Meet the Nominees
Boca
Wes Hough has been a Canyon resident for 30 years and has a long record of community involvement. He has served on the Boca Neighborhood Association Board for 30 years and was a member of the SMCCA Board for 15 years. As SMCCA treasurer in its final year. Wes oversaw the organization's transition to The Canyon Alliance, where he has continued to serve as treasurer since its formation. Professionally, Wes is a financial consultant who advises state and local governments, public agencies and authorities, non-profit organizations, and other entities on secure funding in the capital markets.
Joan Kramer (Joni) has been a resident of Santa Monica Canyon for 23 years. She and her husband, Aaron, reside on Mabery Road where they raised their two daughters, both of whom went to Canyon School, where she served both in the Booster Club and the Governing Board. She has been a board member of BOCA, serving as the president for 10 years. She is also a board member for Chrysalis, an LA based nonprofit since 2010, serving as board chair from 2020 to 2023. She, along with her husband and their dog, Squid, love calling the Canyon their home.
Doug Suisman has lived in the Canyon for 32 years. He and his wife, Moye, raised their two children, who attended Canyon School, Paul Revere, and Pali High, on Mabery Rd. Doug has served on the Boca Neighborhood Association board for 32 years, and served as president for 10 years. He is an architect and urban designer, who served as the first president of The Canyon Alliance. He is now an Alliance board member who leads the Public Space & Resilience Committee.
Lower Rustic Canyon
Whitney Bedford has lived on Mesa for the last ten years with her daughter, Betty, who is a rising 5th grader at Canyon Charter School. Betty’s father, Blair, (who uses she/ her pronouns) also lives on Mesa with our Standard Parti Poodle, Georgie. Whitney came to LA via Baltimore/Berlin 26 years ago to attend graduate school at UCLA and has never imagined a better place to call home. She is a painter that is lucky enough to show her work across the US, Europe and Oceania.
Brooke Fischer has lived in the Canyon for 17 years with her husband, Chad, their daughter, Violet, who attends Archer, and their two dogs, Cooper and Murphy. After many years in advertising, Brooke started her own freelance graphic design business. She is also a fine art painter and rediscovered her love of jewelry making at Rustic Canyon Rec Center. Brooke has volunteered throughout the Canyon community, starting with Rustic Canyon Co-op Nursery School and Canyon School, where she designed both school logos, yearbooks, sponsorship banners, and Fiesta signs. She believes there is no better place in LA to live than in the Canyon.
David Jackson has had the great fortune of living on East Rustic Road for 36 years. Ten years ago he became a board member of SMCCA (now The Canyon Alliance), and was also one four board members of Lower Rustic Canyon Homeowners, where he helped fund, through donations, a broad creekside vegetation cutting and removal of dead, fire-prone trees. He is a retired TV director/writer, a painter/artist, and the father of three adult sons. He is married to Katie Sparks. His house has a red door and two red chairs on the front porch, and he is happy to hear your thoughts on any Canyon subject or concern.
William "Max" Reynal is a marketing executive with over 20 years of experience in financial services, including leadership roles at Credit Suisse and UBS, where he led marketing, content strategy, and investor communications for the Americas. A four-year resident of Rustic Canyon, Max is married to Kristine Reynal, who is a managing director at the Bank of America Private Bank, and the parent of three children and their beloved dog, Coco. In addition to his professional career, he is a contemporary artist and writer whose work explores themes of consciousness, creativity, and human connection. He looks forward to contributing to the Canyon community by joining The Canyon Alliance Board.
Upper SM Canyon
Allison Diftler has lived on Kingman Ave for twenty-one years. She is married to William Goldenberg, and they raised their two children, Nathan (26) and Erin (22), in the Canyon. She was previously a professional dancer performing throughout the United States and Europe with Jennifer Muller/The Works. She has been a member of the Visual and Performing Arts Board at SMMUSD and a board member of Dance Camera West. She is a certified grief educator and facilitates grief groups for teens and adults.
Jenny Li is a native Angeleno and has lived on Kingman for 14 years. She is married to Luis Li, and they have a daughter who just graduated from the University of Chicago. Before moving to the Canyon, they lived in the Alphabet streets of Pacific Palisades for 15 years. Jenny is a retired lawyer and has volunteered with many organizations, including the Pacific Palisades Community Council as vice president, Area 7 representative, and treasurer. She was a board member of the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association, which became The Canyon Alliance last year.
Reese Relfe has lived in the Canyon for 27 years - 8 in Rustic Canyon and 19 in Upper Santa Monica Canyon on San Lorenzo St. She has worked in the arts field for 40 years and is recently retired from accessory design. Involved with many organizations, she has served on the board of Everychild Foundation, and has been on The Canyon Alliance board (previously SMCCA) for 15 years. She is continually inspired by the history and uniqueness of the Canyon.
Ron Staake has lived on Dryad Road with his wife Deanna since 2012. The couple has raised two daughters there during that time. In the past, Ron served on the Board of Directors of the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association for roughly 4 - 5 years, including a stint as treasurer. He also served as treasurer of the Board of Directors for the Hemophilia Foundation of Southern California for approximately 7 years, and is currently the treasurer of the Board of Directors for the Palo Alto Homeowners Association (a homeowners association in Costa Rica). He is in the process of terming off of that board. His professional background was in executive financial management, and he has held the role of president/CEO, CFO, and other financial positions. Interests and passions include travel, golf, woodworking/furniture making, and exercise. Ron and deanna consider themselves extremely fortunate to live in the Santa Monica Canyon for roughly 10 months of the year with the other two months in the home they built in Costa Rica.
Marilyn Wexler and her husband Cliff Merlo moved to Kingman Ave. in 1992. She is a native Angeleno and has a large interest in the city’s history. A few years after moving to Kingman, she took a seat on the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association’s board of directors, then became secretary before serving as president for six years before its transition to The Canyon Alliance. She retired from a forty year career in biomedical physics and is currently serving as chairman of the board for the Institute for Public Strategy, a nonprofit involved with public health issues surrounding underserved communities. She is also the vice president of the Palisades Forestry Committee, which protects and promotes the Palisades urban forest.