Meet our board
Ema Bowman
President
The 2026-27 season is Ema's second year as president of the club. Ema has resided in Half Moon Bay for nine years with her husband, Lee. The couple shares a deep love for the coast, and Ema can often be found enjoying the outdoors through hiking, cycling, or jogging along the scenic trails. Beyond her active lifestyle, she is an avid traveler and a dedicated bridge player.
Ema is deeply passionate about expanding educational opportunities for youth and is actively involved with She-Can, an organization dedicated to changing the world through women’s education. Prior to her retirement, she enjoyed a successful career at Visa, where she served as a program manager overseeing large-scale IT projects.
Sophia Wambach
Vice President
A native San Franciscan and Peninsula resident for 37 years, Sophia brings over four decades of expertise in operations, human resources, and event planning. Since 2021, she has served as the Newsletter Editor for the Coastside Women’s Club.
Sophia has spent decades advocating for older adults in San Mateo County. As a Certified Dementia Care Partner and Therapeutic Art Coach, she excels at building heartfelt connections through social programs and compassionate care. Her love for history and language also drives her volunteer work as a Digital Archival Transcription Specialist, where she deciphers fragile manuscripts—including documents from the U.S. National Archives and the Library of Congress—to preserve history for future generations.
Outside of her professional and volunteer commitments, Sophia is a dedicated artist. She enjoys a variety of creative pursuits, including neurographic art, card making, haiku writing, and the traditional Japanese art of ikebana.
Judy Teson Duncan
President Emeritus
Judy and Foster have called the coast home for many years, surrounded by family, including grandchildren who graduated from Half Moon Bay High. Witnessing local youth succeed in this community is one of her greatest joys. Her father, a disabled ironworker, instilled the determination and self-reliance that have guided her life and career.
Judy’s professional journey includes 30 years in technology—notably 25 years at IBM, retiring as a Business Unit Executive, followed by leadership roles at three software startups. She also shared her expertise by mentoring entrepreneurs through SCORE in San Francisco.
A dedicated leader who has served on the Coastside Women’s Club Board for over 30 years, her focus for 2026-27 is securing corporate support for our mission. She invites members to share leads and contacts to help make this a banner year for our local students!
Lisa Rojani
Secretary
Lisa is relatively new to Half Moon Bay, where she lives with her husband and various adult children who defy their “empty nesting” philosophy.
She is a book writer and editor with 35+ books to her name. She is active in the community and serves on several nonprofit boards. Lisa enjoys walking her Great Dane and Frenchie, who look ridiculous together, Pilates, and walking along our beautiful beach trails. She strongly believes in Coastside Women’s Club’s mission, and is happy to be a part of the club.
Natalie Cooper
Parliamentarian
Natalie moved to Half Moon Bay in 2023, following 25 years of living in San Jose. She shares a home with her husband and their dog, Belle. With all three of her children now grown and living on their own across the country, she has transitioned into this new chapter of her life.
Before dedicating her time to being an active stay-at-home mom, Natalie enjoyed a successful career in the tech industry, specializing in finance and accounting.
Throughout the past 30 years, she has been a deeply committed volunteer at her children’s schools and an active participant in various philanthropic organizations, including serving on the board of the National Charity League. Outside of her volunteer work, Natalie loves taking in the beauty of the coast on local trails, playing mahjong and bunco, and traveling as often as she can. She also has a true passion for quilting and sewing, and you can often find her happily tucked away in her sewing room working on her latest creative project.
Sandra Adams
Treasurer
A retired finance and audit executive, Sandra began hiking with the Coastside Women’s Club in 2020 and joined its Board as Treasurer in 2025. She is grateful to be part of an organization that fosters community among Coastside women and supports local high school seniors through scholarships.
Sandra grew up in San Jose and relied on scholarships to complete her Bachelor of Science in Accounting at Santa Clara University. She retired after a long career at firms including PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Oracle and Visa. In 2014, she moved to the coast with her husband of over 30 years. They share two adult children and a Boxer-Dachshund rescue dog named Ladybug. In addition to hiking, she enjoys reading, baking, and wine tasting.
Sherry Booth
Scholarship Director
Sherry has called Half Moon Bay home for five years, following three decades in Foster City. A retired English professor from Santa Clara University, she also taught women’s studies and environmental thought. Today, she remains active in other nonprofits, serving as the secretary for the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and volunteering as a docent at the historic Johnston House.
Beyond her professional and volunteer commitments, Sherry cherishes time spent with her children and grandchildren. She stays active through yoga, water aerobics, and exploring the area’s scenic hiking trails, while also pursuing her love of travel. A dedicated bibliophile, Sherry is particularly proud of a book group she founded 38 years ago, which continues to thrive today with a vibrant circle of twelve devoted readers.
Myoung Kang
Fundraising Director
Having lived in Cupertino for 25 years, Myoung Kang moved to Half Moon Bay in 2022, where she now resides with her husband and their two corgis. In her professional life, Myoung serves as a fractional CFO for small startups, leveraging her deep expertise to help businesses thrive. To date, she has partnered with over 30 startups, contributing to 22 successful exits, and she currently provides financial leadership to two growing AI companies.
Her extensive volunteer experience includes 13 years as a Girl Scout leader, serving as a PTA president, and active involvement with the Junior League of Palo Alto. She also finds great joy in giving back as a baker for Cake4Kids. When she isn’t working or volunteering, Myoung enjoys spending her time cooking, sewing, and knitting.
Tina Der Torossian
Fundraising Director
Tina is a native of Saratoga, California, where she also raised her two children. Following their high school graduations, she and her children relocated to Half Moon Bay in 2021. As an intermittent empty-nester, Tina has enjoyed meeting new friends through the Coastside Women’s Club and deeply appreciates the local community. She has a lifelong love for the ocean, often spending her time sailing, paddling, tidepooling, or hiking and riding along the coastal trail.
Before retiring in 2025, Tina enjoyed a career as a dentist, working both as a sole practitioner and as an associate in a group practice. Passionate about education, she spent the final 12 years of her career as a dental educator and the program director of a dental hygiene college. Now, she is enjoying getting to know the coastside community even better and traveling whenever she can.
Janet Himel
Programs Director
Janet relocated to Half Moon Bay from New York in the summer of 2024, accompanied by her husband, Les, and their Golden Retriever, to be closer to their children and grandchildren. After a friendly neighbor introduced her to the Coastside Women’s Club, Janet quickly found a vibrant community of inspiring women and lasting friendships. She is an active participant in the club’s hiking and evening book groups.
A former long-time Director at a Friends school in New York, Janet maintains a strong commitment to education and community service. She currently serves as a Naturalist at the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve in Moss Beach and shares her expertise as a substitute teacher at Sea Crest School, where she supports their marine science-focused curriculum.
Virginia Perry
Programs Director
Virginia has lived with her husband Len Perry in Half Moon Bay for 37 years. Together, they share a deep love for the coast and enjoy staying active through golf, walking, and travel.
Her commitment to the local community runs deep; she has been a proud member of the Coastside Women’s Club for 31 years, serving in various leadership positions throughout that time. Additionally, she served as President of the Coastside Boys and Girls Club, where she focused on supporting local youth. Before retiring, she enjoyed a successful career in the healthcare field, where she served as Vice President of Regulatory/Clinical Affairs and Quality Assurance, as well as President of Perry-D’Amico & Associates. She is honored to continue her long-standing involvement with the club and remains a dedicated, active member of the community.
Pachi Allendes
Technology Director
A native of Chile, Pachi has called the Bay Area home for over two decades with her husband, Craig, and their two cats, Roco and Basil.
Passionate about driving digital transformation, she is currently dedicated to increasing technical adoption within the club and enhancing the website to better serve the members and the organization's mission. Pachi brings to the role a long tenure in academics and over 25 years of Bay Area leadership experience in the technology sector.
Outside of her volunteer and professional work, she enjoys hiking, cooking, traveling, and exploring new languages.
Kathy Belick
Membership Director
In 2023, Kathy and her husband, Dan, fulfilled their dream of living by the ocean and moved from the San Jose/Almaden area to Half Moon Bay, where they also enjoy being closer to their daughter in Redwood City.
Kathy spent 35 years in the high-tech industry at Silicon Graphics (later HPE), serving in management roles across Global Customer Operations, International Export Compliance, and Mergers & Acquisitions. She has also dedicated countless hours to volunteering with Habitat for Humanity and organizations supporting the Special Needs community, a cause close to her heart.
After moving, Kathy found Coastside Women’s Club while searching for a local book club and quickly became an active member. She enjoys coastal walks, reading, baking, and exploring creative art projects.
Maria Segel
Membership Director
Maria and her husband, Mitch, moved to Half Moon Bay in 2018 from Cupertino, where they raised their three sons. A UCLA graduate, Maria brings her passion for community service and local education to the CWC, having joined the board in 2025.
Beyond her commitment to the club, Maria is a volunteer grief counselor with KARA and serves on the board of the Tim Griffith Foundation. She is also a sustaining member of the Junior League of San Jose and remains an active member of the Cupertino Rotary. Professionally, Maria works as a residential real estate agent with Compass Silicon Valley. She especially enjoys the community-building interest groups sponsored by the CWC and is a frequent participant in the hiking, book club, and Bunco events.
Robyn Monger
Communications Director (External)
Robyn and her husband, Paul, have called Half Moon Bay home for four years, following 30 years of traveling the globe with the U.S. Navy. A software engineer turned math and computer science teacher, she retired last year to spend more time with her grandchildren. She continues to tutor local students and mentor the middle school robotics team.
Robyn stays active by exploring the area’s scenic hiking trails and participating in strength training. She is the proud mother of two wonderful adult daughters and a doting grandmother to two grandsons, with a third on the way.
Deborah Pierce
Communications Director (Internal)
Deborah has lived in Half Moon Bay for 30 years with her husband, Jeff. Together, they share a family of six grown children and nine grandchildren. In her free time, Deborah enjoys hiking, playing golf, traveling, and writing.
She is deeply active in the local community and supports several non-profit organizations, including the Friends of Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, the San Francisco and St. Louis Symphonies, and various initiatives for local jazz musicians. Prior to retiring, Deborah had a successful 20-plus-year career as an educator. Her teaching experience spanned many levels, including middle school science, elementary instruction, Earth Sciences at the community college level, and high school English Language Development (ELD). She was also dedicated to supporting her fellow educators, focusing on strategies for creating safe and effective learning environments.