The Coastal Housing Partnership Board of Directors has announced its officers for 2016-17: Beth Sparkes, president; Kelly Marsh, vice president; Elena Mund, chief financial officer and Susan Rodriguez, secretary.

As vice president of human resources at the Towbes Group, Sparkes is responsible for the direction of all benefits, compensation, recruitment, payroll, policies and procedures, worker’s compensation, employee relations, and training programs.

She is active in the Santa Barbara Human Resources Association and the Executive Summit division for top-level human resources executives throughout Santa Barbara.

Marsh has over 19 years experience in the mortgage industry. Her business philosophy includes providing the finest customer service. Marsh was listed in Mortgage Professional Magazine 2016 as one of the 100 Most Inspiring Women in the Mortgage Industry.

Rodriguez has worked in the local insurance industry since 1979. As a principal and president of MFC&V Insurance, she led the transition to Brown & Brown in 2003 and was head of office for almost 10 years. She is active on several nonprofit boards.

Today, Rodriguez concentrates on servicing her clients, looking for new business opportunities, and educating the next generation of insurance professionals.
 
Mund is a Certified Public Accountant with Nasif, Hicks, Harris & Co., LLP. Mund provides tax planning, tax preparation services, and business consulting to a variety of clients including individuals, corporations and partnerships, with a focus on international tax issues.

Prior to moving to Santa Barbara, she grew up living and traveling in Europe, the Middle East and South America, which sparked her interest in working with multinational families and businesses in Santa Barbara.

Corby Gage, Coastal Housing Partnership executive director, said: “We are so pleased to have Beth Sparkes serve as president of the Coastal Housing Partnership Board of Directors.

“As a human resources professional, she understands first-hand the challenges of recruiting and retaining valued employees in our region’s high-priced housing market. And she appreciates the value of being able to offer Coastal Housing Partnership benefits to her employees,” Gage said.

Coastal Housing Partnership opened its doors 30 years ago in response to the high cost of housing in the region and the resultant challenges employers faced recruiting and retaining employees. This nonprofit organization, was founded by a group of South Coast employers to develop solutions to these challenges. Coastal Housing Partnership provides home-buying education, home-buying savings, mortgage refinance savings and rental savings to employees of member companies. Since 1987, Coastal Housing Partnership has helped more than 10,000 local employees become homeowners. Visit www.coastalhousing.org.

— Corby Gage for Coastal Housing Partnership.