WEI Advisory Board

Norm was born in NYC, graduated with a BSBA in Management from the University of Denver. Following graduation, he spent several years with the Squibb Pharmaceutical company and the institutional foods division of Beatrice Foods.  Upon his move to California, he joined the Zacky Farms organization in Los Angeles and finally moved to Modesto to become VP of the West Coast operations of the Christian Salvesen Company, a world-wide provider of temperature control foods logistic services.  

In 1991, the first Prime Shine was opened to offer what Norm wished to accomplish: “To change the way Californians thought about washing their cars”. And he did! The need for a quick, convenient, quality car wash at a value hit home.

After 30 years in the professional car washing business, he is pleased to say that there have been many objectives that he reached. First and foremost, to have son, Evan, join him early-on to help guide, grow and eventually sell the business. Secondly, to have seen so many employees become second family and see their families grow. And thirdly, to be able to give back to the communities, in both time and money, that have supported Prime Shine over the years.

Today, after the successful sale of the largest, family-owned car wash company in California to Mr. Car Wash, the nation’s foremost and largest car wash company in the nation, Norm is enjoying the fruits of his labor. If not traveling or golfing, he is involved in philanthropic activities in our communities. His passion to “change the way Californians thought about washing their cars” is now a passion to “raise the quality of life of Central Valley residents while at the same time, enlighten them to the amazing opportunities available in their own backyard”. Norm has joined his son once again to establish the Porges Family Foundation to oversee this mission.

On a personal note, Norm and his wife, Marilyn, love to travel and discover all the fascinating cultures in the world. When not traveling, they enjoy golfing with their friends followed by that celebratory glass of fine wine and gracious dining.

Evan was born on July 30, 1969, in Chicago, Illinois. A strong work ethic has always been a part of Evan’s life and his first experience in the business world was at a young age with early jobs such as paper routes, starting his own landscaping business and working at Modesto’s ice company, Jack Frost. After high school, Evan attended Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona graduating Cum Laude with a degree in Political Science in 1991. Shortly after graduating Evan joined a small "start up" company called Prime Shine Express Car Wash that his father had recently opened. Evan literally grew up in the car wash business and is proud to have been a vital part of creating the Prime Shine culture, brand and system that was a recognized industry leader. Evan was promoted to President of Prime Shine in 2014 and was responsible for setting the course and tempo for the company’s development and direction. Over the years Prime Shine was honored to have received several awards and recognition, including Small Business of the Year and Business of the Year from the Modesto Chamber, Corporate Philanthropist of the Year from the Association of Philanthropy Professionals, Corporate Partner of the Year from the Stanislaus County of Education, Excellence in Business from the Modesto Bee, Stanislaus County Best Places to Work 2016, 2017 and 2018 and a Design Achievement Award from the American Institute of Architects. Prior to its December 2018 sale to the industry’s largest consolidator Mister Car Wash, Prime Shine was the largest privately-owned car wash chain in California and the 15th largest car wash chain in the country.

In addition to guiding Prime Shine for almost thirty years, Evan has found much enjoyment and reward in donating his time and talent to local non-profit agencies and community activities. Modesto's State Theatre, The Central Valley Professional Exchange, The Center for Human Services, Modesto Police Department's Crime Stoppers, Partners in Paint, Modesto’s Chamber of Commerce, Opportunity Stanislaus, Stanislaus Community Foundation, The Gallo Center for the Performing Arts, and Del Rio Country Club have all provided Evan an opportunity to give back to his community. Evan has served as President of the Del Rio Country Club Board of Directors, Chairman of the Board of Directors for Presidio Captive Insurance Company and most recently Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Gallo Center of the Arts. Evan is a graduate of the Modesto Chamber of Commerce Leadership Modesto as well as The American Leadership Forum, Great Valley Chapter. In 2023, Evan was honored with his father to receive an honorary doctorate degree from California State University for their decades efforts of giving back to the community.

Don’t call Evan “retired,” today he enjoys doing what he wants to do, instead of what he has to do. This includes community work as well as enjoying a round of golf, traveling with his wife Leia, relaxing at their home in Pebble Beach and drinking fine Cabernet Sauvignon.

John was born in Fresno in 1979. His mother worked various jobs as a groundskeeper for a high school and a cleaner for commercial buildings. His father was a carpenter and a delivery van driver. He moved many times throughout his childhood, living in apartments, rental houses, trailers, and even a school bus. In 1992, his parents risked their entire savings to buy a small pet store in Merced. He worked at their store until he graduated high school in 1997. He went to Stanislaus State where he earned a degree in Economics while working a full-time job as a carpenter. In doing so, he became the first member of his family to attend college. From there he went to the University of Tennessee where he earned an MBA. He graduated at the top of his class with a double concentration in logistics and operations management.

After business school, he went to work at the Home Depot corporate office in Atlanta as an importer and forecaster. Wanting to return to California, he took a job with PrimeSource, a supplier to Home Depot. He began in the merchandising department and quickly advanced to a Branch Manager role. The promotion required him to move to New Orleans for 5 years before returning to California to run their San Leandro facility. After a total of 10 years with PrimeSource, he was recruited as an executive vice president at a company called Rugby Architectural Building Products. He spent two years there before a recruiter cold called him with an opportunity that would change his life. He was hired as President of Cal-Sierra Pipe in early 2018 and ran it for 5 years before buying the company from the private equity group that owned it. Cal-Sierra Pipe now has four facilities in Stockton, Paso Robles, Perris, and Salt Lake City, Utah.

John enjoys spending time with his wife Vanessa and his 2 teenaged children. He spends as much time as possible outdoors hiking, fishing, camping, and hunting. He trains and competes in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He enjoys working with students of all ages to help them further their careers, particularly first-generation college students.

Harpreet Singh is a public interest attorney by profession. He is part of three family businesses involving two retail businesses and one commercial real estate brokerage. He learned business management principles at an early age when he immigrated to the U.S. He earned his Bachelor of Science from Stanislaus State in 2010 and later earned his Juris Doctor from Purdue University Global in 2017. He likes to be socially involved through participation in local non-profits in the Central Valley region.

President & CEO
Greater Modesto Chamber of Commerce

Trish was voted in as the President & CEO of the Greater Modesto Chamber of Commerce in December 2019. She had held the interim CEO role for four months prior to her permanent appointment. Since she took the reins the Modesto Chamber of Commerce has evolved into a strong, refreshed, and relevant, broadly reaching business and community support organization.

Trish joined the Modesto Chamber of Commerce team in March of 2018, part-time as the Programs and Events Manager. At that time, she was actively enjoying running her own consulting business. Her client base was primarily focused on non-profits. She specialized in guiding clients on event development and redevelopment, fundraising, marketing, social media management, and website content. Trish is proud to sit on the Boys and Girls Clubs of Stanislaus County Executive Board, the Stanislaus County Partners in Education Executive Board, the Community Police Review Board, and a handful of advisory committees.

Trish has been a long-standing honorary member of Kiwanis Club of North Modesto. She has enjoyed many years volunteering on community events and committees such as the Amgen Tours of California and SKUSA Kart races, by being a part of the City’s Local Organizing Committee (LOC). Trish has sat on school-based boards such as Beyer Band Boosters, has participated with Team in Training raising money for blood cancer research while completing more than half a dozen half marathons as a power walker, and has long led a widely reaching neighborhood watch group.

President & Chief Executive Officer, Stanislaus Community Foundation

Marian Kaanon is the President & CEO of Stanislaus Community Foundation. A first-generation Assyrian American, Marian was born in Iraq. She immigrated with her family to Canada at age 7, and then the U.S. as a high school student.

After graduating from UC Davis, Marian began a career that spanned broadcast journalism, public affairs and nonprofit management. Marian joined Stanislaus Community Foundation as CEO in late 2012. Stanislaus Community Foundation is a place-based funder that provides grants and scholarships to community organizations in Stanislaus County. To date, the organization has invested over $40 million in local nonprofits and over $6 million in scholarships to students.

During Marian’s tenure, Stanislaus Community Foundation has quadrupled its assets under management and tripled its grantmaking. Stanislaus Community Foundation leads initiatives and supports programs in education, economic opportunity and civic engagement. Stanislaus Community Foundation co-founded the Cradle to Career Partnership, a multi-sector movement aimed at boosting outcomes for more than 110,000 children and young adults in the region. Coming out of the pandemic, Stanislaus Community Foundation launched Stanislaus 2030, an inclusive economic development sprint focused on creating quality jobs, which secured over $20M in state and federal funds in the local region.

In 2015 Marian was named an Outstanding Woman for Stanislaus County. In 2017 Marian was named the Distinguished Alumna of the Year for Modesto Junior College. In 2018, Marian was the recipient of the Modesto Chamber of Commerce Distinguished Service award.  In 2022 she received the Champion of the American Dream Award, established at Stanislaus State University by the Porges family to recognize entrepreneurial leadership in the community. Marian serves on the Board of Trustees for Doctors Medical Center, the Central Valley Journalism Collaborative and Dave Wilson Nursery.

COO & CFO at BEAM Circular

Maria Olide is the Chief Operating and Financial Officer of BEAM Circular, an organization that is catalyzing a bio-industrial manufacturing hub in the North San Joaquin Valley that is unlocking the power of the community to transform agricultural waste into economic and environmental opportunity. Maria has spent her career in various finance leadership roles, including serving at KPMG as a partner in the management consulting practice and as manager in the audit practice, at ADP as a divisional CFO, and most recently at Farmers Business Network, an agricultural technology company, as their CFO. Maria has a BS in Business Administration from UC, Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University.

Chief Innovation Officer/ Small Business Development Center Director of Opportunity Stanislaus

German Zavalza serves as the Chief Innovation Officer and SBDC Director at Opportunity Stanislaus. He has over a decade of experience working with the diverse population of California's Central Valley. With a background in strategic management, his experience expands over several industries including higher education, public health, and economic development. German leads an award winning SBDC and holds positions on the Board of Directors for the Stanislaus Latino Chamber of Commerce, as well as the Advisory Board for Stanislaus State Agriculture Industry Advisory Program and Stanislaus 2030.

Executive Director, Stanislaus 2030

Stanislaus 2030 is a public-private partnership led and operated by full-time Executive Director Amanda Hughes. In this role, Amanda oversees a team that drives distributed implementation of multiple initiatives relating to Stanislaus 2030 shared priorities, including talent development, childcare expansion, and small business support. As the center of gravity for Stanislaus 2030, Amanda providessustained leadership, neutral facilitation support to hold partners accountable, and identifies new funding that alignswith Stanislaus 2030 strategies, while also creating aplatform to track and measure progress metrics over time.

Prior to leading Stanislaus 2030, Amanda served for over ten years at Stanislaus Community Foundation. As Chief Strategy Officer, Amanda educated and connected local donors to the nonprofit sector and managed all grantmaking and community leadership activities on behalf of the foundation. This included conceptualizing signature initiatives and foundation programs, such as the Stanislaus Cradle toCareer Partnership, the Next Gen on Board youth empowerment program, and most recently, the Stanislaus 2030 inclusive economic development planning process. Amanda worked to build the foundation’s knowledge of community issues through participation in regional networks and conducting original research – including county-wide nonprofit surveys, listening sessions and empathy interviews with community-based partners and residents – which served to assess local needs, inform innovative solutions and increase awareness of impactful investment opportunities. In her tenure, Amanda helped grow the foundation’s charitable assets from $12 million to over $40 million, directed over $10 million in grants to community-based organizations, and awarded over $2,000,000 in scholarships to local students.

A Modesto native, Amanda obtained her bachelor’s degree in international affairs and French from Lewis and Clark College and a master’s degree in public administration from Stanislaus State. In her free time, Amanda enjoys hiking and floating rivers with her husband, Noah, her two daughters, Edie and Josie, and her golden retriever, Cora Mae.