Board of Directors
2019-2020 Board of Directors
CAPIO’s Board of Directors is elected by the membership each spring. Board terms are two years, with approximately half of the positions rotating each year according to the schedule outlined in our bylaws. All CAPIO members in good standing are eligible to serve on—and vote for—the CAPIO Board.
Amy E. Williams
President
With nearly 20 years of media and communications experience in the public and private sectors, Amy Williams has vast experience working in all levels of local government communications. She has developed, implemented, and managed complex communication plans and media strategies, including the negotiations and development of a downtown arena, labor relations, budget process, and emergency operations. Amy has also provided media counseling and coaching to City executives, Councilmembers, and managers.
City of Sacramento
915 I Street, Fifth Floor
Sacramanto, CA 95814
Maurice Chaney
President Elect
Maurice Chaney is a strategic communications professional with more than 15 years of combined experience in both the public and private sectors. In his current role as Public Information Officer for the City of Roseville, Maurice manages public relations, marketing, and outreach for Environmental Utilities—a suite of community-owned utilities for a community of 130,000.
Christine Brainerd, APR
Past President
Christine Brainerd is a seasoned communications professional with nearly 20 years of experience in public information, public relations, and journalism.
Christine joined the City of Folsom as Communications Manager in January 2015 and was promoted to Communications Director in 2019. She is responsible for managing a comprehensive communications program, including news media relations, public information, community relations, and advertising.
City of Folsom
50 Natoma Street
Folsom, CA 95630
Krista Noonan
Treasurer
Krista Noonan has more than 20 years of experience in the public relations, communications and marketing industries. She is currently the Director of Communications for the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), the largest educator‐only pension fund in the world. In her position, she is responsible for state, national, and international strategic communications, media relations, internal communications, and multimedia efforts for the second largest pension fund in the U.S., serving over 850,000 members.
California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS)
100 Waterfront Place
West Sacramento, CA 95605
Tom Christensen
Vice President – Conference
Tom Christensen has been a communications specialist with the County of San Diego since 2006. He coordinates and monitors nearly 100 accounts as part of the County’s nationally-recognized social media efforts and writes stories for CountyNewsCenter.com. He was part of the team that won the 2018 CAPIO Frank Potter Cowan Crisis Communications Leader Team Award and has worked on crisis communications during several wildfires, a county-wide blackout and an outbreak of hepatitis A.
County of San Diego
1600 Pacific Highway
San Diego, CA 92101
Angela Lowery
Vice President - Awards
Angela Lowrey has thirty years’ experience in marketing communications, media relations, and community engagement on three continents. Angela is currently the Public Information Manager at Delta Diablo, a wastewater resource recovery operation in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta region. Delta Diablo meets increasing regulatory challenges, embraces innovation while respecting the environment, reduces waste while capitalizing on resources, and protects ratepayers.
Delta Diablo
2500 Pittsburg-Antioch Hwy
Antioch, CA 94509
Sarah Macdonald
Communications Chair
As Director of Strategic Communications for Western Municipal Water District, Sarah serves a dynamic organization that directly impacts the quality of life for customers and the region. She is proud to be a part of an innovative, results-driven team with a vision of being the definitive leader in water and sewer services, upholding the highest level of stakeholder trust while delivering a best-in-class customer experience.
Western Municipal Water District
14205 Meridian Parkway
Riverside, CA 92518
Office: 951.571.7211
Rachel McGuire, APR
Education and Development Chair
With more than 15 years of professional experience developing comprehensive, strategic public relations programs rooted in ethics, transparency, and effectiveness, Rachel McGuire, APR, is a nationally recognized, award-winning leader in the fields of communications and public relations.
Highlights of Rachel’s work include innovative community and stakeholder engagement; media relations; brand management; website, social media, and video development; strategic planning; customer surveying; and emergency/crisis communications.
RMG Communications
4150 Chicago Ave
PO Box 56787
Riverside, CA 92507
Pam Allen
Membership Chair - Northern CA
Pam Allen is a marketing and communications professional with nearly 20 years of experience in the public and private sectors. She has worked at the City of Roseville managing communications and marketing for Parks, Recreation & Libraries for more than a decade.
Pam’s focus in Roseville includes media relations, marketing plan development/implementation, community relations, strategic planning, public engagement, internal and external communications, and brand management.
City of Roseville
316 Vernon Street
Roseville, CA 95678
Nicole Coleman
Website Chair
Nicole Coleman is a strategic communications professional with more than 15 years experience working in public affairs and community outreach.
Nicole serves as the Public Affairs Manager for the Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District (Regional San) and the Sacramento Area Sewer District (SASD). In this role, she is responsible for managing communications, media relations, stakeholder awareness, community engagement, advertising, and social media for both Regional San and SASD.
Sacramento Area Sewer District and Regional San
10060 Goethe Road
Sacramento, CA 95827
Christina Byrne
Social Media Chair
Christina Byrne is the Public Outreach Department Manager at the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) and recently served as the 2019 CAPIO Conference Publicity Co-Chair. Christina previously served on the CAPIO Conference Awards Committee and has presented at several previous CAPIO conferences on a variety of topics.
Orange County Transportation Authority
550 S. Main Street
Orange, CA 92863
Office: 714.560.5717
Kathie Martin
Membership Chair – Southern CA
Kathie Martin is the Public Information Officer for the Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency, a position she took in December 2017. She oversees media relations, communications, and outreach for a variety of internal and external stakeholders.
Santa Clarita Valley Water
26521 Summit Circle
Santa Clarita, CA 91350
Rhea Salvador
Northern CA Director-at-Large
Rhea Salvador is a vibrant communications professional with nearly 20 years of experience in public information, strategic communications, public affairs, and media relations.
Rhea has worked for the City of Sacramento for more than a decade and is responsible for managing a comprehensive communications program, including news media relations, public information, community relations, and strategic communications.
City of Sacramento
915 I Street, Suite 2000
Sacramento, CA 95814
Brandon Vaccaro
Central Director-At-Large
Brandon Vaccaro is an accomplished communications professional with nearly 30 years of experience in public safety including firefighting, law enforcement, and emergency medical services.
Brandon has worked for the City of California City for almost 20 years and is currently the Fire Department Public Information Officer and a Paramedic Fire Captain. His duties also include communications leadership at major incidents with a Type I incident management team.
California City Fire Department
4702 Remington Park Drive
Bakersfield, CA 93312
Erin Morales
Southern CA Director-At-Large
Erin Morales has nearly 15 years of experience in the public sector, specifically working within the water industry. Erin joined the Cucamonga Valley Water District (CVWD) in 2007 and is the Lead Community Outreach Representative. Her areas of focus are public outreach, customer relations, marketing, and conservation programming. She has assisted in the implementation of CVWD’s Communications Master Plan and Branding Style Guide. She has also been instrumental in building CVWD ambassadors through its award winning tours program.
Cucamonga Valley Water District
10440 Ashford Street
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
Amy Orr
Association & Conference Manager
Amy Orr began working with CAPIO in 2010 as conference manager. In 2015, her role expanded to association management, and she now handles the day-to-day operations of the organization in addition to managing the annual conference under the direction of the conference committee and Board leadership.
P.O. Box 8840
Chico, CA 95927