September 4, 2024 Meeting Notice

Candidate for Office of President, Sweetwater Valley Civic Association

Judy Tieber

Dear SVCA Members:
For those of you who don’t know me, I moved to Bonita in 1977. I-805 was under construction, and Bonita was this lovely little village within commuting distance to my management job at UCSD Medical Center/Campus. I rode my horses on our then quiet trails for well over 30 years. Along with my husband Tony, I was the operating partner in a partnership (we put together) to buy the property, build and operate Mt. Miguel Equestrian Center here in Bonita for 33 years until 2017. My notebook of best practices/policy and procedure were foundational to the County in developing the new equine ordinance that went into effect in 2014. I still board my two mares at Mt. Miguel, and I am thrilled that my granddaughter also rides our trails and shows her horse.

I joined SVCA in 2013, and I have been active since 2014 serving six years as secretary and three years as president. As your current president, I am proud of our accomplishments over these past years. Most especially for increasing our 2024-25 membership with 27 new members. Since assuming the role of president, we have increased membership from 68 to 101, a 48.5% increase. In conjunction with our Treasurer, I wrote the request and made the case for two awarded County Neighborhood Reinvestment Grants which allowed us to both get our name “out there” in the community, support our three elementary schools with an art contest, and support our local small businesses at the same time. These grants also gave us the opportunity to build and save our financial assets and make some interest income. We also received a substantial gift from SARPA, a community association that worked to make our water rates fair and just.

We’ve worked hard to bring the association back from the brink of the Covid 19 disaster where we had to suspend meetings in person and go to Zoom. While that worked, we lost membership and the personal interaction with each other that I think gives us the opportunity to work together in an environment full of positive energy. This year marks our 75th anniversary as an organization. This is an amazing accomplishment, and one we should embrace and celebrate. With your help and input, I think we can pull that off with gusto and fun.

Our Bonita community has changed tremendously over the years. We went from kids who rode their horses to the Sunnyside Saddle Club arena for a day of friendly competition to kids/families driving to our new bike park and the Little League Fields. We have been inundated with disrespectful commuter traffic due to failed policy surrounding the toll road. More than ever, I feel strongly that we must work with elected officials and law enforcement to manage these changes. Safety is important.

I ask for your vote to allow me to lead this organization for the next 10 months as we work to make Bonita a great place to live for all of us, regardless of where we are in life’s journey.

Thanks for your consideration, Judy

Tony Tieber Candidate Statement for Office of Vice President, SVCA

The SVCA VP position is one for which I am well qualified, having held this position for three years when Mike Seiler was president of the SVCA. More recently, I served as Secretary of the SVCA for three years. As the VP I was instrumental in preparing the Request for Proposal (RFP) package used for the selection of a new Web Master/Web Site. This package included the Statement of Work (SOW) and all evaluation criteria. I then prepared the evaluation worksheets and all other documentation for the board and made a recommendation for selection. I was also the principal author for a request to the County for a neighborhood grant which the SVCA received.

As secretary of the SVCA my goal was to give each person who spoke at a SVCA meeting recognition in the minutes to demonstrate that each person’s comments were important. This secretarial task took 12-15 hours per month and involved obtaining handwritten reports and emails from both members and meeting representatives. This included getting the Crime map from the Sheriff’s representative and various monthly reports from State representatives. During my tenure as secretary, the SVCA received two neighborhood grants, the first of which I was the principal author. This grant request to the County required inputs from other board members especially the treasurer and the grant has been completed and the necessary reports filed with the County.

From a personal perspective, I have lived in Bonita for 47 years. I am a member of the Bonita Optimists and served on their board of directors for 2 years. I am a member of the Bonita Museum and was the operating partner of Mount Miguel Equestrian Center on Jonel Way for 33 years. I am an avid supporter of Sunnyside Saddle club and have spent hours helping maintain their facilities and staffing their Snack Shack.

My passion is and always has been to help make Bonita/Sunnyside the best place to live in the County for everyone, especially the children, who are our future, and who need safe avenues to school and to other venues such as the Bike Park. I was excited by the recent SVCA Art Contest and took pleasure in delivering the art supplies to the three schools in Bonita/Sunnyside and picking up the drawings once they were completed and then posting pictures of the drawings to the SVCA web site so people could vote for the best art. I promise to execute the functionality of the VP position to the best of my ability. This is the SVCA’s 75th year in existence. I celebrate the SVCA success!

STEPHEN STONEHOUSE, TREASURER, SVCA

I HAVE BEEN TREASURER FOR MANY YEARS. I AM ALSO CO-CHAIR OF THE SWEETWATER COMMUNITY PLANNING GROUP. I HAVE A DEGREE IN BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND HAVE ALWAYS BEEN INTERESTED IN ACCOUNTING. PRIOR TO RETIRING, I WAS OFFICE MANAGER OF A SMALL CUSTOMS BROKERAGE FIRM AND 1/3 PARTNER IN A BONDED WAREHOUSE IN SAN DIEGO, CA. MARRIED AND HAVE LIVED IN BONITA FOR OVER 30 YEARS.

President – Susan Heavilin

I have worn many hats in my lifetime. . . educator, entrepreneur, inventor,writer and artist . . . each fitting into a specific time period of my journey. Ilucked into this amazing area—that I didn’t even know existed—when Imoved my horse to beautiful Bonita. I fell in love with its rural character onthat very day and my love for this little piece of Heaven has only intensified.It was like moving back in time to my childhood home, again with horses,dogs, chickens, honey bees and spacious surroundings.

Bonita has one hundred miles of trails to ride or walk and nearby mountainsto climb right outside our door. The trails, the flowers, the panoramic viewof the reservoir, the native landscape and pockets of beauty capture thatcountry feeling. I received my first horse at twelve years of age and am stillan active equestrian. I was President of Bonita Valley Horsemen for severalyears and am presently Vice President of Bonita Valley Garden Club,encouraging membership and publishing an annual roster/yearbook. I alsowrite an online newspaper for the area named Sunnyside Common Sense(sunnysidecommonsense.com).

I want to ensure we keep our rural landscape and rustic countryside forfuture generations to enjoy. I believe that most of us moved to this area forthat relaxed environment. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting many newpeople over the past few months as we have been circulating a petition topreserve Bonita-Sunnyside and its rural flavor. I have discovered thatpeople don’t really know their neighbors as much as they used to. AsPresident of Sweetwater Valley Civic Association, I plan to host activities tobring the community together and create an environment where neighborsmeet-neighbors and network together in a positive manner. Workingtogether, I believe we can accomplish that and more!

Treasurer – Luis De La Rosa

I have been in the area since 1985 and even back then I knew I wanted tostay right here in Bonita. I am happily married with three kids and havebeen living in Bonita since 2018.

I obtained a degree in aerospace engineering at UCSD and worked forNational Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at Jet PropulsionLaboratory and Navy Facilities Southwest Engineering. During that time, Idesigned countless facilities. More importantly, I had to manage thebudgets of all those construction projects. I love this area so to helppreserve it, I know I must get involved. So, I am here to chip in!