News Releases
Office of Governor Gary Locke
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 24, 1997
Contact:  Governor's Communications Office, 360-902-4136

Governor announces selections for boards, commissions

OLYMPIA - Gov. Gary Locke today announced a series of appointments to state boards and commissions. Most of the state panels that were the focus of this round of appointments deal with housing and public employee issues.


Locke appointed Howard Jorgenson to the Personnel Appeals Board. Jorgenson, who was president of the Washington Federation of State Employees for 25 years, is a member of the Medical Lake City Council and served on a judicial panel of a national public employee union. He served in the U.S. Air Force from 1958 until 1962 and will replace Charles Alexander on the board. Jorgenson starts today at an annual salary of $66,803.


Locke also announced his choices for a number of unsalaried positions.


Gene Lux, a former Seattle-area legislator and deputy insurance commissioner, was re-appointed to the Public Employees Benefits Board.


Gregory Chan was appointed to the Governor's Affirmative Action Policy Committee, filling a vacant position. Chan is a Central Washington University professor who has served on the Commission on Asian-Pacific American Affairs.


Lawrence Kowbel, a bank executive from Seattle, was appointed to a vacant position on the Affordable Housing Advisory Board and also was named chairman. Five members of the panel were re-appointed. They are:


-Carl Strode, a Pasco city councilman and realtor;

-Phoebe Nelson, director of the Yakima County Coalition for the Homeless and former president of the Governor's Advisory Council on the Homeless;

-Jan Sams, an executive for a Tacoma apartment management company;

-Carla Okigwe, director of the Seattle-King County Housing Development Consortium, an association of non-profit housing developers; and

-Byron Vadset, owner of a Seattle-area remodeling business and former president of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties.

Randy Shaw, a disabled veteran who founded the Homeless Empowerment and Lodging Project in Olympia, and Kenneth Trent, president of Volunteers of America Spokane, were both re-appointed to the State Advisory Council on Homelessness.


Jerry Galm, an anthropology professor at Eastern Washington University, was appointed to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, replacing William Andrefsky.


Jay Rhodes was appointed to the Hanford Area Economic Investment Fund Committee. A former president of the Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council, Rhodes replaces James Watts, whose term expired.


Morris Uebelacker, a geography professor at Central Washington University, was re-appointed to the Kittitas County Boundary Review Board.


Mary Pugh, President of a Seattle financial management company and former Washington Mutual executive, was appointed to a vacant position on the Securities Advisory Committee.



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