The Nominating Committee is pleased to forward five candidate statements for the three vacant positions for this year’s Board of Trustees election.  The biographies are in alphabetical order by first name.

Thanks,

Diane Foucher

Nominating Committee Chair

Robert (Bob) McGowan

 I am a 50+ year resident of the Indian Wells Valley (IWV) where as a child I attended local schools and eventually started a career at the Naval Air Warfare Center, China Lake. I worked for 37 years in Information Technology, supervision, and management before retiring a little over 5 years ago. I currently volunteer with several non-profits in the IWV and I have been a regular volunteer at the Maturango Museum since 2016. In 2021 I was asked to serve on the Board of Trustees to fill in for a member who left unexpectedly. In addition to being a member of the Board of Trustees, I have held the positions of Vice President and President during my tenure.

   The museum has a great team of staff, docents, and volunteers who give countless hours to the betterment of the organization. Over the years, I have had the pleasure of helping them with many different projects including construction of new displays, installing new air conditioning units on the annex building, performing building maintenance, and working in the garden. The Maturango Museum has a wonderful legacy within the community and I would like to be part of the leadership team to continue building on the great things that have been accomplished since the museum’s inception in 1962.

Dan Burnett

   Dan Burnett was born and raised in Los Angeles area. He graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a degree in Political Science followed by graduate work in Business Administration at Cal State and USC. He worked as a civil service employee in several administrative positions for the US Army and the Navy. After retiring from the Naval Weapons Center he somehow ended up working as a field biologist with DUDEK and a few other firms.

   A member of the Maturango Museum since the early 1970s, Dan has been actively involved as a volunteer since 1984 and is presently the Vice president of the Board of Trustees. A fairly good birder and an avid reader he uses spare time to camp and serves on the boards of the Ridgecrest Chamber Music Society and the Kerncrest Audubon Society.

Mick Benton 

I was born in Ridgecrest in 1954 and attended grade school and high school here as well. During my younger years, we spent much of our free time as a family in the nearby outdoors, including camping, hiking, and backpacking in the Sierras. I went on to earn a BS degree in Physics at UCSB, and later in my career an MBA degree from UCLA. The first 10 years of my career were spent at National Semiconductor Corp in Santa Clara/Silicon Valley. I then had an opportunity to move back to the Ridgecrest area and worked an additional 31 years at NAWC China Lake, primarily as a system engineer, but also held branch head and team lead positions, including a 2-year assignment as a science advisor to the Surface Navy in Washington DC. All of the positions had their challenges but I enjoyed them very much. I finally called it quits and retired in 2019 after a total of 41 years of employment.

   Retirement has been enjoyable as well, and I have spent much of it finishing all those homeowner projects I put off until I retired. When I heard the Maturango Museum was looking for tour guides a few years ago, I took the required petroglyph training and first aid classes and became an associate tour guide for visitor trips to Little Petroglyph Canyon on the Navy’s north ranges. After helping with a few petroglyph tours, the COVID pandemic arrived and caused the Navy to put a hold on those trips, but I am hopeful they can be resumed soon. While the Navy holds those cards, I would like to do whatever I can as a museum trustee to help facilitate their return. In closing, I believe I have the skills and maturity necessary to be a member of the museum board. I am also easy to work with, get along well with others, and am interested in helping set the future direction for the museum. 

Patty Wharton

I moved to the valley in 1967 and have lived here since. I earned an AS, in electronics technology, from Cerro Coso, before completing my BS in management with Emery Riddle. I started my career in electronics at Texas Instruments in 1969 and moved to civil service 1995, when TI closed its doors. AT NAWC, I was a member of the Electronic Warfare Team on the F18 program until retirement in 2012.

I have always loved the history of the valley and how it has evolved over time. My interests include the wildflowers of our area, the mountains/hiking, and backpacking. I have always loved visiting the museum and enjoy the exhibits. I believe the museum continues to improve with more exhibits and activities to be shared with the public.

I am an active member of the Rotary Club of China Lake and served as President from 2012-2013, and went on to serve as Assistant Governor after. I have also served as the Rotary Interact Director, of the BHS Interact Club, our local youth Rotary, as well as other director positions.

I love being able to give back to our community, and I believe serving on the Museum Board is another way to highlight/serve our community and its history.

 

Ted Fiske

   I have deep roots in the Indian Wells Valley having arrived to work on the base in the summer of 1981.  I was a Contracting Officer in the Procurement Department until I retired in 2010.  Since then I’ve worked as a contractor primarily with acquisition support for the F/A-18 Program.

   Besides working on the base, I have been involved with the Music team at the Methodist Church and previously with local theater.  I’ve always enjoyed living in the desert and found it a good break from the hectic city life. I would like to support the Maturango Museum in sharing our unique desert environment with its members and visitors.

   I have a daughter and her family in Logan, UT, and sisters in Southern California as well as nephews and nieces scattered around.