few years as a competitive pro golfer, playing one year on the Gateway Tour. Rob then decided that making money playing golf was far too difficult and in 2002 moved to San Diego. Attaining his California Real Estate license in 2003, he continues to pursue work as a realtor. Rob's mother Linda started the Mills Family Foundation in 2001 and sadly lost a long, hard-fought battle with breast cancer in 2006. Rob has since taken over the responsibility as President of his family's foundation and hopes to continue with his mother's dedication and commitment to helping others in the community.

Amanda Montgomery
Amanda Montgomery is an investment officer with the City of San Diego where she oversees public market investments in the city’s pension fund. She previously spent five years as a wealth advisor at Morgan Stanley. Amanda came to know ARTS while serving on the committee that selected Matt D’Arrigo as the fellowship recipient of a non-profit leaders program at Harvard Business School in 2008. With a BS in Civil/Environmental Engineering from Duke University on a Navy ROTC scholarship, Amanda spent five years as a Lieutenant in the US Navy’s Civil Engineer Corps. She has an MBA from Harvard Business School and is an active board member of the school’s local alumni association. Amanda lives in Carmel Valley with her son.

Matt Parsons
Matt Parsons graduated from Southern Illinois University with a BA in History and holds a full voting student seat on the City Council. Matt began working at The Hard Rock Café, later opened The House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and was then recruited by The Cheesecake Factory where he managed the company for over ten years. Matt was a part of re-creating the hiring systems for the company, was the pilot restaurant for implementing Six Sigma processes in a high volume restaurant environment, and grew annual sales by over a million dollars a year for 5 consecutive years. Matt returned to House of Blues in the fall of 2008 but this time as GM in San Diego. He jumped at the opportunity to return to his roots and leave the frosty streets of Chicago behind. “I think there is a natural symmetry between House of Blues and ARTS—to help others achieve their potential through art and music, and I am excited about the endless possibilities.” Matt is a lifelong Cubs fan, is working on his harmonica and guitar skills and is still pursuing the ever evasive jump shot from his youth.

Ellen Preston
Ellen Preston is a consultant, specializing in medical devices. A 25-year career in healthcare with Johnson and Johnson and in the venture capital-funded arena has allowed her to work in large businesses as well as entrepreneurial start-ups. Ellen’s emphasis is on the development and adoption of new medical technologies such as less invasive breast biopsy, disposable contacts lenses and new methods for blood glucose monitoring. Ellen is also on the Board of the YMCA/Youth and Family Services, is active in the Mission Hills community, is a self-taught ceramicist and serves as a volunteer at ARTS, teaching twice a week.

Jim Ratzer
Jim Ratzer is a family law attorney, admitted to the bar in 1990. His offices are located in Del Mar, California. Jim is a Certified Family Law Specialist by The State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. In addition to managing his practice, Jim volunteers as an attorney for the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program; as a Judge Pro Tem for the Superior Court of California, San Diego County, North County, and Downtown Divisions; and as a judge for the Paul A. McLennon Sr. Honors Moot Court Competition at the University Of San Diego School Of Law. Jim is also a workshop instructor teaching the "What Men Need To Know about Divorce" workshop at Mira Costa College. From 2003-2008, Jim volunteered his time to the City of Solana Beach as a member of the Solana Beach View Assessment Committee. Jim loves the ARTS story and finds his work as a board member very rewarding. Jim lives in Solana Beach with his wife Martha and children Lauren, Laine, Mark and Claire.

Antoinette Raymond, Vice-Chair
Educated in industrial/organizational psychology and business administration at the University of San Diego and the California School of Professional Psychology, the focus of her consulting has been on creativity in the workplace. Her experience as an organizational psychologist has been as both an internal and external management consultant. She has worked with a variety of organizations ranging from: healthcare, finance and banking, government, retail, hi-tech/bio-tech, computing, academic/university, and professional services.

In 1994, she joined Saker Lynd as President of its US organization to continue her work advising national and multinational clients. Originally focused in the United States, she now splits her time between the US and the UK. In addition, Antoinette was the Director of the Leadership and Management Program for the UCSD Extension Department of Business and Management Education. She has also been an associate professor for the M.B.A. and Organizational Behaviors Graduate Schools of the University of Phoenix and the psychology department at the University of San Diego.

Woo-Jin Shim Woo-Jin Shim currently works in the Office of the Mayor and the Chief Operating Officer for the City of San Diego as a Labor Relations Officer where he serves as a labor negotiator and handles various employer/employee relation matters. From 2004-2008, Woo-Jin was a staff member in the office of San Diego City Council President Scott Peters as a policy/budget analyst where he served as the lead advisor on pension, budget, public safety and labor issues. Woo-Jin is part of the inaugural class of the recently-formed Herb Klein Leadership Foundation and serves as a member on the San Diego American Diabetes Association’s Father of the Year Board. He is also a board member of the San Diego Asian Business Association and a member of San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Legislative Committee. He is a LEAD San Diego graduate, where he was on the Leadership Action Team that helped develop a business plan proposal for the continued development of ARTS. Woo-Jin is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley where he received his BA in political science. He enjoys volunteering in Mexico and supporting ARTS.

Craig Yates
Craig Yates is the President of Yates Financial Solutions (YFS), Inc. providing financial consulting expertise to businesses in the San Diego community. YFS is the primary financial consultant and contributor to I Love Schools, Inc. an innovative internet-based charity that provides teachers with the ability to create "wishlists" of needed school resources which donors can search using multiple criteria to make pinpoint new or used donations. Craig previously worked as a CFO for the nation's largest non-profit company providing real estate based SBA loans following a 9 year career at Barona Valley Ranch Resort & Casino, as Executive Director of Finance. During his tenure, Barona won numerous awards related to customer service, employer practices and ethics. Barona was also voted the #1 technology casino in the nation due in large part to its invention of the now ubiquitous "Ticket In Ticket Out" (TITO) slot payment system that has virtually replaced coin machines nationwide. Craig was instrumental in the development of TITO and is a co-writer of one of the filed patents. Craig joined the Board of ARTS in 2007, however, he was first involved with ARTS in 2003, where he was able to experience firsthand the tremendous value provided to his own young children when his 37 yr. old wife lost her battle with sinus cancer.

Jacquie Heil, Co-Chair
Jacquie Heil is an artist and owns a residential interior design firm, Inner Dwelling Designs, in Del Mar where she lives with her husband and two children. She has been practicing sustainable design for eight years. Prior to that, Jacquie was a financial manager at Qualcomm, Inc. providing strategic planning, budgeting and reporting for seven years. Working in both in Silicon Valley and San Diego high tech, she has over fourteen years experience in corporate finance for companies such as I.B.M., United Technologies, and S.A.I.C. Her life inspiration comes from love of travel, art, music, entertaining, yoga, running, and especially time with her family. Jacquie is an active community member, supporting the arts, education, and preservation. As a member of ArtCorps, a non-profit art program, she taught art in public elementary schools, when funding was drastically reduced. "Art and music are essential elements in children’s lives. They feed our souls."