Board of Directors - Women In HVACR

	Kim O'Neal, President Channel Marketing Specialist, Honeywell, Golden Valley, MN As a Channel Marketing Specialist for the Home Comfort business of Honeywell's Enviornmental & Combustion Controls division, Kim has an active role in identifying marketing opportunities, developing plans and executing the tactics within the HVACR channel. A former employee of the Heating, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), she has a unique perspective on many facets of the HVACR Distribution side of the industry. She has been a member of WHVACR since its inception and a WHVACR Board member since 2006.
	Nita M. Brooks, Vice President Business Leadership Product Development & Member Services Manager, National Comfort Institute, Nashville, TN Currently, Nita is the Business Product Development and Member Services Manager for the business level of membership with NCI (formerly ISL). During the ten years she has been with ISL, her areas of responsibility have included enhancing and developing vendor programs, coaching and training members on business practices, helping to develop tools to support the member’s business practices, recruiting, and supporting the accounting functions. Nita brings over 24 years of successful business development experience to the HVAC arena. As an Area Controller for Purina Mills, Inc., Nita developed local controls to focus on the support of ethical practices and processes to ensure profitability for multiple facilities. Nita’s experience in auditing business practices to provide compliance with standards needed for improved profit margins has aided to develop results-driven solutions for HVAC contractors.
	Karen Riffice, Treasurer President, Amalgamated Services, Inc., Oak Lawn, IL Karen grew up in a family of pipefitters. Although eager to join the trade after high school, she received a less-than-enthusiastic reply to her interst. She worked with her two brothers at their contracting firm prior to finishing her four-year degree and MBA. She realized that there are many ways to make a great living in this industry. With her education, she chose the financial side. Karen joined Soderlund Brothers over 25 years ago and is currently the company Controller. She is active in the MCA of Chicago, where she served as a Board member and on education committees. She's also active in the Mechanical Contractors Association of America, Inc. (MCAA)'s Advanced Leadership Institute Committee. As past president of WHVACR, her goals include increasing the outreach into schools to raise awareness about careers in the HVAC industry.
	Barbara Keil, Immediate Past President President, KEIL Heating & Air Conditioning, Riverdale, NJ KEIL Heating & Air was founded by Barbara's grandfather in 1908. Although she recalls helping out at a very young age, Barbara's father suggested she put her accounting degree to work at KEIL until she found a "real job." Truly enjoying the perspective of running a business, Barbara never left! Celebrating 100 years in business, KEIL has earned the Contractor of the Year Award from Contracting Business magazine and the Best Contractor to Work For (Northeastern USA) Award from the Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration News. Barbara is an active member of International Service Leadership (ISL), Toastmasters International and The Alternative Board.

	Adrienne Breedlove, Board Member Director, Communications & Public Relations, Mechanical Contractors Association of America, Inc., Rockville, MD Adrienne Breedlove is the Director of Communications & Public Relations at the Mechanical Contractors Association of America, Inc. (MCAA), a trade association that provides its members with high-quality educational materials and programs to help them attain the highest level of managerial and technical expertise. MCAA includes the Mechanical Service Contractors of America, the Plumbing Contractors of America, the Manufacturer/Supplier Council, the Mechanical Contracting Education and Research Foundation and the National Certified Pipe Welding Bureau. She is a past president and a founding board member of Women in HVACR and a past chair of the American Society for Association Executives’ Communication Section Council.
	Kathy Corr, Board Member Director, Strategic Relationships, NATE, Arlington, VA Kathy Corr is the Director, Strategic Relationships at NATE. She has primary responsibility for managing NATE’s testing network and executing a plan that stimulates test sales. She provides marketing and communication support, develops and coordinates testing procedures and acts as a liaison to the training community and partners who administer testing. Kathy has over 25 years of experience in teaching and training adults in various career pathways. She is a former Vice President for Student Services at Clover Park Technical College in Lakewood, WA, where she supervised their testing centers and had responsibility for managing the offices of the registrar, financial aid, workforce development and adult education. She supervised curriculum development and testing for multiple trades. She oversaw the development of career courses in Spanish. More recently she was the acting Director of Continuing Education and Workforce Development at Northern Virginia Community College where she managed their certification testing center and initiated new business and marketing strategies.
	Ruth Ann Davis, Board Member Vice President of Sales, Williams Furnace, Frisco, TX Ruth Ann is a 17-year veteran with Williams Furnace Company, a manufacturer of residential, commercial and industrial heating and AC equipment. Prior to coming on board with Williams, she worked for The Knox Company (manufacturer of safe and vaults) and the Rochester Corporation (manufacturer of oilfield and oceanographic cable). Most of her career has been spent working in the manufacturing world with engineered products requiring specification. Being willing to stretch beyond her capabilities has paid off for Ruth Ann, so it's no wonder why she has encouraged women to be risk-takers and constantly think outside the box. Her greatest reward has been seeing change evolve in the HVACR industry and being a contributor to that change.
	Patti Ellingson, Board Member Director of Wholesale Distribution, RemTec International, Bowling Green, OH Patti Ellingson has an extensive background in sales, business development and marketing within the HVACR industry since 1993. Currently she heads up RemTec International’s newest Wholesale Division featuring the Refrigerant Buy Back and Recovery Program that focuses on creating partnerships with HARDI wholesale/distributor members. Through a defined vision, she has produced successful market tactics resulting in profitable growth for her partners within the industry. Her ability to motivate others through goals, challenges and coaching have contributed to her proven sales record. Patti earned her degree in Human Resource Management with a minor in Marketing from Saint Leo University (1993). She is active in the HVACR industry as a member of HARDI, Women in HVACR, AHRI, and the USGBC. She is focused on the issues of environmentally beneficial “green” solutions, indoor air quality and energy efficiency within the industry.
	Julie Eudy, Board Member Marketing & Event Management Specialist, Golden Services Group, St. Peters, MO Julie has more than 20 years experience in the business world as an executive assistant and administrative manager. Her background includes all aspects of managing a business including a strong knowledge of marketing and communications. She currently works with businesses to develop their marketing plan and creates a hands-on strategy to help them implement it through ongoing coaching, training, graphic layout and design, newsletter/blog design and distribution, social media marketing and search engine optimization. She also works to help them organize, promote the registration for their events.
	Alyssa Irish, Board Member Media Design Manager, Duro Dyne Corporation, Bay Shore, NY Alyssa Irish is a Media Design Manager for the Duro Dyne Corporation, a manufacturer of Sheet Metal Accessories for the HVAC Industry. She handles all the marketing and advertising for Duro Dyne at their headquarters in Bay Shore, NY. Starting with Duro Dyne as the graphic artist in 2004, Alyssa quickly expanded her role to include: advertising coordination, promotional campaigns, and most predominately, trade show management. She is currently perusing Certified Trade Show Marketer (CTSM) certification which is the only university-affiliated certification program in the trade show industry. She was promoted to Media Design Manager in 2006 but still manages the graphic design of the company including ad creation, literature, promos, website, packaging and more.
	Kathy McCauley, Treasurer President, McCauley Mechanical Construction, Inc., Bridgeview, IL Kathy began her career at McCauley Mechanical in 1991 first as a project manager, then as CFO and now as president of the organization. Kathy and her brother, Jim, are fourth generation owners. She holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Valparasio University and an MS in Construction Management from California State in Long Beach. Kathy is a past president of MCA Chicago and currently serves on the Green Building Committee and the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee for Pipefitters Local 597. She serves on the Advisory Board for Illinois State University Department of Technology and Construction Management and is a registered Professional Engineer in Illinois and a LEED AP. This 2006 Contracting Business magazine Woman of the Year is also the mother of a 17-year-old daughter who keeps her life active with her horse and four dogs.
	Tammy Smith, Secretary Co-Owner, Halco Plumbing & Heating, Phelps, NY Tammy and her husband, Hal, started Halco Plumbing & Heating in 1984. In 2004 they expanded their business ownership by opening a supply house called PBS Supply, Inc. Between the two ventures, they employ approximately 125 people in the Finger Lakes Region in upstate NY. They are active members of International Service Leadership (ISL), where Hal assists with training for light commercial contractors. Married for 25 years, they have three children: Seth, 21; Brock, 17; and Paige, 8. Tammy actively supports the local schools and their community. In what spare time they find, Tammy enjoys riding her Boss Hoss motorcycle with Hal, bowling, skeet shooting and taking vacations.
	Gwen A. Hostnik, Advisory Board Member Marketing & Events Consultant, Cleveland, OH Gwen is currently exploring new opportunities in marketing communications and event planning. She is looking for a challenging position that will utilize her creative, organizational and project management skills, either in a full-time permanent capacity or on a consulting basis. Gwen has extensive experience in the HVACR industry. She most recently held the position of group marketing director and events planner for Contracting Business magazine and the publication’s related products. This involved overseeing the overall marketing of the magazine, as well as the development and execution for tradeshows and events such as HVAC Comfortech and the Commercial Contracting Roundtable. Gwen is a past president of Women in HVACR and is one of the organization's founding board members.
	Ruth King, Advisory Board Member Channel Manager, HVACChannel.tv and President, Business Ventures Corporation, Norcross, GA An accomplished author and speaker, Ruth has worked in the plumbing and HVACR industry since 1987. Her work includes helping contractors build service agreement programs, grow profitable service departments, finance, technical training, and operations challenges. She is the founder of HVACChannel.tv, which enables her to reach contractors and other small business people who want to build their businesses and train their employees. Ruth holds an MBA in Finance from Georgia State University and Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Chemical Engineering from Tufts University and the University of Pennsylvania, respectively. She holds a Class II (unrestricted) HVAC contractor’s license in Georgia. She is passionate about helping adults learn to read, photography, and marathon races. She helped start an adult literacy organization in 1986 that currently serves over 1,000 adults per year and ran the Boston Marathon in 2004 and 2005.
	Valerie Stakes, Advisory Board Member Independent Trainer/Consultant, San Diego, CA Valerie Stakes is an independent trainer/consultant specializing in safety training, jobsite management, and program development for wide variety of clients, including general and specialty trade contractors, government agencies, and manufacturing, warehousing, and health care facilities. She is the former managing editor of Contracting Business magazine, and a past president/founding board member of Women in HVACR.