About

Board Members

Homer Council on the Arts Board of Directors:

Diane Borgman, President/Chair - 6 years of service

Diane is a retired teacher and school administrator with thirty-four years in public education. She has taught from kindergarten through college levels. Before moving to Alaska in 1970, Diane taught in California for seven years. After arriving in Alaska, she taught in rural village schools for thirteen years before moving to Homer and opening McNeil Canyon Elementary School in 1983. She has a BA degree from University of California, San Jose and MA degree from UAA, Anchorage. Diane holds lifetime teaching certificates in both California and Alaska. In 1991, she received the "National Distinguished Elementary Principal of the Year Award" for Alaska. She serves on the Board of Directors for Homer Council on the Arts, the Homer Chamber of Commerce and the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Diane has also served as President for the Alaska State Writing Consortium, President of the Alaska Arts Education Consortium, a member of the Alaska Arts in Education, the Alaska Association of Elementary School Principals. She is currently a small business owner of Homer Ocean Charters. Diane is a Mother of two and in her spare time loves to read, travel and volunteer for community service. She is a true advocate for the arts in Alaska.

Kathy Pate, Vice President - 18 years of service

Kathy Pate is a life long Alaskan, born and raised in Fairbanks. She has been involved with HCOA for eighteen years, serving as a board member, volunteer and major donor. Kathy participated in the local dance community for twenty years and has served on the Homer High School PTA and Site Council, additionally volunteering for the Kachemak Swim Club and Homer High School Booster Club. She enjoys gardening, biking, kayaking, and cooking. With her husband, Mike, she has raised three children in Homer.

Lynn Spence, member - 4 years of service

For the past 17 years, Lynn has served as the Bookkeeper at Jay-Brant General Contractors. Previously, she was the office manager at Neal & Company, a travel agent, the Director for Hospice of Homer and the Community Schools Coordinator in Homer and Anchor Point. Lynn is married to Hal Spence, who is a writer and musician. They have one daughter, Kate, who is a performer, musician, swimmer and student. Since moving to Homer, Lynn says that volunteering has been a social activity and a great way to stay connected with the community.

Cindy Nelson - 1 year of service

Cindy was born and raised in Bellevue Washington and went to college at Pacific Lutheran University, where she received a Bachelors degree in Medicine at the University of Washington in 1987. After visiting Alaska with a friend in 2002, Cindy made a bold decision to pack up and move to Alaska to follow her dream. The art community welcomed her with open arms. Cindy says that becoming a board member at HCOA was one way that she could give back to the local art community. Cindy's biggest accomplishments at HCOA were reinstating and enhancing the "Sustainable Homer Street Faire." As an accomplished artist, she sells her work at Ptarmigan Arts on Pioneer Ave. She divides her artistic talent between glass mosaic, fused glass and beaded jewelry. She also works part-time as a Medical Technologist at the South Peninsula Hospital.

Claudia DeLapp - Secretary

Born on Long Island, later living in Maryland, Claudia was in close proximity to New York City and Washington D.C. Early on, Claudia developed a love for the arts, which she experienced mostly in a passive way. She moved West and North until landing in Alaska. Claudia spent 20-years teaching in the rural Alaska, and one of her highlights each year was the visiting artist provided through the "Artist in the Schools Program." She spent the summers in Port Townsend, Washington until buying a house in Homer where her and her husband started a B&B. After retiring, Claudia became a resident and now gets to experience the richness of the arts all year long here in Homer.

Jessica Tenoff - New board member

For the past 15 years, Jess has been the sole proprietor of Nomad Shelter, Inc. and for the past 7 years, the owner of Alaska Yurts LLC and Alaska Yurt Rentals LLC. Her expertise lies in sales, small business development, office management and fabric manufacturing. Jess studied community organizing in Denmark and the US. She taught secondary education in Alaska, and in Nome at the Alternative High school. She has also taught swimming at the public school in Nome. Jess home-schooled her boys and is very grateful to the arts community whom has given their time and talents to her kids. She has also made and marketed trapper hats, she enjoys fiber art, spinning, weaving and knitting. Jess also likes to cook, camp and hang out with her kids. She moved to Homer because her boys were into the arts and she felt that this community was supportive of arts education. It has been a positive move as they all have developed in both performance and visual arts, and will carry that with them throughout their lives. She has a BA in community organizing for development. Jess attended Springfield College, Springfield MA, and has some secondary education through the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Jonathan Coke - New board member

Jonathan Coke came to Homer from Indiana in 2004 as development director for KBBI. He has worked in non-profit public radio for 15 years and is an active member of the Public Radio Association of Development Officers. Jonathan is also a part-time student, pursuing a degree in business administration through University of Alaska Southeast. His hobby interests include guitar, swimming, astronomy, and Internet technology.

Ben Park - Treasurer

Ben Park served in a leadership position in marketing, engineering and program management for McDonnell Douglas/Boeing for 30 years. Most recently, he served as the CEO for Alaska Performance Excellence Program (APEX), a division of UAA's Small Business Development Center. He has also served as a Baldridge National Examiner. Ben spent 6 years with the US Air Force and 16 years with the Missouri Air National Guard. He has an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.