Members of the Lake County Friends of Mendocino College Governing Council include, back row, left to right, Wally Holbrook, Mark Rawitsch, Cameron Reeves, Judy Conard, Gloria Flaherty, Peggy Campbell DeBolt, Margaret Silveira, Trena Pauly, Lori McGuire and Dave Geck; and front row, left to right, John Tomkins, Wilda Shock and Katie Wojcieszak. Courtesy photo.

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – After years of discussion about forming an affiliate of the Mendocino College Foundation, a diverse group of Lake County residents and business owners began meeting in January.

After another meeting in February, and a request to the foundation board for approval, the Lake County Friends of Mendocino College became an official affiliate in June.

Governing council members and officers were elected at an organizational meeting in July, with additional members approved in September and October. They are Wilda Shock, past Mendocino College Foundation president, chairperson; Cameron Reeves, retired county counsel for Lake County, vice chairperson; and Peggy Campbell DeBolt, Mendocino College Foundation director and liaison to the board, treasurer.

Members are Judy Conard, Lakeport attorney; Dave Geck, retired Lake County Superintendent of Schools and Mendocino College trustee; Gloria Flaherty, executive director, Lake Family Resource Center; Wally Holbrook, Lake County Superintendent of Schools; Lori McGuire, retired educator; Trena Pauly, president, Kelseyville Business Association and co-owner of Polestar Computers; Margaret Silveira, Lakeport city manager; and John Tomkins, tax consultant and Mendocino College trustee.

Ex officio members of the council are Katie Wojcieszak, executive director of the Mendocino College Foundation, and Mark Rawitsch, dean of instruction for the Lake and Willits Centers.

The intended purpose of the affiliate is to organize and conduct activities in Lake County that will promote and assist the educational and service programs of the Mendocino-Lake Community College District.

The group will establish partnerships with existing organizations in Lake County whose mission and activities include similar goals to promote student success at all educational levels in Lake County.

One of the first cooperative endeavors will be a joint workshop with representatives of other education foundations and booster clubs in Lake County, conducted under the auspices of the California Consortium of Education Foundations and organized by the Lake County Office of Education, to network and identify common means of assisting Lake County students achieve academic success.

The passage of the Measure W bond election by the voters in 2006 began the quest for a permanent campus site in Lake County.

The building of the new Lake Center is a catalyst for the friends to create greater awareness of Mendocino College and to directly benefit current and future students and programs.

The public is invited to attend the groundbreaking ceremonies on Thursday, Oct. 20, at 4 p.m., to celebrate the start of construction of the new campus at 2565 Parallel Drive, Lakeport.

Working with residents and businesses in Lake and Mendocino counties, the college and the Foundation and its affiliates will educate leaders and foster intellectual growth while providing training programs to prepare students to earn a living wage and create better economic conditions in our communities.

Presentations about the LCFMC have been made to the Lake County Board of Supervisors, Lakeport City Council, Kiwanis Club of Lakeport, and the Lake County Superintendents’ Council.

Members of the Governing Council are available to meet with community organizations. Contact Wilda Shock, 707-263-7575, for more information.

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