THE 2020-2021 CCBPA BOARD MEMBERS
Email: green@UnitedPower.com
Tel: 303-637-1279
Tom Green is theCommunity Affairs Representative for United Power, a not-for-profit electric cooperative owned by the 80,000+ commercial, industrial and residential members who purchase electricity in a service territory which includes the northern areas of Commerce City and extends from the mountains of Coal Creek and Golden Gate Canyon to the farmlands of Brighton, Hudson and Keenesburg. Tom has spent more than 25 years working in the cooperative utility business with a focus on multi-platform communications strategies to keep members engaged. He has received numerous publication awards and has certifications in creating cooperative communications and administering key accounts programs. In 2017, Tom was named the Commerce City Business Person of the Year.
In his current position, Tom works with companies, organizations and political leaders (specifically in the communities of Commerce City, Brighton and Thornton) that can have a significant impact on the operations and revenues of United Power, with a goal of providing positive energy solutions and proactive responses that address customer needs, improve relations and meet the objectives of the cooperative. Tom also serves on the Board of the Greater Brighton Chamber of Commerce, belongs to the Brighton and Commerce City Business Builders groups, a member of the Commerce City Rotary Club, Leadership Commerce City Advisory Committee, Adams County Business Retention Resource Board, Adams County Building Code Board of Appeals, Brighton Economic Development Corporation and the Business of Thornton Advisory Commission. Tom is a graduate of the 2014 Metro North Chamber Leadership Class and the 2016 Leadership Commerce City Class. He also serves on the Almost Home and Kid’s First Healthcare Boards and is a member of St. Augustine Catholic Church.
TOM GREEN, PAST PRESIDENT
DALE MINGILTON, TREASURER
A native of Denver, prior to accepting the position of Executive Director of the Adams 14 Education Foundation, Dale served as the President/CEO of the Denver/Boulder Better Business Bureau (BBB) as well as serving as the BBB Foundation’s Executive Director. Prior to the BBB, Dale enjoyed a successful career of nearly 23 years at FirstBank Holding Company.
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Dale has a long history of community and non-profit involvement. Since 1985, Dale has served on advisory committees and boards for more than 40 philanthropic, community-oriented organizations including multiple Chambers of Commerce, educational institutions, Denver Botanic Gardens, the Aurora Housing Authority, Mile High United Way, the Aurora Public Schools Bond Accountability Committee, the YMCA, Hispanic Annual Salute, Commerce City Business and Professional Association and others.
Dale received his BS in Business Administration from Adams State University. He also completed the Pacific Coast Banking School graduate program at the University of Washington and the Center for Creative Leadership in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He and his wife Teri have two children: Addison and Ticen. Dale and Teri enjoy photography, travel and hanging with Addie and Ti, whenever possible (both in College).
RICK TETER, DIRECTOR
Rick just retired as Commerce City Mayor Pro-Tem where he served on the following boards and commissions:
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Derby Review Board
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ADCO DIA Negotiations
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Police Pension Board
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ADCO Economic Development
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Commerce City Business and Professionals Association
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DIA Noise Coordinating Committee
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DRCOG Board
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DRCOG- Metro Visions Issues Committee
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Northern Area Transportation Alliance
Northern Community Coalition
He was the Fire Chief for the Rocky Mountain Arsenal for many years and was the Fire Chief for the SACVFD for 3 years. He was a volunteer fireman for 34 years with over 13,000 fire calls to his credit. He enjoys spending time with his wife, Patti and their children and grandchildren as well as all his many relatives and friends throughout the area.
A life-long resident of Commerce City, he is devoted to the well-being of the residents and the economic prosperity of the city. He has received the "Jean Klein Award" for his great contributions to the people of Commerce City. His and his family's commitment to the families of Commerce City has not wavered through the decades and he continues his work through the CCBPA.
HEATHER LA CRUE, PRESIDENT
MARIA CARABAJAL, VICE PRESIDENT
Heather is proud that her roots in Commerce City go back three generations. Her grandparents, Clairietta and Lowell Minne owned an automotive business in Derby and her parents, Leanita and Tim Warner still live in Commerce City.
She is especially proud of attending Adams City High School where she was a cheerleader, a peer counselor and where she began her singing career singing the National Anthem at sporting events. A star student, she graduated in 1992 with the prestigious Soaring Eagle Award.
After high school she moved to Nashville for 4 years where she continued her quest of a singing career and gaining much experience in her involvement with a production company. This effort was cut short, however, when she moved back to Colorado to take care of a sick family member.
It was a blessing, though, because she was reunited with her high school sweetheart and Commerce City native, Chris LaCrue, a proud graduate of Lester Arnold High School. They eventually married and are the proud parents of three boys, ages 21, 15 and 12. They have made their home in the Henderson area, where they have lived for 15 years.
Heather is an incredibly talented woman, who uses both her right and left brain. On one hand she is very creative with singing at Memorial Day Parades, holds a nail tech license since 1998 and has been appointed to the Cultural Council of Commerce City. On the other hand, she used her gifts of finance and organization to open and manage a salon in Stapleton for 4 years, worked as a supervisor of financial aid for 12 years for several different colleges including the Artistic Beauty College, where she oversaw all six schools.
Currently, she is the Member Relationship Officer at Commerce City’s Community Choice Credit Union, where she has worked since September 2016. Her duties include business development, marketing and being a teller. She brings her knowledge of the area and her expertise in business and finance to community businesses where she educates their employees on credit scores. She facilitates a program called “Lunches and Learns”. She loves her job and her true passion is helping people.
Helping members save money by improving their credit scores, the credit union has saved their members over $1 million dollars. Additionally, they offer financial literacy to Adams City High School business students. The Community Choice Credit Union donates time and funds to local businesses, to the Hope Resource Center and Adams City High School.
After meeting Heather, it comes as no surprise that she puts her family first. Her favorite thing is to spend time with them and is making memories with them during camping and fishing trips.
Heather’s involvement with the people of Commerce City is a way of life for her. She says Commerce City is still small enough to allow everyone to feel like “family”. She brings her vast knowledge of the history of Commerce City and her extensive financial and creative backgrounds to all her endeavors. As a leader in Commerce City, her ultimate desire for Commerce City is to see the entire city unify. That would include the Henderson and Reunion areas as well as all of Commerce City’s neighborhoods, both north and south. Her devotion to the children of Commerce City is apparent and she has both the vision and energy to help bring Commerce City to the next level with special regard to keeping the “small town” qualities.
MAYOR BENJAMIN HUSEMAN DIRECTOR AND
CITY COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVE
A lifelong public servant and community volunteer, Mayor Benjamin Huseman was elected to serve as Mayor of Commerce City in November, 2019. He previously served as a City Councilmember At-Large from November 2017 to 2019. He was honored to be appointed to the National League of Cities' Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee for 2019 and 2020.
Prior to holding public office, Mayor Huseman served more than 20 years in the United States Air Force. He retired as the Operations Flight Superintendent for the 460th Civil Engineer Squadron at Buckley Air Force Base in 2014.
Mayor Huseman has a M.S. in Security Management, a B.S. in Computer Information Systems, and an A.A. in Mechanical and Electrical Technology. He currently serves as lead project manager performing facility condition assessments for Bureau Veritas in the Building and Infrastructure Division.
Mayor Huseman is a native of Lakewide, California and together with his wife and daughter have resided in Commerce City since 2013. In his spare time, he enjoys photography, traveling, cooking and spending time outdoors.
Public Relations, South Adams County Fire Department
My current position as Public Relations Manager at South Adams County Fire Department allows for me to fulfill my passion, helping the community. She was past President of Commerce City Business and Professional Association from 2012-2014 and continues to serve as Board of Director. Also, an active member in Commerce City Rotary club for 10 years and have held positions on the board as the Youth Advisory, President of the Club and currently the Club Service chair in addition to many other organizations such as Kiwanis and Thunderhawk Diamond Club (Booster Club).
Maria started with South Adams County Fire in February 2018 and her primary role is handling communications, media, outreach and events for the fire department. Maria has over 20 years of experience in event management, public relations, marketing and sales development. She brings a wealth of community relations experience and is passionate about marketing and branding. Maria is proud of her roots and is homegrown to Commerce City and attended Adams 14 School District where her and her husband both attended Adams 14 School District in grew up in the southern area of Commerce City. Both graduated from Adams City High School where Maria was active in tennis and the pom squad. Following High School she attended Front Range Community College then later transferred to Metropolitan State and majored in Marketing.
Additional, her and her husband are involved in their boys' sports where they play Baseball, Basketball and Golf . The majority of our free time is spent taking kids to practices and watching them play games. When we are not running from baseball field to baseball field we are shuttling the boys to practices and workouts. In our free time we attend Rockies baseball games, Nuggets Basketball games and also have a love for live music and attend concerts as often as we can. If we were to guess over the past 20 years we have attended over 100 concerts.
My desire is to help the community that has done so much for not only me and many of my friends and families and this is my way to give my appreciation and thanks.
BARB HEUMANN, SECRETARY
REBA DROTAR, DIRECTOR
Reba Drotar was a past Mayor Pro-Tem of Commerce City. She has been on the board of many governmental and private entities including Tri-County Health, the Commerce City Quality Community for a Lifetime, the Memorial Day Parade, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Restoration Advisory Board, the Commerce City Historical Society and the E-470 Highway Authority. She was the owner and head chef of the Blue Rose Catering and Tea House and catered and designed events for some of the biggest events in Colorado. She was a lead chef for the Continental Airlines’ Gala at the opening of the Denver International Airlines for over 2,000 people.
Reba’s main passion, however, is caring for the homeless through the Cold Weather Care Program and the HOPE Resource Center in Adams 14, which she founded.
Reba’s awards for her humanitarian service to Commerce City and Adams County include the Commerce City Historical Society Jean Klein Award, Rotarian of the Year, the Adams County Community Development Non-Profit Innovation Award for the HOPE Resource Center, ACHS ROTC Eagle, the Commerce City Business and Professional Association’s Citizen of the Year, the Commerce City Senior Citizen’s Triple C Award, Exempla Good Samaritan Hospital’s Good Samaritan of the Year, E-470’s Driving Force Award, the Army Commander’s Award for Public Service, the Peace Medal from Chernobyl, Russia and many others. She successfully petitioned the Army, Congress and the EPA for the 917 acres of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal where the Civic Center, Rapid’s Stadium and the new Adams City High School now sit. She authored the petition for the preservation of the name of Adams City High School and the HOPE Resource Center for Adams 14.
Reba has over 40 years of experience working with students of all ages, she worked as a consultant for Adams 14 and was a co-manager of the Nature’s Nest Bookstore at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. She plays the violin, loves cookies and tea pots, anything blue and has had many of her stories and documents published. Reba’s number one love is her husband, Gary, a highly decorated Vietnam and Flight for Life Pilot, and her family. She has 3 daughters, 3 son-in-laws and 8 grandchildren, whom she dearly loves. Reba has been devoted to the well-being of the families and children of Commerce City and the preservation of their stories and history.