Events Calendar

September 6-10, the bi-annual conference of my broker-dealer was held in Washington State.  I was honored to have qualified to attend and be included as a panelist with three of my peers.

Early June was the annual Pershing Financial Solutions Conference that I attend each year. The keynote speakers were President George W. Bush; former Prime Minister of Great Britain Gordon Brown; Richard Hoey, Chief Economist, Bank of New York Mellon: and Bill Belichick, Head Coach of the New England Patriots.

Both President Bush and PM Brown were in office during the global financial crisis of 2008 and gave great insight into the causes and recommendations on how to advert it from occurring again. In addition, there were many other general session speakers along with educational breakout sessions and the opportunity to meet with 130 product and service vendors.

Immediately preceding the Pershing Conference, we had a meeting of my broker-dealer, O.N. Equity Sales Company, advisory committee which I have chaired for almost 6 years. We try to meet in person twice a year and have conference calls every two months. The purpose is to provide feedback and suggestions on strategic direction and product offerings.

On May 15th, I had the opportunity to participate in a White House Business Roundtable. President Obama had directed members of his administration to meet with business leaders in 100 communities throughout the United States, and Stockton CA was selected as one of those cities. Our meeting was with Lorraine Hariton, Special Representative for Commercial and Business Affairs at the Department of State.

After ten years, I have concluded my service to the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce. It began as a member of their Government Relations Council, and one year later becoming the Co-Chairperson, which I remained as for eight years.  I joined the board of directors the same year as my chairmanship, then the Executive Committee, continuing to become President and finishing as Immediate Past President on the board and executive committee.

There has always been a strong interest in serving the business community, especially in the area of government affairs. I intend to continue to be actively involved in some capacity.

Dennis was the presenter on a business succession and estate planning seminar, hosted by American AgCredit for their farmer/rancher clients. The event was held on February 16th at two locations- Stockton and Hilmar. About 60 people attended.

Dennis hosted a breakfast presentation on November 4th, titled "How to Protect Your Business from Fraud". Stephen Taylor, Assistant District Attorney for the County of San Joaquin gave the presentation. He shared with the business owners and managers in attendance how to prevent internal fraud and cited some recent cases he prosecuted