BOISE, ID – Thomas Mortell, Partner at Hawley Troxell, is the new 2021 Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Boise Metro Chamber. Mortell replaces Charlene Maher, President and CEO of Blue Cross of Idaho, who will stay on as immediate past Chair. The Chamber also announced the selection of Joel Poppen, Senior Vice President of Legal Affairs and General Counsel at Micron Technology as the Chair-elect of the Board. Poppen will take over as Chair in 2022.
Mortell is a Partner at Hawley Troxell and is the head of Hawley Troxell’s health law group and has significant expertise in construction related litigation. Mortell also is a member of the firm’s Board of Partner’s and has spent the last 20 years representing Idaho’s businesses. Mortell also has an extensive history with the Boise Metro Chamber; sitting on the board of the Boise Valley Economic Partnership (BVEP), is the past chair of the Governmental Affairs committee, a current member of the policy committee, and a graduate of Leadership Boise in 2007.
“First, let me thank Charlene Maher, CEO of Blue Cross. Without Charlene’s incredible help and support, this pandemic would have left our organization in dire straits, while we saw no Federal PPP relief, Charlene stepped in to keep our lights on and our spirits up,” said Bill Connors, President and CEO of the Boise Metro Chamber. “Tom Mortell and Joel Poppen are two of the brightest business minds in our state, and they will ensure our organization will continue to be a beacon for our business community as we recover from this current crisis.”
Joel Poppen, Senior Vice President of Legal Affairs and General Counsel at Micron Technology, was elected as Chair-Elect. His term begins immediately and will become chair of the board in January 2022. Poppen currently serves on the Policy Committee, is a board member of Trailhead, Idaho Technology Council, and the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry. Poppen is also President of the Micron Foundation and is a founder and board member of One Stone.
The Boise Metro Chamber also added eight new at-large board members from significant Idaho companies to round out the new 2021 Boise Metro Chamber leadership roster. Six individual board members will join as well as the incoming Chairs for Boise Valley Economic Partnership (BVEP) and Boise Convention and Visitors Bureau (BCVB) that will have a seat on the Chamber board.
Earlier this fall, the Boise Metro Chamber announced Garrett Lofto, President and CEO of the J.R. Simplot Company joining the Board of Directors. The six new members that were added to the Board of Directors for 2021 include: John McCreedy, President and CEO of Amalgamated Sugar; Gioia Woo, Site Director of Tandem Diabetes Care Boise; Bret Moffett, President and CEO of POWER Engineers; Jeff Newgard, President and CEO of Bank of Idaho; Kent Oram, President and CEO of Idaho Central Credit Union, and Tom Werner, President and CEO of Lamb Weston.
“Having added Garrett Lofto, the President & CEO of the JR Simplot Company, to our board this fall, the addition of these outstanding CEO’s solidifies the Boise Metro Chamber’s Board as one of the most influential business organizations in the Intermountain West,” said Bill Connors, President and CEO of the Boise Metro Chamber. “These companies and CEOs hail from Eagle, Nampa, Boise, Meridian, Pocatello and Idaho Falls, and represent tens of thousands of employees. With an already impressive Board of business leaders, we welcome the added geographic diversity and respect these leaders bring to our organization.”
The Boise Metro Chamber’s affiliates, the Boise Valley Economic Partnership (BVEP) and Boise Convention and Visitors Bureau (BCVB) also added new Chairs that will have a seat on the Boise Metro Chamber Board of Directors. BVEP’s incoming Chair will be Phil Archer, Vice President of Fidelity National Title and Escrow. John Cunningham, CEO of Block 22 Hotels and Idaho Central Arena, will be the Chair for the Boise Convention and Visitors Bureau. The Leadership Boise Chair as well as Boise Young Professionals Chair will have an ex-officio non-voting seat on the Board of Directors. Josh Shiverick of Cushing Terrell will take over as the Leadership Boise Chair and Kati Stallings of deChase Miksis will be the Boise Young Professionals Chair.
Each of these positions will go into effect on January 1, 2021. For a full list of Executive Committee, Board Members, and Board of Advisors, please visit boisechamber.org/leadership.
About the Boise Metro Chamber: Established in 1883, the Boise Metro Chamber is Idaho’s only U.S. Chamber of Commerce five-star accredited member that strives to be the leading business advocacy organization in the Boise Valley. As the region’s business advocate for a vibrant, prosperous economy and outstanding quality of life, it serves 1,850
member businesses representing 120,000+ employees. Its mission is to provide leadership that will help create regional economic prosperity and success for its members.