President
George Davis
288-0764
Vice-President
Keith Belling
256-4319
Treasurer
Joshua Carman
979-4266
Secretary
Heather Carman
979-9259
Board Members
Anne Noah
284-1169
Doreen Strokes
287-2059
Ginny Renda
287-3999
Tom Reynolds
287-6286
Steve Sarcone
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Meet Your Executive Board
George Davis, President
I've been a Southside resident my whole life, graduating
from Lincoln High School and Drake University many years
ago. My wife, Sandi and I have been married over 41
years and have three grown children. Last June, after
35 years, I retired as a school teacher from East High
School, where I was also the head girls basketball and
track coach. I still work for the Des Moines Park and
Recreation Department, working with youth and adult
athletic programs. I truly enjoy both careers. I feel
honored to serve on the Southwestern Hills Neighborhood
Board with some very dedicated people. We all have very
special feelings about our community and our life roots.
Keith Belling, Vice-President
Keith Belling has resided on the Southside for 11 years.
He has been involved in SWHNA for several years, the
last few as Vice-President. Spearheading the Annual
SCRUB Day clean up collection of trash has been his
lot. Keith and his wife, LaGaya along with their two
children, Dakota (10 years old) and Elizabeth (8 years
old) live in the neighborhood where the children attend
our community schools. Keith is employed as an Air Traffic
Controller at DSM International Airport. His interests
include family, cycling, and the accordion. The Bellings
appreciate the Southside as it has wonderful people
and beautiful surroundings. He hopes we can treasure
what we have here and work to make it better! A thought
he has enjoyed is to “Live simply, love generously,
care deeply, speak gently of others and leave the rest
to God”
Joshua Carman, Treasurer
Joshua is new on the SWHNA Board joining the board with
his wife, Heather. He is a Senior Loan Officer at Iowa
Mortgage Professional, Inc. Late one afternoon in early
November, 2006, Joshua arrived at his new home in the
Southwestern Hills Neighborhood. His work to restore
this their home seemed a bit overwhelming but with the
help of his new bride, Heather, his parents and in-laws,
the work to update the house from the inside out is
nearly complete. These new parents-to-be are happy about
the potential of the neighborhood and the excitement
of expecting an addition to their family. Joshua is
originally from Burlington, IA. He graduated from Burlington
Community High School in 1992 and from the University
of Iowa with a BBA in Finance in 1996. Following college
he lived in Chicago, traveled Europe and SE Asia and
finally ended up in Denver, CO. After several years
in Denver, in the fall of 2005 he moved back to Iowa
to pursue his career as a loan officer with Iowa Mortgage
Professionals, Inc. Soon after arriving back “home”,
he met a local tour guide named Heather and in June
2008 they were married. Josh continues to work as a
Senior Loan Officer for Iowa Mortgage Professionals,
Inc. and is looking forward to a very fun and interesting
summer as a first time dad! Hobbies include tennis,
enjoying the rolling hills of Iowa on his motorcycle
and traveling with his wife. He is also very excited
to be a new board member of the association and looks
forward to getting to know more of his neighbors!
Heather Carman, Secretary
Heather Carman has
lived on the south side of Des Moines most of her life.
She graduated from Dowling High School in 1996, Simpson
College in 2001, and received her Master's Degree in
Education in 2007. After traveling all over the world
and teaching for two years in Japan, Heather has moved
back into the Southwestern Hills Neighborhood, and is
currently teaching individuals with mental disabilities
at Roosevelt High School. Heather and her husband, Josh
are expecting their first child together this May. Heather
is very excited to work with the other members of the
board. She is most interested in making sure the neighborhood
continues to be a safe and friendly environment, and
will work hard to create events that will bring everyone
together. Anne Noah, Board Member
Anne returns to the Southwestern Hills Neighborhood
Association for her second year. She was a teacher in
the Des Moines School System for 30 years, the last
17 years of which she spent at Lincoln High School.
Since retiring she has been working as a Travel Director
for ITA. She is an active member of St. Anthony’s
Church. Anne is married to Dave, a lifelong Southsider
who owns Noah’s Dry Cleaners with their son Jeff
Lahey. Anne and Dave also have a daughter Sarah Levere,
mother of grandchildren Noah and Emily Levere who attend
Jefferson Grade School. Anne is an avid walker and enjoys
Waterworks Park. Traveling, gardening, golf and spending
time with her family are her main interests. “I
love the Southwest side and am glad to have a chance
to do anything I can to make it even better.”
Doreen Stokes, Board Member
Doreen has lived in the neighborhood since 1994. Having
retired from the Belin Law Firm since 2007 frees up
time for her work with Christ The King Parish, serving
on the Civic Music Association, the Development Committee
for Catholic Charities, and a member of Challenge Chapter
of American Business Women's Association. She currently
is the SWHNA Treasurer. Her work with SWHNA has seen
her involved with National Neighborhood Night Out, luminary
projects, Jazz In July, Wine Event, and other work of
the group. She is intent on community involvement that
brings neighbors together. Her husband, Allan, is Director
of Environmental Programs for the National Pork Board.
Ginny Renda, Board Member
Ginny grew up on the Southwest Side of Des Moines. She
graduated from St. Josephs Academy and went on to Drake
University where she earned several degrees. Ginny taught
and was a school counselor at May Goodrell Middle School.
After 19 years at Goodrell, she went to North High School
where she worked for 17 years in the position of Vice-Principal.
Ginny retired from the Des Moines School District in
2004. She enjoys spending time with friends and family,
traveling and reading for fun.
Tom Reynolds, Board Member
Tom moved into the SW Hills Neighborhood with his wife,
Kathy, and four children in 1989. He has lived in Des
Moines most of his life having graduated from the “old”
Dowling High School, completed a graduate degree at
the University of Iowa, and then returned to Des Moines
to work as a counselor. After retiring in April 2008
to assist with his mother’s caregiving needs,
Tom recently decided to return to a full-time position
at Lutheran Hospital as a Chemical Dependency Therapist.
He was involved with the organization of the Southwestern
Hills Neighborhood Association in 1994 and was one of
the early Board Officers. Now that his children (all
Lincoln graduates) are grown (and just bringing grandchildren
for visits), Tom has decided to, once again, become
active with the board. Tom is interested in maintaining
safe and efficient traffic flow through our area as
well as to continue growth of multi-age, recreational
opportunities such as improvements for trails and park
areas or possibly the development of a dog park. Tom
is very interested in hearing thoughts, ideas, and perceived
needs from SW Hills' neighbors. Steve Utterson Steve
has been a resident of the Southside for 44 years. He
and his wife, Teresa, have a 22-year-old daughter, a
12-year-old daughter attending Brody Middle School and
a 14-year-old daughter at Lincoln. Steve has been active
for 10 years as Support Manager for Belin Law Firm and
has his own construction company, Steve’s Contracting
Services. His interests are boating, camping, and snowmobiling.
They spend time with friends and family. Steve’s
goal, in his own words, is to “help people”.
He continues his presence on the Board and can be counted
on to help out in any of the SWHNA's activities.
Steve Sarcone, Board Member
Bio coming soon!
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