The April 16th Guest Speaker will be

Delegate Amanda Batten

The March 16, 2023 Guest Speaker was

Michael Lavin - Director of Collections and Conservation at Jamestown Rediscovery

The February 16th Speakers were WJCC Board of Education Candidates for the Stonehouse & Roberts Districts

and Cameron Boone, Candidate for Commissioner of the Revenue for JCC

Mike Hosang - Candidate for BOE - Stonehouse District

In Mike Hosang's discussion with the luncheon group he said that parent should have input into the teaching of their children and that includes what text books are chosen, when that occurs, and that the BOE should be willing to listen to the voices of the parents and voters. Merely listening and not responding to parents and voters he does not believe is responsible management of the school district. He discussed the issues surrounding the CRT and SEL (social emotional learning) in WJCC. He gave some personal examples of issues he has faced with the BOE and administration. He has been active for a few years and has many ideas for ways to better manage community input.

BIO INFO - Mike Hosang is running for the WJCC School Board, Stonehouse District.  He is a transplant from Northern Ohio having settled down in Williamsburg in 2000 to start his family after leaving active duty.  Mike stayed in the reserves and retired in August, 2020 as a Lieutenant Colonel after 27 years in the Army.  He served for a year in Afghanistan as the Deputy Commander, Legal Command/Officer in Charge, Detainee Review Boards, CJIATF 435 and three years as a prosecutor with the Military Commissions prosecuting detainees in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.  He is currently an Associate General Counsel with the DOJ, US Marshals Service, mainly representing the Agency in labor disputes in administrative and federal courts, after spending over 17 years with the Department of Defense in the same capacity.  

Mike started attending school board meetings over two years ago when schools were forcing the students into virtual learning and wearing masks.  He has spoken on various topics at the school board meetings including the school board duty to make their own determination regarding masks and in-person learning and not blindly following the governor or health commissioner, the school system's teaching/use of CRT/SEL in the classrooms, inappropriate purchasing of textbooks, pornographic materials in the school libraries, and the inappropriate display of a gay pride flag in a high school history classroom.   Mike wants to bring power back to the parents (ie, having parents opt-in and not have to opt-out of certain activities/assignments); value back to the voter (giving a voice to the voter, even if they do not have a child in the school system anymore, contrary to recent school board comments), and accountability of the school board itself for its actions/inactions (removal of superintendent for lying to school board regarding CRT/SEL; removal of books from school libraries.)  

Mike is married and has two daughters who have both gone through/are still going through the WJCC school system.  His oldest daughter is a sophomore at W&M and was recently elected as the President of the College Republicans on campus.  His youngest daughter is a junior at Warhill High School.  Both daughters compete in Irish dancing and play the harp.  Mike's wife is a stay-at- home mom and works hard at keeping everything moving along peacefully.

Daniel R Cavazos, M.D. - Lt. Col. (Ret.) USAF - Roberts District

In Dr. Cavazos discussion with the CARMA luncheon group he explained that he wants to be a part of the BOE, so he may participate in the process that educates future American leaders. He believes that students should have a moral compass, be taught honesty, be taught civics, be taught the rule of law, and what it means to become a responsible citizen. He believes that students should be taught about critical thinking. That it is necessary to be literate by the 4th grade, and to be mathematically competant by the 8th grade. He believes that students have a right to be safe, and to have the tools necessary for learning. He believes that students should be treated as individuals and respected for their individual talents.

BIO INFO - I was born and raised in San Antonio TX. After graduating from Central Catholic High School in 1971, I attended the University of Texas, Austin for one year when I was drafted into the US Army. I completed my obligated tour of duty which included graduating from the Officer Candidate School and serving in the US Army Reserves while I completed my Bachelor of Arts Degree at the University of Texas.

I earned my Doctorate of Medicine from the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD and completed my Medical Internship at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

I completed my Orthopedic Surgery Residency Training Program at the University of Connecticut Health Sciences and began an obligated tour of duty with the United States Air Force. Our tours to Madrid, Spain and Bitburg, Germany were the highlights of our military service. A six-week Military Medical Mission to Nagier, Africa truly was a humbling experience.

My wife, Diane of 37 years and six children have extended our family with 12 grandchildren. I have been in private practice with Hampton Roads Orthopaedics Spine and Sports Medicine for the past 25 years.  

Cameron Boone - Commissioner of the Revenue - JCC

In his discussion with the luncheon group, Cameron Boone explained his role as Chief deputy Treasurer and the importance that the various departments in JCC work together as efficiently as possible. He mentioned how updates to processes and software are pretty common as state laws change and how local entities are required to collect and identify funds. He said he understands the importance of being citizen facing for customer service and would work to improve those services while making them more efficient for the county. He takes very seriously the stewardship of all the monies and funds. He said that JCC has over 100M invested at this time.

BIO INFO - I was born and raised in Suffolk, VA and moved to Williamsburg in 2008 to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Government at the College of William and Mary. After completing my education, my professional career began at a local community bank, quickly working my way up from Teller to Branch Manager. While I enjoyed my work, pride in my community and a desire to put my talents to work for the betterment of my hometown, led me to pursue a career in public service. When the opportunity to serve my fellow citizens in a public setting as the Chief Deputy Treasurer for James City County was presented, I jumped at the chance. 

I met my wife Lauren, a lifelong resident of James City County shortly after graduating from W&M. Lauren’s passion for public service led her to become a mathematics teacher at Warhill High School until the birth of our first child, Stephen. Lauren and I both enjoy serving and investing in our local community through our vocations and volunteerism to ensure James City County will continue to be an excellent place to live and work for all residents. We are active in our local church, and I am currently leading a weekly Bible study at Merrimac Juvenile Detention Center.

I am seeking the office of Commissioner of the Revenue to affect an increase in office efficiency and cohesiveness with all James City County departments and the citizens they serve, to modernize the office to match realities of the 21st century, and to ensure that customer service is the paramount mission of the office. My blended experience of private sector management and understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the Treasurer’s Office (the office that works most closely with the Commissioner of the Revenue’s Office) will be a beneficial change for James City County. 
   

The January 19, 2023 Speaker Was

David Hardin, Sheriff - Williamsburg, James City County

David Hardin was elected sheriff just before the Covid-19 pandemic started in 2020. He now has over 28 years working in the sheriff's office for W-JCC. He spoke about how 2020 and 2021 were unique years because of the pandemic, and how the department had to re-invent almost everything they did on a daily basis. While separate, they have tried to align themselves with the salary ranges associated with the competition: competition which is now paying over $18 per hour for clerical staff and fast food workers. His department is still below local police salaries. When fully staffed he would have 17 officers. Currently, he is one full time and two part time staff short. The full time position has been vacant for a year. They handle all of the courthouse administration regarding prisoners and security. They also are responsible for transportation of the prisoners.

He provided a small personal bio of himself, and what many of his officers have as their bios. His officers see a steady court schedule, almost everyday of the week, and arrests for a very wide variety of misdemeanors and felonies. He also went into some significant discussion about the high number of scams which are being reported, even including scam calls that are coming directly into the Sheriff's office telephones and computers. A popular one which he discussed is the "family member in trouble, in jail, and needs bail money." Typically this is targeted at father's and grandfathers. We also discussed the online dating scam where the person only met online needs money. We then discussed the Netflix scam which is coming by way of Text messages, and requesting eventually your credit card information. These are all bad, and very few are resolved since calling numbers and emails are nearly impossible to trace, as they are shut down very quickly.

David is running for re-election this November, and thanked all the CARMA members for their support in the past, and for any help they can give this year.

02/17/23