by Rick Griffin
The five-member board of directors of the Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD), a public agency that supports health-related community programs and services in San Diego’s East County, has elected its board officers for 2012. Unanimously elected for their second consecutive yearlong terms were Deborah McElravy as president and Michael T. Long as vice president. Robert “Bob” Ayres will serve as secretary/treasurer. Also serving on the five-member board are Gloria Chadwick and Michael Emerson.
McElravy has served on the board since 2006, after previously serving from 2000 to 2004. She was most recently elected to a four-year term in November 2008. An East County resident since 1974, McElravy is a pharmacy manager at Costco Wholesale in La Mesa.
Long has served on the board since May 2008. The El Cajon resident was most recently reelected to a four-year term in November 2010. Long is a retired neurologist who practiced for 40 years locally as an active member of the medical staff at Grossmont Hospital.
Ayres, a retired banking executive and El Cajon resident, was appointed to the board in December 2010 to fill a vacant seat. Prior to his appointment, Ayres served on the GHD Proposition “G” Independent Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee (ICBOC) During his 45-year career in banking, Ayres has experience in the financing of a number of major private- and public-sector construction projects.
Chadwick has served on the board since 1998, when she became the first woman to be elected to the board in 22 years. In 2000 she became the first woman in District history to serve as board president. She was most recently relected in 2010. A second generation San Diegan and resident of El Cajon’s Dehesa Valley since 1975, Chadwick retired as a psychiatric nurse after a 44-year career of working in the healthcare profession.
Emerson has served on the board since 2008, when he was appointed to fill a vacant seat. He was elected to a four-year term in November 2008. An optician since 1975, Emerson is a Registered Dispensing Optician (RDO) and a Fellow of the National Academy of Opticianry (FNAO). He owns Hart Optical Company, and has lived in La Mesa since 1992.
The Grossmont Healthcare District’s board meetings are regularly held on the first Monday and third Friday of each month at the District Conference Center, 9001 Wakarusa St., La Mesa. The public is invited to attend.
