We’re nearing the end of our club year, which means that it’s time for the Arizona Yacht Club election of officers! Electronic ballots will be emailed to all eligible voting members on record as of April 1, 2026. The email will include a link that takes you directly to the ballot, and voting will likely take less than one minute. Only one ballot per membership family is allowed. If you need to vote in person, please contact our current Commodore, Roger Pawley.
- Voting Begins: April 21 at 6:00 am
- Voting Ends: May 5 at 8:00 pm
- Ballot Certification (new Board is official as of): May 6 at 6:00 pm
- Change of Command Celebration: Saturday, May 9
This year’s Nominating Committee consists of Jessica Zornik, Lori Reger, Ken Whitley, Nate Botts, Joel Oglesbee, Ron Simzyk, Will Nowak, and Steve Grothe. Thank you for volunteering!
The Nominating Committee has agreed on the following candidates for the 2026-2027 ballot:
- Commodore: Cedric Lorch
- Vice Commodore: Gary Eagle
- Rear Commodore: Melissa Sutton
- Racing Fleet Captain: Marc Danner
- Cruising Fleet Captain: Joel Oglesbee
- Membership Director: Steve DeMar (2-year term)
- Junior Staff Commodore: Roger Pawley (2-year term)
The new board is charged with electing the Treasurer and Secretary:
– Treasurer: Tyler J. Pace, CPA
– Secretary: John Woodrow
The BoD has agreed to have Rachel Kennett serve as a Membership Director for a 3rd year. As a result the board will move Rachel to serve in Steve’s second year and then we have asked Steve to serve for two additional years. This is important so we will have an experienced director in place when we elect a new person to serve as a membership director next year.
If you would like to read more about our election process, please refer to the AYC By-laws here.
AYC is completely run by volunteers, so please join us in showing your appreciation to the members who served on this year’s Board:
Roger Pawley, Commodore; Cedric Lorch, Vice Commodore; Gary Eagle, Rear Commodore; Bruce Andress, Racing Captain; Joe Motil, Cruising Captain; Steve DeMar and Rachel Kennett, Membership Directors; Martin Lorch, Jr. Staff Commodore; Marshall Willisamson, Sr. Staff Commodore; Tyler Pace, Treasurer, and John Woodrow, Secretary.
Feeling inspired? Check out our many volunteer opportunities and get involved!