Who We Are

Senator John Burton (ret.), Board Chair
John Burton has been one of the most effective leaders in the State of California over the last 40 years. He began his career as a deputy attorney general before his election to the State Assembly in 1964. He was then elected to Congress in 1974 and returned to private life in 1983. In 1988, Burton returned to the State Assembly and then moved on to the State Senate in 1996, becoming President Pro Tempore in 1998 until his retirement in 2004.

The cumulative impact of his leadership is significant. While in the State Legislature, Burton focused on a range of issues including access to care, mental health and the prevention of violence and substance abuse. Examples of his leadership include championing legislation that provides health insurance coverage for California’s workers, improved care for the mentally ill homeless and strengthening the Women, Infant and Children (WIC) Supplemental Nutrition Program. Burton was a formidable force against budget cuts to health and welfare programs for the 750,000 blind, aged and disabled Californians who use Medi-Cal. A longtime supporter of violence prevention, Sen. Burton’s advocacy ensured that juvenile crime prevention programs received historic levels of support.

During his 40 years of public service, including terms in the U.S. Congress, the California State Assembly, and the California State Senate, Burton was a champion of California’s most underserved populations. Although he retired as President Pro Tempore of the Senate in 2004, Burton’s commitment to Californians continues as the volunteer chair of the John Burton Foundation for Children Without Homes. Through this project, Burton is seeking to address broad changes in the child welfare system relating to foster care.

A Note from Senator Burton

Read Truthdig's interview with Senator John Burton (ret.)

Julie Brandt, Senior Vice President of Corporate Philanthropy and Public Affairs, Ameriquest Mortgage Company, Los Angeles, CA
Ms. Brandt leads the company's philanthropic efforts across the country and oversees charitable giving, program development, advocacy efforts, and employee involvement in local communities. Prior to joining Ameriquest, Ms. Brandt was Director of the Mayor's Small Business Commission and Deputy Director of Policy for the Mayor's Office of Economic Development in San Francisco. During her service, she created policies and programs aimed at attracting industry and revitalizing communities. Her professional experience has also included managing community and government relations for Assemblyman John Burton (D-San Francisco) and for Pacific Gas & Electric Company. Ms. Brandt holds a bachelor's degree from Stanford University and is a Wexner Fellow as well as a graduate of the Coro Foundation's Fellowship Program, a program dedicated to preparing individuals for effective leadership in public affairs. She currently serves on the Physical Therapy Board of California as well as the John Burton Foundation for Children without Homes and is a former commissioner on the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women.

Kimiko Burton, City Attorney, Family and Children's Division, City and County of San Francisco, CA
Ms. Burton received her bachelor's degree from the University of California at Davis,and her juris doctor degree from Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. She began her legal career serving four years as a trial attorney in the San Francisco Public Defender's Office. She was later appointed by San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown to two city posts: public defender and, before that, head of the Mayor's Criminal Justice Council. She was the first woman ever to serve as public defender of San Francisco. While in the Mayors office, she was responsible for bringing in $41 million in state/federal funding to, among other things, rebuild San Francisco's juvenile hall, as well as to implement San Francisco's "local action plan" for juvenile justice. As Public Defender, Ms. Burton was instrumental in transforming the system to ensure that only qualified and experienced attorneys represented the City's vulnerable juvenile clients. Ms. Burton serves on the board of The San Francisco Child Abuse Prevention Center and the Alliance Francaise de San Francsico. She is a lifelong resident of San Francisco, where she lives with her two children, Juanito (6) and Mikala (3).

Miles Cooley, Partner, Reed-Smith, LLP, Los Angeles, CA
Miles Cooley is a partner with the international law firm of Reed Smith LLP. He is a member of the firm's Litigation Group in the Century City office in Los Angeles. Miles's practice primarily focuses on business litigation, with an emphasis in entertainment, trade secret, trademark and healthcare law. He has represented a wide range of companies, from small cap to Fortune 50, in addition to several well-known artists and entertainers. Miles also has an active pro bono practice, working closely with the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights to protect voting rights in the 2004 and 2006 national elections, with Los Angeles Urban League on various matters involving community empowerment, as well as representing Spanish-speaking clients in adoption proceedings for Public Counsel. Miles is also on the board of the Elevate Film and Music Festival Foundation, a conscious film festival held annually in Los Angeles. In 1999, Miles earned his J.D. from U.C. Berkeley's Boalt Hall School of Law, where he was a member of the Moot Court Board, Law Students of African Descent, and The African-American Law and Policy Report. He was also the winner of the McBaine Honors Moot Court Competition Best Brief and the First Year Moot Court Best Oral Advocate awards in 1997 and 1999 respectively. Miles also won the American Jurisprudence Award for the highest grade earned in the course American Federalism in 1998. Prior to law school, Miles served two years in Ecuador with the Peace Corps as a Community Development Volunteer. Miles graduated from U.C. Berkeley in 1992 with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science. From 1975-76 and 1983-1988, Miles, who was orphaned at the age of 5, was in the California foster-care system.

John Garcia, Vice President of Legal and Government Relations, Kaiser Permanente, Sacramento, CA
John Garcia joined Kaiser Permanente in September 1995, as a community and government relations representative in the Greater East Bay Customer Service Area. In October 2002, he was appointed to State Governmental Relations Representative for California. Prior to joining Kaiser, Mr. Garcia became very familiar with health care issues in our community while working for Congressman Pete Stark. He became the Congressman's community liaison in 1989, just after working for the City of Hayward as its community educator. Mr. Garcia is also enormously proud to call himself an East Bay Native. He was born in Oakland and has never left the area. Mr. Garcia attended California State University at Hayward and received his BA in Political Science. He has also served on numerous community boards, committees and advisory bodies, which include: Puente Project, Hispanic Community Affairs Council, The Working Group, Court Appointed Special Advocate, Shelter Against Violent Environments, International Institute of the East Bay-Hayward Immigration Project, and The Center: Counseling, Education and Crisis Services. John Garcia continues to live in the Bay Area with his wife, Arcy, and two children, Roberto and Andrea.

Rick Mariano, Acquisitions Consultant, Holliday Development, Emeryville, CA
Rick Mariano has over twenty years of experience in real estate as a broker and a principal of various residential commercial and industrial properties. Rick works as a consultant for Holliday Development, helping to locate and secure promising pieces of land for development. Rick is on the board of directors of the Edgewood Center. He lives in San Francisco with his wife and daughter.

Christine Minnehan, Director of Legislative Advocacy, Western Center on Law and Poverty, Sacramento, CA
Christine Minnehan specializes in housing issues. She crafted the $2.1 billion housing bond on the 11/02 ballot, and negotiated the first major general fund program, the $100 million Rental Housing Construction Program, as well as the $600 million housing bond program. She sponsored the 2002 tenant omnibus bill which overturned 140 years of tenant notice law. Christine also served as Legislative Coordinator and Assistant Chief for Research and Policy Development of the State Department of Housing and Community Development and was elected staff-chair to the National Conference of State Legislatures. She has drafted and negotiated more than a thousand bills in her 28 years as a housing advocate and Senate Consultant. Christine is a 1973 honors graduate from California State University, Los Angeles. She worked for the WCLP from 1974 to 1981, where she was an advocate in the Center's Sacramento office, responsible for housing, landlord/tenant and women's issues. Before returning to the Center in 1992, Christine was Senior Assistant to Assemblyman John Vasconcellos and then Principal Consultant and Senate Federal Relations Coordinator to California State Senate President Pro Tem, David Roberti.

Nathan Nayman, State and Local Relations, Visa Inc.
Mr. Nayman is responsible for Visa’s governmental and community relations efforts in San Francisco, the greater Bay Area and California. He also contributes to the implementation and enhancement of Visa’s Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives. Prior to joining Visa, Inc. Mr. Nathan served as the Executive Director for the Committee on Jobs, and Regional Vice President for the Hospital Council of Northern and Central California specializing in the areas of health care policy development and governmental and external affairs.

Frank Quattrone, The Frank and Denise Quattrone Foundation, Los Altos Hills, CA
The Frank and Denise Family Foundation is a family foundation that provides grants to numerous charities that support children, education, science and technology research, the environment, the arts and humanitarian causes. Mr. Quattrone serves on the Boards of Directors of The Tech Museum of Innovation, a non-profit science/technology educational center, and Packet Design LLC, a private company formed to develop internet infrastructure technologies. He also serves on the Advisory Board of The Northern California Innocence Project and the Advisory Council of Castilleja School. Mr. Quattrone graduated summa cum laude from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Economics degree in 1977, and was an Arjay Miller Scholar at Stanford University Graduate School of Business, where he received his Masters in Business Administration degree in 1981.

Nina Salarno-Ashford, Executive Director, Californians United for Public Safety, Auburn, CA
Nina Salarno-Ashford is the executive director for Californians United for Public Safety. She serves on the board for Crime Victims United and is the National Administrator for Corrections USA.  Prior to this, she was appointed and served as director of the Office of Victim Services, worked as a prosecutor specializing in domestic violence cases in Sacramento  County, and in private practice.  Ms. Salarno-Ashford has been awarded the California Correctional Peace Officers Association John Wayne Crime Fighter Award, the Orange County Award for helping to write California’s Amber Alert, Young Careerist for Placer  County, and Advocate Angel for work on the Amber Alert.

Ms. Salarno-Ashford received her juries’ doctorate degree from New College School of Law in San Francisco, and her Bachelors of Arts from Dominican  College.  Ms. Salarno-Ashford She now resides in Auburn,  California with her husband, Ron Ashford, and her daughter.

Sami Tahbazof, Partner in SST Investments, San Francisco, CA
Sami Tahbazof was born in Iran and immigrated to the Bay area 25 years ago after the revolution in Iran. She is a partner in SST Investments, a holding company for real estate development and also a shareholder of SIA Consulting Corporation, a civil engineering and structural design firm. For many years Sami volunteered at the public schools where her two children attended. This experience made her recognize the issue of underprivileged children struggling in the system. As this furthered her passion to be involved, she began volunteering in non-profit organizations such as Latino Unidos and Shelter Network, located in the Peninsula where she lives. In 2006 Sami and her daughter began volunteering for Home Away From Homelessness where she now serves as a board member. Sami lives in San Mateo with her husband, Sia, and two children.

Tina A. Thomas, Managing Partner, Remy, Thomas, Moose and Manley, LLP, Sacramento, CA
Ms. Thomas received her bachelor's degree from Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri, in 1975, and her juris doctor degree from the University of San Diego in 1979. Ms. Thomas began her legal career in 1979 with her former partner Michael H. Remy (1943-2003). Together they formed and managed a law firm that is now known as Remy, Thomas, Moose and Manley. Ms. Thomas has been the managing partner of the firm since its formation. Her clients include governmental agencies, developers and environmental organizations and she focuses on the environmental and entitlement process in both administrative and judicial forums. Over the recent past, Ms. Thomas has served on a number of nonprofit boards including the John Burton Foundation, Sacramento Food Bank Services, La Raza Galeria Posada, Conservancy International and has, on a bro bono basis, represented a number of social service entities including Francis House, Works in New Directions (WIND Center for Homeless Teens), Loaves & Fishes, WEAVE, Union Gospel Mission and The Moral Values Program. Along with her partners, Ms. Thomas is co-author of the 2006 “Guide to the California Environmental Quality”. In 2006, Ms. Thomas was named Sacramento County’s “Distinguished Attorney.” Ms. Thomas lives with her husband, Bill Abbott and they have three children, Libby (22), Mary Claire (18) and Sam (16).