The Slate for the Next VHOA Board

Michael Moertl is an avid polo player and fan that has been a resident of Los Angeles since 1992. Exposed to horses at an early age, his hometown in Wisconsin was host to both the Milwaukee and Olympia polo clubs and his uncle was a professional calf-roper who rode the rodeo circuit in the 1970's. Upon encountering various obstacles while attempting to acquire use of pubic land to form a permanent grass polo club here in Los Angeles, he realized the need for an orgnization that united local equestrians. After some searching, he discovered the Valley Horse Owners Association and instinctively recognized its importance to Los Angeles horse community as a whole. He immediately offered his service when called upon and is proud to be in consideration as the next President of the Board of Directors of VHOA. He believes the first thing to do is give the association a firm financial foundation through vigorous fundraising and expanding its membership to cover all of Los Angeles. He hopes someday that the VHOA will have a permanent location and a fulltime staff.

Rick Morris has a successful home appraisal business in Encino whose roots are also in the Midwest; Illinois to be exact. Also growing up in rural America, Rick's fond memories include riding horses over the countryside as a kid. Now, Rick has become civically minded and has offered to become the next Secretary of VHOA and board member. His interest is to lend his services to the association regarding land-use issues and as vice-president of membership.

Stella Christiansen graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara with a double major in Environmental Studies/Ecology and Evolution. During her studies she worked for the National Nature Conservancy gathering data on the Island Fox of Santa Cruz Island. She recently decided to further her education and is now in a graduate Physical Therapist program at UC-Northridge. She has offered to act as the next Treasurer of the VHOA and board member.

J.C. Christofilis has led a diverse career. Prior to launching his own consulting practice, J.C. directed all content and business development initiatives for Mandalay Pictures' New Media division and he also managed the company's venture capital arm responsible for evaluating the merits of companies seeking investment. J.C. has an undergraduate degree in Philosophy from Pepperdine University and received his Masters from the Producers Program at UCLA. JC is planning to be out of state for a few months, but upon his return will serve as the association's media consultant, website consultant and VP in charge of fundraising.