Orange County Branch Newsletter

October 2013

President's Message

President's Message - Moving Forward

By Penny Lew, P.E.



If you’ve been as busy I have been these last few months, you might be wondering where the year has gone as we’re now into October.  As the new ASCE year begins, I am looking forward to serving as your Branch president and am excited to see what this branch, its members, committee members and board will accomplish.

Prior to joining the ASCE branch Board as your secretary in 2010, the board made a commitment and priority to provide more value to our members. The other day I spoke with Jay Higgins our Region 9 governor at an L.A. Section board meeting and he reinforced the commitment we have been working towards the last few years- to bring value to our members by improving events and activities our members would most likely participate in at the branch (local) level.  Starting with efforts by our past presidents to overhaul and improve the branch website, we have made great strides in this area.  Thanks to our branch Past-President Josh Nelson, P.E., we were able to revamp the website and are committed to continue to update the website regularly and provide our members with useful information.   We also plan to focus on our Lunch Programs and Continuing Education Seminars this year.

Last year would not have been a successful year in reaching our goals without our dedicated board members who spent countless hours volunteering their time to sustain this branch. Tapas Dutta, P.E. last year’s President provided us with invaluable leadership. Gary Gilbert P.E.,G.E. as branch treasurer, was always one step ahead when it came to overseeing the branch’s budget and finances.  Last year’s branch secretary Cindy Miller, P.E., not only provided oversight of the monthly newsletter but documented the lively discussions during our board meetings to ensure that we all followed up.

With a branch membership of over 2,000 members, the Orange County Branch is one of the largest within the ASCE organization. For many years now the branch has been one of the most active in the nation. Let’s continue the tradition of being at the top of the ASCE community.  There must be many of you who are interested in participating more with the organization but are not sure what aspects would be a good fit for you or where help is needed. We want to know what your interests are as we have many committees that could use some fresh ideas and new members to help carry out these ideas. A wealth of information is available on our website www.asceoc.org.  So take a look, contact us and get active! I know most of us are very busy with our jobs, families, homes, community and other activities but just a small commitment of your time towards helping with a committee that most interests you can be rewarding in so many ways.

ASCE OC Branch Organization Chart

As representatives of the civil engineering field, we also carry the responsibility of helping move the profession forward. We are also seeing how the profession has evolved and how not only technical skills but soft skills such as communication, conflict resolution, negotiating, and creative thinking have become just as important.  In order to make the impact that civil engineers need to make in our current state of crumbling and much needed renewal of infrastructure, we need to possess those skills and use them effectively for the benefit or our communities.

Today’s young civil engineers are the future of the profession and need to be nurtured to develop their ideas, skills, and leadership. I realize this more and more as I meet university students from our region as well as from other parts of the country.  Just last week I had the opportunity to attend the ASCE Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina.  I was so impressed with how enthusiastic and eager, the young bright-eyed students were to learn more about what the civil engineering field is all about. Whether you help with one of our committees or take on mentoring a student or young engineer in your office, you are moving us in the right direction.

Speaking of young and enthusiastic, the Orange County Branch Younger Member Forum (YMF) was very active this past year holding 90 events which included a good mix of technical, social, charity, and outreach events. All of the events (even the annual wine-tasting trip) aim to contribute to the attendees’ professional development.  We look forward to working more closely with the YMF and to close the gap between the branch and younger members.

We are currently planning the annual “Student’s Fellowship/History & Heritage and Board Installation Night” dinner that will be held at the Center Club in Costa Mesa on Thursday, November 21, 2013. This year the keynote speaker for the evening, Rich Atwater, Executive Director, Southern California Water Committee, will give us the latest on the Bay Delta and how it relates to Southern California. We look forward to a fun-filled evening so please join us with your colleagues to see what our student chapters have been doing this past year and to meet many of our past branch presidents who can share their wisdom and civil engineering experiences. The new branch board will be installed and we will have prize drawings throughout the evening.

I hope to see many of you at our events this year!

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