The Topanga Community House was born as an idea in 1949 to give young people in the canyon a safe place to gather and to play. Seven founding members, all women, established the Topanga Woman’s Club. The early members joined together to host card and dance parties, cake raffles, bingo games and children’s events, and held rummage sales, sold cookbooks and even donated livestock to support their efforts. They established a center that was “built by the community, for the community.”
Today, the Topanga Community Club remains the only private, non-profit Community Center for Topanga Canyon. It continues to thrive, modernize and grow through fundraising and membership dues.
Its all-volunteer Board of Directors is elected by formal nominations and elections every two years.
This year, most of the current members are running again for their own positions, with the addition of a new brave soul, Lisa Brown.
Nominee: Kelly Rockwell
Office: President
Kelly Rockwell has been active at the Community Club since 2012 and served on the board for the past 4 years. As a Co-Chair of the Playground Committee, she spearheaded the effort to rebuild the TCC playground and helped to see it come to fruition. She has also served as Corresponding Secretary, and has been known as Swap Meet pie baker, soccer manager, former farmers’ market manager and event producer.
Under her leadership, the TCC has launched new programs, enhanced the social events calendar, improved accessibility of the grounds, and kept a close watch on the financial health and wellbeing of the accounts for future generations.
When she isn’t at the TCC, she enjoys being with her three little Topangans, who she knows will have many fond memories of our Community Club.
Nominee: Rick Provisor
Office: Maintenance Vice President
Rick Provisor has been a Community Club mainstay for more than three decades. You may recognize him as the head bartender from Topanga Days, but he has spent the past two years in a new role as Maintenance Vice President, dedicated to improving the 11 acre property on a daily basis. Many of the recent changes to the TCC appearance are thanks in part to Rick’s commitment to the founding mission of the Club; to protect, maintain, upgrade and enhance the Community House and the grounds entrusted to its care.
Nominee: Nonie Shore
Office: Fundraising & Events Vice President
Nonie Shore has lived in Topanga for 17 years and first began fundraising for our community as a board member of the Topanga Chamber of Commerce and a parent of children attending Topanga Montessori. She led a successful campaign with Kelly Rockwell and Karla Morrison to build a new playground at the TCC that was completed in October of 2013.
Since 2014, Nonie has served on the TCC board as the Vice President of Fundraising and Events. Her experiences on the board and fundraising for the TCC playground have given Nonie a good understanding of how the TCC runs and what it needs to be a thriving Community Center. Nonie has implemented events such as Square Dances, Adults-Only Disco & 80’s Dance Nights, BINGO and more. This past year she, along with Debra Silbar and Susan Nissman, spearheaded the fundraising for the new TCC Senior Classroom, which is currently being built. She plans a similar campaign to start fundraising for a new House AC system next year. Thanks to a Board with a cohesive vision, the TCC has been able to implement key changes and enhancements to the grounds and to the Topanga Days fundraiser, which has been consistently more successful than in previous years. Nonie is dedicated to the success of the TCC for years to come.
Nominee: Lisa Brown
Office: Membership Vice President
Lisa Brown has been a volunteer for over 20 years in Topanga. She raised a child here in the beautiful Topanga community. A horse trainer in the teamster union who keeps her horses at Fairhills. I’m the only one running that supports and has an all access card for emergencies in Topanga. I’m running on the platform to engage more of the community to join the TCC and participate in our community. Topanga Days, Reggae on the Mountain, Square Dancing, Disco Night, the Swap Meet and Chili Cookoff are just some of the fun events for you to enjoy! (And you get a great discount by joining the TCC) We have 11,001 residents with less than 500 members of the Topanga Community Club. I think we can do better with your help! Please join the TCC and vote for me!
Nominee: Franka Diehnelt
Office: Treasurer
As treasurer I will make sure that the TCC stays within its budget, continues to effectively sustain the TCC’s existing programs and supports the Sages (as you can see with the TCC Annex for the Seniors), the Topanga Youth Services program and the Children’s Organic Garden. I am still focusing on making the TCC a more sustainable entity.
I am the co-owner of an Art Design Studio, and an architect by training, working with communities to place art in the public space, and working on architectural projects . Since 2010 my family has lived in the Canyon. While our seven year old son Dexter attends the public elementary school in the canyon, my husband and I are looking after our 30 chickens, even more bees and trying to take care of our land in the heart of the Canyon.
Nominee: Terri Moriarty
Office: Corresponding Secretary
Do you love Food Truck Friday? Well, you have this lady to thank for that. Terri’s fresh ideas and enthusiasm for community building are second to none. Whether she is coaching on the soccer field, refereeing the Topanga Days Fun Zone, or sending the jokes you look forward to in TCC newsletters, Terri’s humor and dedication to the TCC and its programs help to enhance the member experience.
Terri and her family have lived in Topanga for 12 years. She started with the TCC Board as a stand-in Recording Secretary in 2015 and has since moved to the position of Correspondence Secretary. Her husband James coached the TCC soccer teams and worked hard to create the sports program. She has been instrumental in creating joint projects with TCC and TEP—a natural because both serve many of the same families. Terri is adamant about balancing TCC’s role as a service to the community with its constant need to fundraise.
Nominee: Andrew Monn
Office: Recording Secretary
I grew up in Wisconsin in a relatively small community. After finishing college I realized 9 month winters were not for me so I moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in advertising, where I met my wife. We were married up in Topanga and we always knew we would end up living here. The sense of community in Topanga is something that is extremely unique and we realize how blessed we are to raise our daughter here. I wish to participate in the TCC board as part of my civic duty to the community we love.
