Past Featured Sponsors
Trudy Triner
Paleoventures
Trudy Triner is a long-time member of Mt. Diablo Business Women where she has served on the Board for 8+ years, including two terms as the group’s President. Trudy was named MDBW’s Woman of the Year in 2018 for her contributions to the group, the professional world, and her community.
After retiring from Kaiser Permanente as the Director of Leadership Development for Patient Care Services in 2014, Trudy co-founded Paleoventures Outdoor Teambuilding with her son, Jack Foley, an experienced wilderness educator. Her leadership background, combined with her son’s expertise in outdoor skills, made for a unique, multi-generational outdoor experience enjoyed by hundreds from such organizations as Kaiser Permanente, AAA, Marriott, PG&E, Facebook and CASA.
Their goal has always been to help teams become more cohesive and productive and individuals to be happier and more satisfied in their work.
With the advent of COVID-19, when groups could no longer get together indoors or outdoors, Trudy pivoted to doing a variety of activities online with the same goal in mind; to help teams and individuals be more successful by building relationships and honing communication skills. All this, while enjoying something hard to find during a pandemic -fun!
Trudy enjoys her works because she loves to see people learn skills that will enhance their personal and professional lives.
In addition to her involvement in MDBW, Trudy is also active in The Rotary Club of Walnut Creek where she served as President in 2017-2018 and in her church, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church of Lafayette. She has also been an active volunteer at The Monument Crisis Center, Shelter, Inc., CASA, and Ability Now Bay Area.
Trudy is the author of two books about bringing joy to elders, Make Mom Happy By Mail and Before They Are Gone, and will be debuting an online training, “Creating Joy For Elders and Others,” in mid-March. For more information, or to join the Beta of “Creating Joy for Elders and Others,” please email Trudy at trudy.triner@gmail.com.
For more information about Paleoventures, please visit Paleoventures website.
JoAnn Adams
IT Maverick Solutions Representative
JoAnn Adams represents systems engineer, Erick Martinez of IT Maverick Solutions. If you are having problems with your computer, mobile phone, tablet or other devices, Erick is the expert to contact to get your issues resolved. He will come to your home (observing COVID protocols) and will provide knowledgeable support to get your devices running smoothly.
Erick can also provide training to help you feel more comfortable with your computer and other digital devices. He is multi-lingual and speaks English, Spanish, and Tagalog, and provides the following tech services:
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Help with wi-fi signal to speed up and provide a stable internet connection
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Connecting multiple devices
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Data recovery
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Data security
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Training for people with visual problems
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Video training
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Audio-visual issues
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Set up and troubleshooting for camera and security systems
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Troubleshooting to prevent future tech problems
JoAnn enjoys representing IT Maverick Solutions because she is pleased to connect people with a resource to deal with their computer problems and other tech issues.
As an active member of Mt. Diablo Business Women for more than 15 years, JoAnn credits the group with providing her with valuable help and information.
When not spreading the word about IT Maverick Solutions, JoAnn enjoys reading, especially biographies and history-related non-fiction.
For more information about Erick Martinez and services offered by IT Maverick Solutions, email JoAnn or email Erick, and be sure to mention that JoAnn referred you.
Debi White
My Travel Consultant
Debi White, owner of My Travel Consultant likes to say that life is too short to take a bad trip. Specializing in leisure travel, she prefers to work with clients with higher-end expectations for cruising, safaris and world travel. You can rest assured the trip she’ll plan for you will be a memorable experience.
Whether your dream vacation is a riverboat cruise, small ship cruise, weekend getaway, family vacation, African safari, European vacation, or other exciting travel experience, Debi can plan your trip from start to finish. Or, if you need help with only a portion of your trip such as finding a hotel, making reservations for a sight seeing experience, or just need assistance with air travel, Debi can arrange those specifics for you.
Debi is not your typical travel agent. She goes beyond simply taking direction from clients on what to book. Rather, Debi spends time talking with her clients and getting to know them so she can find what will work best for their vacation needs and wants. Because she’s been in the travel industry for over 17 years, she has acquired a great deal of knowledge and resources for products and destinations that can be difficult to find online. Plus, Debi is expert at saving clients both time and money.
Debi has been a member of Mt. Diablo Business Women for over ten years, including serving on the board of directors for many years, including as co-president. She says she enjoys the relationships she’s developed with the group’s professional women. She has gained business from the group and referred others to women in the group, but she emphasizes that MDBW is more than just business—there’s also camaraderie among the members.
When Debi is not planning trips for her clients, she enjoys reading, spending time with her family, especially her grandchildren, and of course traveling extensively throughout the world.
Visit mytravelconsultant.net to learn more about Debi and the fabulous trips she can plan for you.
Joy Colino
Nannies Plus
Families seeking a nanny immediately feel welcome when meeting Joy and experiencing her energy, warmth, and friendly smile. Her business, Nannies Plus, is a nanny placement agency dedicated to creating authentic, impactful family teams. The company is committed to crafting long-term relationships between families and nannies to help children flourish, parents to feel assured and supported, and nannies to feel empowered and trusted.
Joy is an excellent connector, and is always thinking of others. She is outspoken about the need for nannies to secure legal, livable wage jobs, and educates families on what it means to be great domestic employers.
Good referral sources for Joy are new and expecting parents, pediatrician OBGYNs, family practice physicians, midwives, birthing teachers and coaches, birth doulas, postpartum doulas, newborn care specialists, lactation consultants, acupuncturists, naturopathic doctors, prenatal yoga instructors, online influencers in the parenting and birth community, personal assistants, executive assistants, housekeepers, dog walkers, and house sitters.
Joy says that being a MDBW member is fun and has helped her to grow as a member of the business community by forging great relationships with women who are warm and genuinely care about her and the success of her business. Joy is the program director on MDBW’s board of directors.
In addition to running her business and being active with MDBW, Joy also runs a Meetup networking group with 850+ members called Unwind East Bay Women Entrepreneurs. She also leads the Alameda Sing-A-Long and Circle Time with Miss Joy for the little ones, and has a free YouTube web series called Miss Joy and Friends.
When not working, Joy loves to go to concerts, the theater and to sing karaoke. She likes to spend time with family and friends, organize community events, and power walk around her Oakland neighborhood.
Learn more about Nannies Plus by visiting its website, and connect with Joy on Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn.
Miriam Schaffer
Colleges For You
Miriam Schaffer is a college admissions coach helping high school and community college students on their path to college. Her work with students includes overall guidance to help them choose the best classes and extracurricular activities to meet their college goals. She also helps them choose colleges to apply to and provides assistance with completing and submitting applications. In addition, Miriam works with students on brainstorming topics for their college essays and University of California (UC) personal insight questions. She reviews and edits essays to get them ready for submittal. Students Miriam has worked with have been accepted to all the University of California and Cal State campuses as well as many public and private colleges and universities nationwide. Miriam enjoys helping students make the transition to college and helping them to find the college that is the best fit for them.
Good referrals for Miriam are high school students, community college students, and their parents. High school students who are targeting Ivy League or other top-tier schools should start preparing for college in their freshman or sophomore year of high school so that they can position themselves to stand out from the competition. Other good referrals are SAT or ACT tutors or other professionals who work with students and their families.
Miriam has been a member of MDBW for about 10 years and has made many friends and good connections in the group. She has served on the MDBW board for several years, first as publicity chair and currently as marketing co-chair with Lisa Andrews.
When not working with students and their parents, Miriam enjoys traveling, theater, the outdoors, and spending time with her husband and family.
Learn more about Miriam on her website and LinkedIn.
Brady Thomas
Brady Thomas Photography
Brady Thomas is a photographer and owner of Brady Thomas Photography. Her business offers custom fine art portrait experiences for women, and the people and pets they love. When having a portrait taken by Brady, you will have an unforgettable experience that will result in a fine art legacy print and album, which can be celebrated now and years into the future. Brady enjoys working with her clients to coach and photograph them as they unfold, shine, and celebrate themselves as fine art.
A good referral for Brady are women in business who need to showcase a personal brand, moms, moms-to-be, those celebrating milestone birthdays or other events, and women who are 50 and fabulous!
Brady joined MDBW this year and says she has enjoyed the introductions and connections she’s made and looks forward to continuing to make more and deeper connections. She consistently gives back to the community by donating her high-end photo sessions to worthy causes and fundraisers. She also is present in the Bay Area though speeches she gives to networking groups on increasing visibility and memorability.
When not creating beautiful portraits Brady enjoys exploring farmer’s markets, cooking, snuggling with her cats, perusing art books for inspiration, and traveling, even if only to nearby wine country for the day.
See Brady’s photography on her website, Facebook, Instagram, or connect with her on LinkedIn.
MDBW Board of Directors
MDBW Board of Directors keeps the organization moving forward. The board plans programs for the meetings, develops promotions, implements marketing, publicity and outreach, handles donations to nonprofits and works to keep the group exciting and beneficial to its members. Board's thoughts on the benefits of participation:
It has been an honor to serve on the MDBW Board of Directors. The leadership opportunity has been so valuable, and I've really enjoyed learning from other board members and building friendships with these amazing businesswomen.
Jill West, Past President
My experience has been very positive being on the MDBW Board. I highly recommend that members take this opportunity. It does take some effort to be on any board of directors. However, the visibility is well worth the time that I have put in. Visibility is important to grow your business.
Laura Lawrence, Treasurer
I enjoy the opportunity to deepen relationships amongst members and be a part of implementing change so the group can grow and thrive.
Amanda Keith, Secretary
The collaboration, leadership and visibility of being a MDBW Board member is wonderful! The work gives me a voice to help shape the direction of the group with an equitable and welcoming team.
Joy Colino, Director of Programs
Being on the MDBW Board has been rewarding both professionally and personally. Not only do I love working and networking with a great group of professional women, but I get to contribute to the direction and focus of this wonderful organization.
Lisa Andrews, Co-Director of Marketing
As a member of the board, I have enjoyed getting to know, and networking with, very talented women from different professional backgrounds, all of who bring a strong commitment to helping MDBW to grow and thrive.
Miriam Schaffer, Co-Director of Marketing
Being a member of the MDBW Board means being a member of a great team. It provides an excellent opportunity to help decide the future of our organization. It gives me unique access to other business women and disciplines that I don’t normally encounter in my day job. It encourages me to stretch my intellectual muscles, expand my skill set, practice patience, collaboration, and become even more passionate about the organization.
Gordana Zura, Director of Website
The Board members are givers. They are creative, engaged and care about networking with women in a quality organization. It is great to participate in guiding MDBW with them.
Linda Lewis. Director of Membership