Fred Keeley Elected Sempervirens Fund Board President
Long-Time Environmental Policy Leader Fred Keeley Elected Sempervirens Fund President to Protect the Local Redwood Forests and Create the Great Park
Jacqueline Wender Named Vice President
Howard Chao Joins Board of Directors
Los Altos, Calif. — Sempervirens Fund, California’s oldest land trust and the only organization dedicated to protecting the redwood forests between Silicon Valley and the Pacific Ocean, announced the election of its new Board President: Fred Keeley, former California State Assemblyman and currently Santa Cruz County’s elected Treasurer.
When serving in the California Assembly, Mr. Keeley authored two of the largest voter-approved park and environmental protection bonds in our nation’s history. Keeley currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation in Washington D.C., the California Ocean Science Trust and Working Partnerships U.S.A. Keeley is a former Santa Cruz County Supervisor and long-time resident of Santa Cruz.
Choosing to dedicate himself to protecting the local redwood forests, Keeley was elected to a two-year term of office as Sempervirens Fund’s President beginning July 1, 2014.
The Sempervirens Fund Board of Directors also elected Jacqueline Wender as the Board’s Vice President. Ms. Wender is Senior Assistant Dean of Administration at the Santa Clara University School of Law. She formerly served as Assistant Dean at Santa Clara University School of Engineering, Executive Director of Stanford University’s Overseas Studies Program, and Assistant to President Gerhard Casper at Stanford University and Associate Provost for Program Development and Facilities Planning. Ms. Wender and her husband Paul live in Menlo Park.
“We are thrilled to welcome Fred Keeley and Jacqueline Wender as Sempervirens Fund’s new leadership team,” said outgoing Sempervirens Fund President Diane Talbert, in announcing these elections. “Both Fred and Jacqueline are deeply dedicated to protecting the redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains and to the completion of the Great Park. They each bring a wealth of organizational, political and fundraising experience to these positions, and will provide important links to the Santa Cruz and the Silicon Valley communities.”
“I am honored to serve the Sempervirens Fund as its next Board President,” said Fred Keeley. “We have a once in a lifetime opportunity to complete the work started over 114 years ago by people like you and me. They dreamed of establishing a self-sustaining, living, breathing redwood forest ecosystem of tall trees and running streams. This is our dream too. We have a responsibility to complete what they started so these magnificent trees will be here for future generations to admire and enjoy.”
“I cannot imagine anything more important to the long-term future of the Bay Area region than the protection of the redwood lands of the Santa Cruz Mountains,” said Wender. “These mountains define our landscape, protect our environment, and preserve our quality of life. The vision of the Great Park, preserving lands from Skyline to the Monterey Bay, inspires me to support Sempervirens Fund and to help it grow. I am honored to be elected Board Vice President.”
The Sempervirens Fund also appointed Howard Chao of Menlo Park and Santa Cruz to the Board of Directors. Mr. Chao is an investor and a Senior Asia Advisor with the law firm O’Melveny & Meyers in Menlo Park. Mr. Chao is also a member of the Board of the Pacific Pension Institute.