Presenter bios

M. Todd Dixon, SHIBA Program Manager/Acting Deputy for Consumer Protection

In August 2019, Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler appointed Todd Dixon as the acting Deputy Commissioner for the Consumer Protection division. As a member of the Insurance Commissioner Executive Management Team, Todd is responsible for effective and strategic management of three program areas: Consumer Advocacy, Producer Licensing and Oversight, and the State Health Insurance Benefits Advisors (SHIBA).

Prior to his appointment, Todd served as the SHIBA program manager for over five years. In his SHIBA program manager role, he led a team of 15 staff, 20 contracted sponsor agencies, and 555 trained and certified health advisors – with a budget of $3 million. Prior to joining the OIC, Todd served in various leadership positions with the State Employment Security Department—spanning over 15 years. As a staunch advocate for workforce development, he served as an administrator and a regional director for WorkSource offices across the state.

Todd is an elected member of the national Statewide Health Insurance Assistance Program Steering Committee and leads the taskforce for congressional outreach and stakeholder communication. He graduated with honors (Magna Cum Laude) from Heritage University with a bachelor of arts degree in interdisciplinary studies/public administration and was a recipient of the 2007 Governor’s Leadership and Management Award.

Todd and his wife Jeanette enjoy hiking, biking, horses and spending time with their two grandchildren Aliya and Chance.

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2020 SHIBA Volunteer Coordinator Conference – Presenter bios

Mike Kreidler, Washington state Insurance Commissioner

Mike Kreidler is Washington’s eighth insurance commissioner, first elected in 2000 and re-elected to his fifth term in 2016. Commissioner Kreidler has earned a reputation both as a staunch advocate for consumer advocacy and as a fair and balanced regulator.

The commissioner served 16 years in the state Legislature, first as a Representative and then Senator. He later was elected to Congress. In both the Legislature and Congress, much of the commissioner’s work focused improving health care options for consumers.

In 1998 he was appointed Regional Director for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Region 10 office in . He served in that post until 2000.

A doctor of optometry, he practiced at the former Group Health Cooperative in Olympia, Washington, for 20 years. He holds a master’s degree in public health from UCLA. The commissioner retired from the Army Reserves as a lieutenant colonel after 20 years of service.

He is the most-tenured insurance commissioner in the country, providing leadership that spans from healthcare reform to climate change.

Liz Mercer, Operations Supervisor, SHIBA

Liz Mercer has worked with the SHIBA program since 2005. She has been a regional trainer and now supervises SHIBA program operations. Prior to coming to the OIC, she developed and managed an information and referral program in Seattle that helped low income women and families enroll in and navigate Medicaid.

She has a bachelor of science in speech and hearing science and a master’s in organizational management. She grew up in Olympia, but lived in Seattle for most of her adult life. She and her husband happily relocated to Olympia three years ago and now both of their kids and their three grandkids live in Thurston County.

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2020 SHIBA Volunteer Coordinator Conference – Presenter bios Judith Bendersky, Field Operations Supervisor, SHIBA

Judith Bendersky is the SHIBA Field Operations Supervisor. Her background includes a degree in public health with an emphasis on health education and promotion. She has helped people navigate Medicare for 12 years here in Washington and in Alaska. Judith loves to “peel back the layers of the onion” on complex Medicare situations.

She and her husband have four children living everywhere from Pennsylvania to Wyoming to Seattle. She loves to hike, ride bicycles and kayak on the Puget Sound and garden with her granddaughter.

Linda Phillips, Volunteer Coordinator, Sound Generations

Linda has worked with Sound Generations for 15 years. Before she became a SHIBA volunteer coordinator, Linda worked as a Senior I&A advocate. Prior to coming to Sound Generations, Linda worked with housing programs at Catholic Community Services.

Linda graduated with a degree in psychology from Marietta College.

Linda lives in Kent with her husband, their dog, and her elderly father. Linda enjoys knitting and quilting, cooking, and going on road trips.

Summer Starr, Volunteer Coordinator, Opportunity Council

Summer Starr grew up in the northwest on a small farm outside of Blaine, WA. She studied international development at the University of Washington and has a graduate degree in international non-profit management from UCSD.

Much of her career took her abroad working in Kenya, Ghana and for many years in India where she managed grassroots community-building projects which were heavily supported by volunteers from around the world.

She loves being back in her hometown and enjoying the beauty of the northwest while continuing to contribute to building strong communities.

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2020 SHIBA Volunteer Coordinator Conference – Presenter bios

Kim McKenna, Regional Training Consultant, SHIBA

In 2018, Kim started in her current role as the SHIBA Regional Training Consultant in Eastern Washington. Previously, she worked as a volunteer program manager for St. Luke’s Rehab Hospital, World Relief Resettlement, and catholic schools in Spokane. She also worked as an elementary school teacher and a special education specialist.

Kim and her husband of 30 years have three grown children: Shane, age 25; Nicole age 24; and Brenna, age 21. Together, they raised their family in Spokane.

She enjoy’s hiking with her husband and their two dogs, and her favorite vacation is going to the Oregon coast with her family.

Phillip White, Leadership Consultant

Phillip is a Leadership Consultant and a Deputy Assistant Director for the WA Department of Licensing. He has 21 years of experience in public service, helping organizations build strong team cultures and assisting them in forming healthy community partnerships.

Phillip holds a doctorate of strategic leadership, an MBA in economics, and an undergraduate in accounting. When he is not working, he enjoys restoring classic trucks, completing projects around his home, and watching his beloved Buffalo Bills.

Ron House, Grants and Contracts Coordinator, SHIBA

Ron’s SHIBA responsibilities include budget management, program analysis and reporting, grant management, contract management, and database management. Ron develops and manages budgets from multiple funding sources and contracts as well as ensuring requirements of our funding sources are communicated to and understood by our field staff and sponsors. He works closely with SHIBA’s federal funders, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and Administration for Community Living Aging (ACL) to ensure that our program meets all reporting requirements and deadlines associated with our grant requirements.

Ron also manages all aspects of SHIBA’s grants and contracting including, Request for Proposal (RFP) process, contract negotiations, performance management, Interagency Agreements, and contract addendums.

Ron holds a bachelor’s of science in finance law from Portland State University.

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2020 SHIBA Volunteer Coordinator Conference – Presenter bios Kara Klotz, Social Media and Communications Manager, Office of the Insurance Commissioner

Kara Klotz is the Social Media and Communications Manager for the Washington state Office of the Insurance Commissioner. She joined the agency in 2013 after working in state government communications for the State Auditor and the Department of Early Learning.

Before joining state government, Kara worked at several Northwest newspapers as a copy editor, wire editor and page designer and worked as a book editor for a small publisher. She was raised in Washington state and also lived in Central and Southern California and Ohio. She earned a bachelor of arts in communication from Pacific Lutheran University.

Kara manages the OIC’s social media and also is responsible for media relations, strategic communications and internal communications. She lives in Olympia with her husband and twins, a son and a daughter.

Donna Wells, Communications Consultant, SHIBA

Donna has over 35 years of experience as a communications professional. She’s been with the SHIBA program since 2006 as the communications coordinator. Her key responsibilities include writing and editing SHIBA publications, marketing materials, web pages and public presentations, and managing and promoting both the SHIBA and Consumer Advocacy programs for the Washington state Office of the Insurance Commissioner.

Previously, she worked in communications for the Washington state departments of Information Services, and Retirement Systems. She earned a bachelor of arts in speech communications from Western Washington University.

She lives in Lacey with her husband and college-age daughter, and their two beagles Bella and Bentley. She enjoys gardening, interior design and travel.

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