Board of Directors
We are the volunteers who have been elected by the Chamber's membership to ensure that the Chamber is a visible and vocal advocate for our members and all of the communities within Saratoga County. We believe that every member deserves equal support and respect. Each year we help to support and improve the communities where we live, work and play. We're leading the way to a successful future for our members and our county. Come to us with your ideas and concerns.
Our 2021 Executive Board
Skip Carlson
Saratoga Casino Hotel
Chair of the Board
SCarlson@SaratogaCasino.com
Tara Pleat
Wilcenski & Pleat, PLLC
Chair Elect
tpleat@wplawny.com
Amy Smith
Saratoga Arms Hotel
Vice Chair
asmith@saratogaarms.com
Chad Kiesow
Stewart's Shops Treasurer/Secretary ckiesow@stewartsshops.com
Kevin Hedley
Hedley & Company, PLLC, Clifton Park
Immediate Past Chair of the Board
khedley@hedleycpa.com
2021 Board of Directors
Theresa Agresta
Allegory Studios & CultureTalk
theresa@allegorystudios.com
Shelly Amato
The Wesley Community
samato@thewesleycommunity.org
Heath Ames Cantina heathames519@gmail.com
Tom Bellhouse
West Point Thoroughbreds
tom@westpointtb.com
John Bove
G.A. Bove Fuels
jvbove@bovefuels.com
Sue Commanda Hudson River Community Credit Union scommanda@hrccu.org
Rajat Ghoshal
Polyset Company
r.ghoshal@polyset.com
Alexandra Gutelius
Clifton Park - Halfmoon Public Library
agutelius@sals.edu
Kimberly Ireland
National Grid
Kimberly.Ireland@nationalgrid.com
Laurie Kelly
GLOBALFOUNDRIES
laurie.kelly@globalfoundries.com
Dennis Kiingati Hamlet & Ghost Cocktail Bar dennis@hamletandghost.com
Melissa Johnson
Target Distribution Center
MelissaW.Johnson@target.com
Vincent Laurenzo Quick Response Restoration vlaurenzo@qrrestore.com
Paul Loomis
Gilbane Construction
PLoomis@gilbaneco.com
Martin Mbugua Skidmore College mmbugua@skidmore.edu
Randy Metevier
Applied Materials
Randy_Metevier@amat.com
John Rogan
Saratoga Eagle
john.rogan@saratogaeagle.com
David Rosenberg Brix Wine & Liquor brix@brixwineandliquor.com
Theresa Skaine
Skaine and Associates, LLC
theresaskaine@gmail.com
Charles Wait Jr.
Adirondack Trust Company
cwaitjr@adirondacktrust.com
Christianne Smith
Designsmith Studio
Christianne@designsmithstudio.com
Melissa Ward
NewWard Development
melissa@newward.com
Rod Sutton Amsure rjsutton1972@gmail.com
Andy Wise Saratoga National Bank andrew.wise@arrowbank.com
SKIP CARLSON ELECTED CHAIR OF THE BOARD AT THE SARATOGA COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Saratoga Chamber’s Board includes 29 Volunteers
Saratoga Springs, NY – Skip Carlson, Vice President of External Affairs of the Saratoga Casino Hotel, has been elected the 2021 Chair of the Board of Directors of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce. He assumed this volunteer leadership role, on January 1, 2020, as Kevin Hedley, of Hedley & Company, PLLC, completed his one-year term as Chair of the Board and now becomes the Immediate Past Chair.
The Chair Elect for 2021 is Tara Anne Pleat, of Wilcenski & Pleat, PLLC and she will become the Chair of the Board in 2022. The 2021 Vice Chair of the Chamber’s Board of Directors is Amy Smith, of Saratoga Arms Hotel. The 2021 Treasurer and Secretary is Chad Kiesow, of Stewart’s Shops.
New members elected by the membership to serve a three year term on the Chamber’s Board of Directors starting January 1, 2021 and running until December 31, 2023, include: Vincent Laurenzo, of Quick Response Restoration; Dennis Kiingati, of Hamlet & Ghost, David Rosenberg, of Brix Wine & Liquor and Andrew Wise, of Saratoga National Bank & Trust Company. Three members were also appointed to serve a one-year term on the Chamber’s Board of Directors starting in January 1, 2021, including: Heath Ames, of Cantina; Susan Commanda, of Hudson River Community Credit Union and Rod Sutton, of Amsure.
The other members who will continue to serve on the Chamber’s Board of Directors in 2021 include: Shelly Amato, of The Wesley Community; Tom Bellhouse, of West Point Thoroughbreds; John Bove, of J.A. Bove Fuels; Rajat Ghoshal, of Polyset; Alexandra Gutelius, of Clifton Park Halfmoon Public Library; Kimberly Ireland, of National Grid; Melissa Johnson, of Target Distribution; Laurie Kelly, of GLOBALFOUNDRIES; Paul Loomis, of Gilbane Construction; Martin Mbugua, of Skidmore College; Randy Metevier, of Applied Materials; John Rogan, of Saratoga Eagle; Theresa Skaine, of Skaine & Associates; Christianne Smith, of Designsmith Studio; Melissa Ward, of NewWard Development and Charles Wait Jr., of Adirondack Trust Company.
“In what was truly an unprecedented time in our Chamber’s history, Kevin Hedley as Chair of the Chamber’s Board did an amazing job leading our organization,” said Carlson. “He worked closely with the Chamber’s professional staff to ensure that we did everything we could to collaborate with our community partners in the private, public and nonprofit sectors to reopen our economy and to save our local businesses. As we enter 2021, the Chamber continues to lead the way as a visible and vocal advocate for local vaccination sites and support for local small businesses. Kevin’s leadership put us in a position to take on these important challenges. We cannot thank him enough for this commitment to our Chamber and our local community.”