The Olympic Newcomers’ Club board of directors holds ten regular meetings every year, plus any additional meetings required to manage the Club’s business. Any Newcomers’ Club member can attend and actively participate in these meetings. The board welcomes all input (positive or negative) from our members. The organization and operational procedures of the Olympic Newcomers’ Club are defined in the club’s constitution and by-laws. These two documents are available for all members to review:
Congratulations to the Newly Elected Board Members!
Board President
Judy Rhodes has lived in Sequim since 2009, which makes her a seasoned Newcomer. She moved here with her husband Frank from Seattle where they first retired. Her careers spanned teaching German, Community Organization and Management Recruiting. She tries to take on one new activity a year while keeping as many of the old ones as possible. This year you can see her taking tickets at OTA or muttering French phrases to her computer as she works on Duolingo. She will never give up walking with friends, exercising at the gym, Great Decisions, playing mahjong or enjoying the many activities of Newcomers Club. She’s looking forward to leading the Club and helping develop new experiences for everyone to share.
Board Vice President
Tom Peet was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota but raised a few miles north of Columbus, Ohio near Galena. He attended the Ohio State University from which he earned four degrees. He paid for the first two years of his undergraduate program at Ohio State by working at the Nestle Coffee Plant in Sunbury, Ohio and the second two as an automotive machinist at S&A Auto Parts in Westerville, Ohio, staying after graduating in 1972. When Westerville North High School opened in 1975 he was hired as one of two auto mechanics instructors, and Tom transferred to the social studies department where he specialized in U.S. and World History. Tom served as chairman of the social studies department from 1999-2012, was named Westerville’s teacher of the year in 2000, and Wooster College’s National Teacher of the Year in 2003. Tom is a car guy, computer hardware geek, and a Civil War, Abraham Lincoln, and JFK Assassination expert. He and his wife Georgia are in love with the Olympic Peninsula; their two sons, Chad and Alex, still live in central Ohio.
Board Secretary
Paula Topjun lived most of her life in Florida, graduating 
from the University of South Florida. She has been an insurance agent and practice administrator of a large medical practice. She is a die-hard Florida Gator fan, avid Mah Jongg player and boater. She and her husband, Terry, moved to Sequim in 2009. They love cruising in the Pacific Northwest and Canada. She has served on the Board previously, and enjoys helping Olympic Newcomers thrive.
Board Treasurer
Gary Allen Smith was born in Western New York State. He lives in Port Angeles with his wife, Lani, whom he married 50 years ago in Key West, Florida while Gary served in the US Navy. They relocated to the Olympic Peninsula in 2013 after Gary’s retirement from a 30-year career in Software Engineering, working at several companies in Southern California. A graduate of the University of California San Diego, where he majored in Visual Arts and Computer Science, Gary spends most of his time between his extensive garden and greenhouse and his art studio, in which he is developing computer-based digital art and microcomputer-driven kinetic sculptures. He has been a member of the Newcomers’ Club since 2013.
Board Member
Lani Butcher Smith was born and raised in western New York State, married in Key West, FL, lived most of her adult life in San Diego, CA, and moved with her husband, Gary, to Port Angeles, WA a few years ago. Her sister once asked her why she keeps moving to lands end. Having seen the four corners of the continental USA, she’s found her home in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Her corporate careers, lasting 25 years, were as a manager and trainer at Pacific Telephone and as a manager and technical writer at Xerox. She found her best career last, as a dog trainer, where for 13 years, she taught basic and advanced obedience classes, conducted private lessons, and was a certified evaluator for the American Kennel Club’s Canine Good Citizen Program. She was a regular volunteer at a local animal shelter, where she worked with dogs who were waiting for adoption. She enjoys reading, especially mysteries, volunteering, and exploring this beautiful area with Gary and her dog, Ruff.
Board member
Kathy Metz-Carson was born and raised in Chicago, IL. After attending the University of Illinois, she became Product Manager of Studio Girl Cosmetics. After receiving her mixologist certification, Kathy and her husband, Wayne, moved to Glenwood Springs, CO, and pursued a real estate career. She and Wayne then moved to San Diego, CA, in 1985 to take advantage of the “building boom.” After retiring, Kathy and Wayne moved to the beautiful Olympic Peninsula to get away from “The Madding Crowd” and a hectic big city life. She is now enjoying her surroundings and is an “artist in progress!”
Board Member
Nancy El
wert was born and raised in the southwest suburbs of Chicago. She earned her B.S. in education at Northern Illinois University where she met Warren the second month of our freshmen year. She received a M.S. Ed in special education at DePaul University and taught for eight years before her next career, motherhood and volunteering. We have two daughters, one spoiled granddaughter and a grand dog. After the girls left for college Nancy became a foster mom enjoying her babies for ten years. We moved to Sequim in 2013 for the weather and scenery and have met so many wonderful people. When not doing volunteering for Newcomers, CERT, Red Cross and the Guild for Seattle Children’s Hospital she enjoys swimming, sewing, crafting, gardening and all the fun club activities.
Board Member
Doris Stuart is a native of Sequim. She met her husband,
Dave, in Sequim in 1975, got married in 1977, and they have two children. They moved away in 1985 to Everett, Washington, but came back to Sequim to retire in 2012, and have been members of the Newcomers’ Club since 2013. Doris enjoys music and dancing and walking the Discovery Trail with old friends that I grew up with and all the new friends I have made as part of the Newcomers’ Club. Dave and Doris love to travel, both abroad and in their RV. “When I’m home you can find me in my yard weeding, mowing, or just relaxing with a nice glass of wine.”
Board Member
Connie Toschlog grew up in South Bend, IN under the shadow of Notre Dame University, the middle 
child of 3 redheads. She met her husband Clete at Purdue University while pursuing a degree in Elementary Education. They’ve lived in Texas, California and Pennsylvania, settling in Delaware for 40 years where they raised a son and daughter. Connie’s favorite job – after giving up teaching – was managing the gift shop at Delaware Nature Society. “It was there that I learned to appreciate Nature – birds, wildflowers, gardening and nature focused trips to Costa Rica, Yucatan Peninsula and Yellowstone National park when wolves were reintroduced,” They moved to Port Angeles this past July. They are grateful many times over to the Newcomers Club for their warm, fun welcome to us over all these years