2019 Board Members
Taylor Kellstrom
22nd President
Taylor Kellstrom is a 29 year old entrepreneur, philanthropist,real estate agent and motivational speaker. Taylor was born and raised in Santa Clarita. Taylor and his wife Becca are fellow West Ranch High School graduates. Taylor and Becca were married in 2018 and are now expecting their first child in September. Taylor is a realtor with RE/MAX of Santa Clarita. Taylor serves the entire Santa Clarita Valley which includes Valencia, Stevenson Ranch, Castaic, Newhall, and Canyon Country. He opened The Book Exchange – an off campus college textbook store that sells college textbooks to students at College of the. He is the current president of Circle of Hope and co founder of Hope’s Haven Cancer Wellness Center. He also serves as an ambassador for Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles . Taylor was nominated in 2013-2019 for Santa Clarita Valley Man of the Year for his business and philanthropy work and has the unique distinction as being the youngest man ever nominated for this prestige award. He has also won Young Business Person of the Year 2014 at the SCV Leadership Awards hosted by the SCV Chamber of Commerce. He has also been award the Signal’s top “51″ award in 2016 and in 2017 was ranked #1.
Neil Fitzgerald
Executive Vice President
Neil serves as Growth and Development Commissioner for The Americas and he is also our 2019 Executive Vice President. In 2018 Neil was JCI USA 1st ever Chapter Development Director where he helped to charter 23 new chapters. Before then, Neil served as 2017 National Vice President, 2016 California President, 2015 California EVP and 2014 and 2013 Santa Clarita Valley President.
Sharlene Duzick
Manager-At-Large
Sharlene became active in the non-profit sector to have a positive impact on the welfare of those in Santa Clarita wherever possible early on in life. As a former Miss Santa Clarita and intern for Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich, her service took the form of volunteering and fundraising for organizations such as Single Mothers Outreach, the Chamber of Commerce, YMCA, Student’s Off And Running and more. Today Sharlene serves as the Manager-At-Large for JCI Santa Clarita, helping support the Executive team. She also serves as a member of the William S Hart School District Bond Measure SA Oversight Committee and sits on several local boards and committees such as the Wish Foundation, NextSCV, College of the Canyons Alumni Committee and College of the Canyons Foundation Board. Her quote that she lives by is, “the meaning of life is finding your gift; the purpose of life is giving it away.”
Traci Taplin
Vice President of Community & Volunteering
Traci serves as Vice President of Community and Volunteering for JCI Santa Clarita. In 2018 she was the Vice President of Public Relations for JCI Santa Clarita. She was also Co-Chair of 2018 SCV 40 Under Forty. In 2017 she was Marketing Manager for JCI Santa Clarita. Traci has a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from California State University, Northridge. She also as an MBA from Colorado State University with a certificate in Marketing Management.
Chelsea Orzechowski
Vice President of Government & External Affairs
Chelsea Orzechowski has extensive hospitality experience from her time with Celebrity Cruises LTD and Hilton Worldwide. She is currently the Communication and Community Outreach Manager for HPLE, Inc. Engaging and connecting with a client’s target audience is her specialty. Chelsea has a Bachelors of Science Degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Stanislaus and graduated Cum Laude. In November of 2018, Chelsea married her best friend and love of her life, Piotr (Peter). In her free time, Chelsea enjoys supporting her community through volunteerism, following local, state, and national news, (which makes her a perfect fit for our VP of Government & External Affairs), and creating a warm environment at her apartment that her family can enjoy. Chelsea is endearingly referred to as the “House Commander” by her loving Husband.
Alexander Hafizi
Vice President of Marketing & Communications
Alexander Hafizi is a happy go lucky guy. He is the Associate Publisher of Santa Clarita Magazine & élite Magazine Interactive Media. He has done tons of non-profit work for tons of events here in the SCV; American Heart Association’s Heart Chase, SCV Senior Center’s Golf Tournament, HandsOn’s 9/11 Tribute, WiSH Education Foundation’s Cocktails on the Roof and Wine on the Roof, FeedSCV’s Chef Auction or more. He has also co-chaired SCV Dancing with Our Stars which has raised 1.7 million dollars for local non-profits. He also serves on the board of Circle of Hope as the Vice President. He has helped Circle of Hope with all their major events such as Bowling for Hope, Vine 2 Wine, Afternoon Tea and now the new event Hoedown for Hope. He has also co-chaired SCV Forty Under Forty in 2017 and helped with Santa’s Helpers. And is excited to serve as the Vice President of Marketing and Communications this year.
Daniela Echaiz
Director of Social Media Marketing
Daniela Echaiz, a Santa Clarita resident for the past 26 years, has been with JCI Santa Clarita for almost one year. She is a Human Resources Professional with over 13 years experience. Having worked for Princess Cruises, she is well-versed in local, state, federal, international and maritime laws. Daniela currently works for ModernHR, Inc. – one of the largest, oldest, privately-held HR Outsourcing and PEO firms in the nation – based in Burbank, California. She attained her Master’s in Public Administration with emphasis on Leadership and Management from California State University of Northridge. Her favorite project and memory thus far with the Jaycees is having successfully co-chaired in 2018 Santa’s Helpers. In her free time, Daniela enjoys hiking outdoors, spending time by the coast, dancing, Zumba, and traveling.
Koren Young
Director of Video Marketing
Koren Young grew up in Santa Clarita, participating in extracurricular activities like sports, music lessons, and Boy Scouts. As a junior at Valencia High School, Koren was elected as an officer of the associated student body. He learned that he enjoyed school much more as an active contributor. Koren studied Radio, Television & Film at College of the Canyons before earning his bachelor degree in Cinema & Television Arts from Cal. State Northridge. He has worked on hundreds of titles for every major film studio in Hollywood and now runs Arcay Studios in Santa Clarita. Koren continues to support his community and takes great pride in his volunteerism. He worked for Safe Rides for 11 years and serves on the advisory committee for the Media Entertainment Arts departments at College of the Canyons and the Wm. S. Hart High School District. Koren is serving his second term on the board of JCI Santa Clarita as the Director of Video Marketing.
T.J. Ward
Vice President of Training & Development
TJ Ward is currently a Marketing Coordinator for Princess Cruises. A Midwest transplant with a B.S. in Marketing from Northern Illinois University, she and her family have resided in Santa Clarita since 2008 (with a slight detour to Switzerland and back). After several years as a stay-at-home-mom, she recently re-entered the professional world and felt drawn to the role of Training & Development. In her free time, TJ enjoys CrossFit, wine tasting and traveling.
Rebecca Kellstrom
Secretary
Rebecca Kellstrom is born and raised in Santa Clarita. Rebecca is also a West Ranch High school graduate. Becca is a dance teacher at Center State Dance Academy. Rebecca began teaching tumbling, cheer, and acrobatic classes at 16 years old. She has also been the head coach of Junior High and High School cheer teams for the past 4 years. Rebecca is also a business owner and estheticianist with her business ” Lashes by Becca.” With her spare time, Rebecca and her husband Taylor serve as ambassadors for Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.
Tom Iland
Treasurer
Thomas Iland is a Distinguished Toastmaster, and is a professional speaker and coach specializing in speeches, trainings and workshops that educate, inspire and motivate people impacted by autism and other unique needs. He is the co-author of the best-selling, award-winning book, “Come to Life! Your Guide to Self-Discovery.” To work with Thomas, please visit www.thomasiland.com
Joe Bealer
Community Manager
Joe is employed by Logix Federal Credit Union in Burbank, CA as a Financial Analyst. He recently graduated from California Lutheran University with a MS in Quantitative Economics. Joe brings over five years of experience within the non-profit sector, as he currently sits on the Board of Directors for Strong Villages and has supported the Lucy Pet Foundation, Kids in Action Network and Diamond Gems. Thus far, Joe has co-chaired Random Acts of Kindness in 2019, and is assisting as part of the Santa’s Helpers Committee in 2019.
