Scope/Responsibility
The scope of responsibilities will be determined based upon experience but will likely include:
- Regularly attend Board meetings, which are usually held monthly and last about two hours.
- Chair a committee and/or actively serve on at least one committee.
- Take an active role in reviewing VAC’s operating and capital budgets, monitoring budget execution through monthly financial statements, and reviewing the annual audit.
- Actively participate in the planning process by identifying and clarifying specific organizational goals and actions needed to achieve these goals.
- Be active in personally contacting donors in major fundraising campaigns.
- Make a yearly cash donation beyond annual membership dues according to the member’s means.
- Attend a one-day Board retreat each Spring.
- If possible, volunteer to participate in at least two Volcano Art Center activities each year.
- Attend, observe and provide feedback on at least two additional Volcano Art Center activities each year.
- Provide adequate resources and support to the Executive Director to carry out the day-to-day operations of the organization.
- Assess whether you meet your Board responsibilities during the year.
Click here for the downloadable application form! Please email the completed form to director@volcanoartcenter.org.
Volcano Art Center Board of Directors
President Julie Williams received a B.S. in biology from Temple University in Philadelphia and an M.S. in botany from UH Manoa. Following a decade of fieldwork in Hawai‘i’s forests, Julie became the director Keakealani Outdoor Education Center in Volcano, providing environmental education programs for students statewide for 18 years. Her board service includes Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, Volcano School of Arts and Sciences, and six terms for Volcano Art Center. She presently serves as coordinator for the Niaulani Sculpture Garden, on the forest committee, programs committee, and volunteer coordinator.
Vice President Jesse Tunison is a photographer, cinematographer, and producer based on the Big Island of Hawai’i. In 2008. Jesse began working as a professional photographer and producer. By June of that year, Jesse also began to produce his first independent full-length film entitled, “Rx.” Rx was released two years later in 2010. Since 2010, Jesse has worked on an array of small projects from creating advertising campaigns for small businesses in Hawai’i to photographing for large corporate companies in the U.S. mainland and creating magazine content. Jesse has also worked alongside Hawai’i’s recording artists from traveling on the road with the artists to creating album covers and has worked with our VAC website development team for photography and our online gallery and promotional materials.
Secretary Barbara Dunn is a retired Administrative Director and Librarian of the Hawaiian Historical Society in Honolulu. She holds a BA from Knox College, Galesburg, Illinois, and a Masters in Library Studies from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. She has taken coursework in the Pacific Islands Studies Program and the Art Department at the University of Hawai‘i and has studied at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, The Sorbonne in Paris, and Oxford University in England. Barbara has served on boards of professional organizations including the Hawai‘i Museums Association, and the Association of Hawai‘i Archivists, and on the board of the Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, and the Mauna Loa Estates Road Maintenance, Inc. board. She has served on Advisory Committees for the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, State of Hawai‘i Records Advisory Board, the Pacific Regional Conservation Center at Bishop Museum, and the U.S. Newspaper Project. She is currently Recording Secretary of the non-profit Volcano Community Foundation board. She joined the Volcano Art Center board in 2017. Barbara is a longtime member of the Volcano Art Center and moved to her Volcano home full-time in 2017. She enjoys volunteering at the Art Gallery in the Park, taking watercolor classes, and bird watching. She facilitates a Hawaiian History Reading Group that has been meeting since 1996 and is currently a Volunteer Librarian at the Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park Library in the Visitors’ Center.
Treasurer William Hamilton was born in 1947 and grew up in the Portland, Oregon area. He was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1966 and spent several years as an Engineer Company Commander with duty rotations in Vietnam, various locations in the Pacific, and a tour in Iraq. After release from active duty, Bill remained in the military reserve while operating his own construction business on Maui. As business slowed he turned to woodworking, furniture making, restorations, and a variety of wood crafts. While on Maui, Bill was an active member of the Chamber of Commerce, Maui Historical Society, and Maui Visitors Bureau. Bill is an active member in Volcano Rotary and VFW along with volunteering at Cooper Center.
Ken Charon was born in New York in 1954 and traveled to Europe with his family at an early age. There, he studied art at the Academie Julian in Paris, as well as in Switzerland and at CCAC in California. Since moving to Hawaii in 1984, Ken’s paintings have been exhibited throughout the state and especially on the Big Island where he has won many awards. Ken enjoys working with Hawaii’s children and has done so since 1986 with the Artists in the Schools Program, as well as in private lessons and summer camps. He has also worked with the developmentally and physically disabled with VSA arts. Ken lives and works at the Art Farm near Kurtistown. His distinct style illustrates a variety of images, including portraits, Hawaiian landscapes, endangered species, and thought-provoking dreams in a minute and colorful detail. His work has been exhibited internationally and is in private collections in the United States and Europe including that of past Vice President Al Gore and President Barack Obama.
Jeff Davis has lived in Hawaii on and off since 1981, spending the “off” years in California but is originally from Texas. Jeff knew he wanted to live in Volcano from the first time he visited in 1989 and is familiar with the area already from frequent visits over the past 30 years. Jeff has worked with the Honolulu Symphony, Hawaii International, and Palm Springs Film Festivals in Development roles, the San Francisco Symphony as External Affairs Manager and was the Director of Events at the Honolulu Museum of Arts. Currently, he is on the Honolulu Printmakers Board of Directors and a past member of the Aloha Festivals Board. He possesses a solid background in the areas of Development, Community Relations, and Administration. In his free time, Jeff enjoys documentary and independent films, art openings, photography, architecture and design, hiking, bicycling, the outdoors, all types of local food, travel, reading, and social groups.
Christiane Friese has been an active volunteer supporting annual fundraising events such as Love the Arts. She is an active member of the Hawaii real estate community on Oahu. She is planning to permanently relocate to Volcano to continue working in our arts community.
James Karabelas is Vice President of Marketing for Aqua-Aston Hospitality, a Marriott Vacation Worldwide company known for its more than 30 owned brand hotels in Hawaii, the continental United States, and Costa Rica. In this role, Karabelas leads the integrated brand and digital strategy, overseeing a team of brand marketing, e-commerce technology, and social media experts.
James has over 15 years of experience in digital communications, marketing, advertising, and social media. He led the go-to-market strategy and launch of the Grand Naniloa Hotel in 2016. Before joining Aqua-Aston Hospitality more than six years ago, Karabelas served as the Director of eCommerce and Online Marketing at Castle Resorts & Hotels, where he oversaw the marketing and brand development of the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel. Karabelas has held additional marketing leadership roles at Saatchi & Saatchi in New York. Early in his career, he was the Director of the Trustees Dining Room and Patron Lounge at the Metropolitan Museum of Art – managing exhibit events and catering.
Lynn Melena brings to our board a wide variety of skills and experiences within the non-profit community to share with a background in organizations from the Hawaii Civic Club to the Volcano School of Arts and Science. Lynn has a BA from the University of Nebraska with a Certificate in Adult Education. She has been a member of the VSAS Governing Board since 2014.
Joan McDonald is a retired professional educator and past CEO of Girl Scouts of Maine and Central California. Ms. McDonald brings to VAC a strong background with specific non-profit organizational education from Harvard Business School in accounting, volunteers, and fundraising. Ms. McDonald is also active in our Volcano community as a member of the Volcano School of Arts & Science board of directors.
Doug Wilson spent over 45 years in the trust business. He was a senior vice president in First Hawaiian Bank’s Trust & Investments Division until his retirement in 2004 when he moved to Volcano. Doug currently provides consulting services to executors and trustees through his firm, Trustee Consulting, LLC. He received his MBA from Pepperdine University and a BA in economics from the University of Hawaii. He participated in the advanced program Leadership and Decision-Making in Organizations through the Yale School of Organization and Management – Advanced Management Studies at Yale University and is a graduate of the Pacific Coast Banking School (Trust) at the University of Washington. He received his certification as a financial planner (CFP) from the College for Financial Planning in 1985 and is a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor (CTFA), a designation conferred by the Institute of Certified Bankers. Doug currently serves as President of the Hawaii Tax Institute Foundation, is Treasurer of the Pacific Health Research & Education Institute, and is the Incident Commander under the Volcano Emergency Response Plan. Doug has served on the boards of Diamond Head Theatre (Chairman), Hale Kipa (President), Pacific Health Research Institute (Vice-Chair, Treasurer), Honolulu Symphony Society, Hanahauoli School (Treasurer), Hawaii Institute for Orchestra and Ensemble, Royal School, Hawaii Head Start Association, PlannedParenthood, City and County of Honolulu Pension Board, Volcano Art Center, Hawaii Island United Way, Big Island Amateur Radio Club and Hawaii Society of the Institute of Certified Financial Planners.