Speakers

Jenelle will be giving an update on what is going on regarding the modernization of LAX.

Jenelle Hamilton is a Southern California native, raised and currently living in Santa Clarita.  Jenelle is a civil servant having joined the employment of the City of Los Angeles in June 2003. In her 15 years with the city she worked for the Los Angeles Police Department and the Department of Airports, of which she is currently assisting LAX Community Relations Division.  Jenelle acts as the airport's community relations liaison with various community, business, and interagency groups.

Jenelle has an Associates and Bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice and is currently working to obtain a Master's in Public Administration with a focus in leadership at California State University, Northridge.  Jenelle currently serves as the Child and Volunteer Protection Advocate and Board Member for AYSO Region 46 in Saugus.  She also volunteers to referee youth soccer games.  Jenelle is a member is good standing with various sport, military and police non-profit organizations.

Jenelle enjoys traveling to new and exciting destinations, surfing in the summer, and watching her 13 year old daughter, Marie, play soccer.

Hildreth (Hal) Walker, Jr. Walker led the manufacturing, testing and operation of the Korad K-1500 ruby laser system during the 1969 Apollo 11 Moon landings lunar laser ranging experiment. This historic first successful interplanetary lunar laser ranging experiment was replicated in 1n 1994 in a interactive exhibit located in the Hands on Science section of Science in American Life at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. Mr. Walker himself was honored in the exhibit’s permanent section, “The New Moon.” Mr. Walker’s space technology involvements began in 1959 as a technical member of the RCA Corporation’s BMEWS (Ballistic Missile Early Warning System) situated in the Alaskan frontiers to detect Soviet Missile nuclear attacks. This experience prepared him to expand his career into the laser technology industry in early 1964 at KORAD Laser Systems, a Division of the Union Carbide Corporation. As a laser systems specialist, Hal traveled throughout the United States and the world introducing advanced new laser technologies to the fields of scientific research and industrial applications. In 1974 Hal joined the Hughes Aircraft Company where he participated in developing and placing the first Tactical Laser Target Designator System into the U.S. Army inventory. Mr. Walker retired in 1989 from the management team of the Hughes Aircraft Company. He then served until 2010 as president and CEO of TECH PLUS, a laser technology consultant group. The group participated in national projects such as the Laser Induced Plasma Fusion at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Hal was appointed to be a JPL/NASA Solar System Ambassador in 2000. In this role he participates as a speaker and specialist in space-related technology issues. His responsibilities are promoting public education and development of local community awareness and benefits regarding space technology and deep space future exploration. He is a Member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Educator Associate.

Walker is board chairman and co-founder, with his wife Dr. Bettye Walker, of the African-American Male Achievers Network, Inc. (A-MAN), a non-profit corporation. A-MAN is dedicated to the nurturing of young African-American and other minority students with particular emphasis in science and mathematics. Hal is a graduate of Pacific Christian College (Cum Laude) with a BS Degree, Business Technology Management.

Hal and Bettye have established the A-MAN, Inc., in South Africa at the invitation of President Nelson Mandela and implement science and technology programs in township schools across the country.

Affiliations: 20 year Member of the Inglewood Rotary Club, Life time member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc, Los Angeles, Alumni Chapter; Founding Polemarch Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Cape Town-Western Cape Alumni Chapter, Cape Town South Africa; Past Board Chairman, Walk to Emmaus Los Angeles Community. Member Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Boule; Delta Xi Chapter, Member National Space Society of South Africa.

Prior to joining the LINXS team, Anna served as staff on L.A. City Councilmember Mike Bonin's team for over 4 1/2 years--roles spanning from Constituent Advocate, Intern Coordinator, Women's Community Liasion, and ultimately Field Deputy, representing the Councilmember to the neighborhoods of Westchester, Ladera, and Playa del Rey.

Prior to joining Mike’s team in 2013, Anna studied at both the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Irvine, earning a B.A. in Political Science, with honors. She served as a member of the Associated Students of UCI, and was later selected to participate in the University of California Washington D.C. Academic Internship program. In this program, Anna maintained her studies and worked full-time on Capitol Hill in bay-area Congresswoman Jackie Speier's office. Anna has also served as a tutor for inmates seeking their high school diplomas at San Quentin State Prison, assisted on numerous local campaigns, and worked her way through school at local small businesses throughout the westside.

Anna emigrated from Hungary to the Westside of Los Angeles as a small child, and was the first in her family to become a U.S. citizen, and second to finish college. She was raised with a sense of community in the neighborhoods of Mar Vista and Venice, and continues to volunteer her free time at various philanthropic events and organizations throughout the city. 

Christina has worked for the Chamber since 2004 and in April 2006 was asked to serve as the President/CEO of the organization. During her time with the Chamber, she has developed robust new programs including LAX Coworking and Workforce Improvement Trainings (WIT), spearheaded influential events such as the State of LAX and VIP Power Hours, and helped launch the LAX Coastal Education Foundation and the storefront for the Westchester/Playa Historical Society, Westchester’s Jewel and Playa’s Treasure.

Today, LAX Coastal Chamber (formerly known as the Westchester/LAX-Marina del Rey Chamber of Commerce) represents over 530 local businesses in the communities of Westchester, Marina del Rey, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista and Del Rey.

Christina has served with the Westside Council of Chambers (WC3), Playa Venice Sunrise Rotary Foundation, LMU Family of Schools Advisory Council, Westchester Family YMCA Board of Managers, Badge of Heart, St. Anastasia Board of Directors and the EmpowerTech Program Board. She was also the chair for Orville Wright’s Governance Council, a two-term president for WC3, a co-chair of the BizFed Technology Committee and is an ex-officio for the LAX Coastal Education Foundation.

Christina was raised in Los Angeles, California in the community of Westchester and was a student of photography and graphic design at Otis College. She, currently lives in Redondo Beach with her husband, Cory, and her daughter, Makayla.

Natalie Gouche is a social media and digital marketing expert who helps corporations and small businesses increase their reach and profits by leveraging the power of the internet. A savvy entrepreneur with over ten years of experience in business, she is known for a results-based, no-fluff approach to her work as a coach, trainer, and speaker. 

Natalie is the first choice among brands such as Staples, Bentley Mills, and Acura, who desire to connect with their audience and market their product or service to them in an authentic way. An in-demand speaker at corporations, colleges and universities, she regularly gives energetic and informative talks centered around social media, marketing, and entrepreneurship.

PDG Cozette Vergari will give the annual talk on our club's foundation and where we get money from and were it goes!

First elected in 2014, Autumn R. Burke represents the 62nd District in the California State Assembly. Her economically and ethnically diverse district is home to some of the world’s most successful technology and aerospace companies, several of the region's most popular beaches, Los Angeles International Airport, and the Forum. A Los Angeles native, Assemblywoman Burke is an entrepreneur and small business owner with a proven record of business development and community outreach. She's worked to help provide pathways to green technology and energy efficiency for neighborhoods big and small. She's taken that same passion for innovation to Sacramento with a focus on policy to expand access to health care, education and solid jobs for all.

While in Sacramento, she has achieved legislative successes to positively impact the lives of all Californians, including; extending California’s Cap & Trade market system which has become a model for the rest of the country and the world to mitigate the harmful effects of climate change while transitioning to a clean energy economy, increasing electric vehicle charging stations around the state, and convening The Lifting Children and Families Out of Poverty Task Force with the goal of reducing child poverty across the state.

Throughout her career, Burke has maintained a passion for serving the community. She is a member of Count Me In for Women, an organization that promotes the growth of women-owned businesses. She's also a board member of the Yvonne Burke Foundation, which provides scholarships for young people in Los Angeles County to attend colleges and universities as well as career training programs. A longtime supporter of the Compton Jr. Posse, Burke helps give at-risk youth alternatives to street life through creative programs that foster a greater sense of belonging.

Burke is the daughter of former Los Angeles County Supervisor, Assemblywoman and U.S. Congresswoman, Yvonne Burke. Autumn Burke's election to the legislature marks the first time in California history that a mother and daughter have both served in the State Assembly.

Assemblywoman Burke is the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation. She also serves as the Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Career Technical Education and Building a 21 Century Workforce, and a member of the Assembly Committees on Accountability and Administrative Review, Health, Housing and Community Development, Utilities and Commerce. She represents the cities of Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, and Gardena, the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Westchester, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista, Venice, and Del Rey, and communities of Del Aire, West Athens, Lennox, Westmont, and Marina del Rey.