Board of Directors

Name Scott Kersjes, President
Innovative Facilities Solutions

A resident of Northern Virginia since 1987 and of Alexandria since 1998, Kersjes specializes in commercial real estate management and has worked for Charles E. Smith, Carr America, Mark Winkler and Leggat McCall Properties.  He oversees management functions for assets, property and construction. In 2005, he began his own firm, Innovative Facilities Solutions, Inc., a construction and facilities management business.  He holds a degree in environmental affairs and a degree in public policy and management from Indiana University. He served in the military from 1983 to 1995.  Locally, he served on the Land Use Subcommittee of the Fairfax County Board.  A sporting buff, he was coach for sailing for the Special Olympics from 2006-2008. He joined the WEBA board in 2008.

Name  John Porter, Immediate Past President
ACT for Alexandria

After serving 22 years as principal of T.C. Williams High School, John Porter became assistant superintendent for planning and operations in the Alexandria City Public School system in 2006.  In 2009, he retired from the public schools after 40 years of service to become executive director of ACT for Alexandria, Alexandria’s community foundation.  An Alexandria native who attended the City schools (as did his wife and two sons), Porter graduated from North Carolina Wesleyan College, Rocky Mount, NC,  and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, in Blacksburg, VA. He returned to Alexandria in 1969 to teach social studies. He had previously served as an assistant principal, elementary principal and middle school principal before becoming principal at T. C. Williams.  He said he is most proud of the successes of some 70,000 students with whom he has worked during his 40 years in education. He joined the WEBA Board in 2006.

Name Kathleen M. Burns, Vice President
Court Appointed Mediator

A long-time West End resident, Ms. Burns served as president of the Brookville-Seminary Valley Civic Association (BSVCA) from 2004 to 2007, as vice president from 2002-2004 and immediate past president from 2007-2008. She also spent 5 years as the BSVCA newsletter editor and served on the BSVCA’s Constitution revision committee.  She served two terms on the WEBA board as the Civic Association representative 2005-2007, as WEBA Parliamentarian 2007-2009, and as co-chair of the WEBA Nominations Committee (2006-2008).  She is a Board member of the non-partisan Agenda Alexandria.  She held appointments to the Alexandria Parking and Traffic Board and the Consumer Affairs Commission, where she was vice chair.  In 2007, she won certification by the Supreme Court of Virginia for mediation in the Virginia Court system.  A journalist, a foreign correspondent, magazine editor, congressional investigator and an academic, she has taught in seven universities, both in the Washington area and in Australia.  She spent six years on the Washington chapter Board of the Australia America Association. A graduate of Clarke College, Dubuque, Iowa, and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, she is married to J. Stephen Ramey and they have a daughter, Lily, 14.

Name Kamla Rodriquez, Treasurer
Burke & Herbert Bank

A native of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Rodriguez moved to the United States in 1993 and settled in Alexandria.  In 2000, she joined Burke and Herbert Bank and worked as a teller, customer service rep and assistant manager before becoming a branch manager and vice president in 2008.  Prior to joining the bank, she managed a wholesale/retail supermarket.

Name Portia Hood, Secretary
Hilton Alexandria Mark Center

Portia Hood is the Senior Sales and Marketing Manager at the Hilton Alexandria Hotel for Davidson Hotel Company. She has been in the hospitality industry for over five years serving in both the Atlanta and Washington DC markets. She received a Bachelor of Science degree from Howard University and a Masters in Business Administration from Mercer University.

Name Dorathea J. Peters, Parliamentarian
Attorney

An Alexandria resident for 32 years, Dorathea Peters is a graduate New York University and the law school at the College of William and Mary.  She serves as chair of the Northern Virginia Juvenile Detention Center, and is a member of the Alexandria Juvenile and Domestic Relations Model Court Commission and the Family Substance Abuse Court.  Peters has also served as a chair of the city’s Child Welfare Partnership and as vice chair of the Alexandria Development Authority.  Since 1973, she has been a Guardian Ad Litem, practicing Alexandria’s Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.  The mother of a grown son, she was also president of the Alexandria Soccer Association.

Name  Wendy Albert, Director
President, Emeritus
Tempo Restaurant

In 2010, Wendy Albert and her husband, Serge, will celebrate 20 years as chefs and owners of Tempo Restaurant in the West End of Alexandria. Named as winner of the Small Business Award for 2008 by the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, she is a member of the Alexandria Convention and Visitors Association (ACVA) and has served as president, vice president and Board member of WEBA.  Ms. Albert was on the original WEBA formation committee and became president midway through the group’s first year in 2006.   In March 2006, she received the "Business Woman of the Year“ award from the City of Alexandria Office on Women.  She spearheaded the Dining Out event for the Breast Cancer "Walk" night for the Office on Women.  Born in Arizona and raised in the Mojave Desert area in California, she went to Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA; she put herself through college cooking nights.

Name Agnes' Artemel,Director
Artemel & Associates

Agnes’ Artemel is a consultant in planning and economic development.  Her firm, Artemel & Associates Inc., works for public and private sector clients in Northern Virginia, the mid-Atlantic states, and nationally.  She specializes in market analysis and project implementation planning.  She was the founding Executive Director of the Eisenhower Partnership and interim Executive Director of the Potomac West Alliance.  A member of the Virginia Commerce Bank’s Board of Advisors, she serves as a member of the Alexandria Industrial Development Authority.  Agnes is a founder of ADAM, Alexandrians Delivering smart growth Around Metro, and the Northern Virginia Streetcar CoalitionMs. Artemel volunteers as the President of the Old Town North Community Partnership, a civic association with residential and business members, and has served on a number of task forces of the City, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Eisenhower Partnership. She joined the WEBA board in 2006.

Name Mike Barber; Director
Washington Suites Hotel

Born and raised in Northern Virginia, Mike Barber has also spent his 26-year business career in this area.  Currently, he is general manager of the Washington Suites Hotel, where he has been for over 7 years. He has working with the company’s management firm, Hospitality Partners, for 23 years.  In addition to the Alexandria location, he has also worked at the Crossroads Inn in Quantico and the Holiday Inn Ballston in Arlington.  Other positions he has held include director of marketing, food and beverage services, assistant controller, human resources director and guest services manager.

Name  Nancy Benjamin, Director
Brahm Opticians

Nancy Benjamin is the owner/operator of Brahm Opticians, which makes and services eyeglasses.  She has been an optician for over 30 years and the owner of Brahm Opticians since 1987. She is also a teacher in her field, providing instruction for over 25 years. Ms. Benjamin grew up in this area and has lived and worked in the West End of Alexandria for over 26 years.  She is the parent of four teenagers, all whom have always attended City of Alexandria Public Schools.  In that capacity, she has held many positions in the schools’ PTAs and continues to volunteer as often as possible. Her eldest two children graduated from T.C. Williams High School  and are currently attending college. 

Name Sasha Gong, Director
Brooks, Gong  and Associates

Born in China, Sasha Gong holds graduate and undergraduate degrees in history from Peking University, and a doctorate in sociology from Harvard University.  In 2009, she was a Republican candidate for the VA House of Delegates.  She is the president of Gong, Brooks and Associates, which works on issues of business and trade. She is also a consultant to the US Department of Labor and is a presenter for the Voice of America and for seven newspapers and magazines in China. As an academic, she has taught at George Mason University, George Washington University, the University of Massachusetts at Boston, Harvard University and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing.

Name Dave Horton, Director
Virginia Paving

A native of central Pennsylvania, Dave Horton graduated from Bucknell University with a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 2001l He joined the Virginia Paving Company in June of 2001, at their Sterling,  Plant as a job engineer.  In 2006, he was promoted to Asst. Superintendent at the Sterling Plant and to Plant Manager at the Alexandria Facility in 2008. He is married to Kelly Wilbourne Horton.  The couple lives in Gainesville, VA.

Name Todd Lockcuff, Director
Inova Alexandria Hospital

Todd Lockcuff serves as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for the INOVA Alexandria Hospital and is vice president of the INOVA Health System, which has six hospitals in the Northern Virginia Area.  He has an accounting degree from Winthrop University and an MBA in healthcare management from the University of Phoenix.  Prior to joining INOVA Alexandria, Lockcuff was CFO and vice president for the Tenet Healthcare Corp. in SC.  Currently he is a member of the American College of Healthcare Executives and the Healthcare Management Financial Association.

Name Laura Mandala, Director
Mandala Research, LLC

Laura Mandala is managing director of Mandala Research, a firm that conducts studies for Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations and government agencies. She formerly served as vice president of partnership research for the Travel Industry Association of American.  She has taught courses on consumer behavior at the Georgetown and George Washington Universities, and lectures on market research practices at Cornell University.  She is currently completing her doctoral thesis in sociology at Northwestern University.  From 2002-2005, she chaired Alexandria’s Commission for Women, and was co-president of the Alexandria League of Women Voters. In 2003, she chaired the statewide Council on the Status of Women and also serves on the Women’s Advisory Board for Mass Mutual Life Insurance.  Recently, she was appointed to a federal panel on Ocean Research and Resources.

Name James Nozar, E-news Editor
 The JBG Companies

James Nozar is a Vice President at The JBG Companies, a real estate firm that has owned, managed, invested in and developed office, hotel, retail and residential projects in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area for almost 50 years.    While at JBG, James has managed the entitlement and development of several urban mixed-use projects in Arlington, Alexandria and Washington, DC.   He is currently managing the long-term master-planning effort on JBG’s Mark Center properties in Alexandria’s West End.     Prior to working with JBG, James worked in Ernst & Young’s Real Estate Advisory Services Group and at RCLCo,a real estate consulting firm.   James holds a degree in Building Construction with a concentration in real estate development and Certificate in City Planning from the Georgia Institute of Technology.  James joined the WEBA Board in 2009.

Name Grace Taylor, Director
Alexandria City Public Schools

A native Alexandrian, Grace Taylor is a graduate of T.C. Williams High School, where she was class president and was active in community service efforts. She is currently employed as a Principal on Assignment with the Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS). With a budget of almost $200 million and a staff of over 2000 employees, ACPS play a major role in the City’s business community as well as the educational community.  Ms. Taylor was appointed the Chair of the Superintendent’s Environmental Stewardship Committee for the Alexandria City Public Schools for the 2009-2010 school year.  In addition, she is a board member of Children Together, a non-profit, community organization committed to increasing inclusion opportunities for children with disabilities in quality childcare settings. Ms. Taylor attended Emory University in Atlanta, GA, and graduated  with a Bachelor’s degree in History.  She holds both a Masters Degree in Education Leadership and a Specialist Degree in Educational Leadership from Georgia State University.

Name Suzanne Waltemyer, Director
Commonwealth One Federal Credit Union

Susanne Waltemyer has worked with CommonWealth One Federal Credit Union for the past 5 years and acts as the employer group, community, government and financial literacy liaison for the Credit Union.  In her position, she has been instrumental in creating and implementing programs that provide financial literacy training for local adults and youth in our community and Alexandria City Public Schools. Last June, she received acknowledgement from George Washington Middle School for her volunteer efforts during the 2008-2009 school year.  A strong supporter of local businesses, she has been able to expand the credit union’s outreach programs and increase awareness through her commitment. Her belief in the credit union philosophy of “people helping people” is demonstrated is through the credit unions support and ongoing involvement in the community, financial education programs and continued partnership with the Alexandria Small Business Development Center.

Waltemyer grew up in a military family and has lived in many places in the United States and Europe.  Her family finally settled in Maryland where she received her Bachelors of Science Degree in Business Administration from the University of Maryland in 1999. In June of 2009 Susanne graduated from Southeast CUNA Credit Union Management School held at the University of Georgia in Athens, GA. She joined the Board of the West End Business Association in 2008 and is also an active member of the Alexandria Chamber of Commerce, and serves on the Eisenhower Partnership Membership Committee.  She  represents her credit union on the Mayor’s DollarWi$e Committee, at the Alexandria City Public Schools Family Involvement Rally,  the Annual Walk to Fight Breast Cancer and CommonWealth One’s Community Day and Gone Green/Shredder Day events.

Name Lynn Bostain, Civic Association Liaison President of the Seminary West Civic Association

Lynn Bostain has served as president of the Seminary West Civic Association in Alexandria for 5 years. A native of Lexington, KY, she has lived in the West End since 1976.  She is a Certified Travel Counselor and Certified Meeting Planner.  Ms. Bostain graduated from George Washington University with a degree in anthropology, with graduate work in travel and tourism.  She began college studies at California State University at Fullerton and also served in the US Marine Corps. She works for the Dulles Area Transportation Association. Bostain has worked in aspects of business development and sales for: Alexandria’s Economic Development Partnership, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Agency for International Development, the Virginia Tourism Commission and the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.  She is also  an adjunct faculty member at the Northern Virginia Community College, Annandale campus.