The Canyon Alliance Board Votes in New Officers

By Laurel Busby

News & Information Editor

The new board of directors of the Canyon Alliance unanimously elected new officers on June 3.

Doug Suisman, who had been the interim president, was elected as president, although on a short-term basis through Sept 1., when Eric Balfour, who was elected vice president will take over after a summer of learning about the position. A second election to replace Balfour as vice president will be held closer to that date.

The other elected officers will serve a one-year term that ends on May 31 next year. Wes Hough and Ben Birdsong will serve as co-treasurers. Hough has been the longstanding treasurer of both the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association (the former name of The Canyon Alliance) and the Boca Neighborhood Association. He requested a second person to share the position, and Birdsong was chosen.

Robyn Buecker was elected as secretary, and she will be intensively involved in two committees: Communications, which will oversee messaging, values, Canyon News, and media, and Community Development, which will handle membership, recruiting, fundraising, community activities, and engagement. Tamyka Smith will chair the Communications committee, while Nada Kirkpatrick and Marla Mayer will co-chair the Community Development committee.

Hough will also serve as the chair of the Finance committee, which addresses banking, insurance, and expenditures. Four other committees are still to be organized: Governance (bylaws, tax exemptions, and elections), Resilience (disaster preparedness, architectural and landscape strategies, education, and coordination), Neighborhoods (five neighborhoods, adjacent areas, and links to Pacific Palisades/Riviera), and Public Space (streets, traffic, beach access, Rustic Canyon Park, and Canyon Elementary).

“We have a lot of issues we’re dealing with, and I think the majority of work will be done in the committees,” Suisman said. “In terms of what’s next, I’ve asked all of the committees to organize themselves, set up their own means of communication, set their agendas, choose issues that they want to focus on, and get to work.”

Residents who are concerned about particular issues should reach out to the board members from their neighborhoods, which are represented by the following residents: Boca (Suisman, Hough, Birdsong, Sharon Kilbride, and alternate Joan Kramer), Lower Rustic (Jade Chatham, Alex Hoerner, David Jackson, and alternate Julie Silliman), Lower Santa Monica (Miriam Bookey, Emil Schneeman, and alternates Elizabeth Daniels and Chantal Wunderlich), Upper Rustic (Nada Kirkpatrick, Robyn Buecker, Eric Balfour, Marla Mayer, and alternate Smith), and Upper Santa Monica (Marilyn Wexler, Kerry Dolan, Reese Relfe, and alternate Jenny Li).

The vast majority of these members joined together at the May 31 Back to the Canyon 2 event in Canyon Square where 18 took the stage to introduce themselves to the broader community.

“I am just delighted that so many people in the Canyon have stepped up to serve,” Suisman said. “I’m especially gratified that 10 former board members agreed to stay on for continuity, and I’m especially encouraged that we have 12 new board members … to bring fresh energy and skills to the organization…. Now we roll up our sleeves and get to work by making sure our recovery from the fire is complete, continuing to provide relief to friends, neighbors, and workers affected by the fires, and standing up our strategies and programs for long term resilience in the Canyon.”

Here are the bios of the new officers: 

President Doug Suisman has lived in the Canyon for 32 years. He and his wife Moye raised their two children on Mabery Rd., and they attended Canyon School, Paul Revere, and Pali High. Doug has served on the Boca Neighborhood Association board for 32 years, and served as president for 10 years. He is an architect and urban designer, and has served as interim president of SMCCA since February 2025.

Vice President (and future President) Eric Balfour is a third generation Angeleno. His family has diverse roots across Los Angeles starting in Boyle Heights, where his great-grandparents started. Now, he lives in Rustic Canyon with his wife and two children. Eric is the current president of The Rustic Canyon Park Advisory Board and dedicated to creating a strong and thriving community.

Co-Treasurer Wes Hough has been a Canyon resident for 29 years.  He has served on the Boca Neighborhood Association board for 29 years, on the SMCCA board for 15 years and as treasurer of SMCCA since last year.  Wes is a financial consultant to state and local governments and their agencies and authorities, not-for-profits and other entities that secure funding in the capital markets.

Co-Treasurer Ben Birdsong has lived on West Channel for 22 years, first in an apartment behind Caffé Delfini before buying a house down the street with his wife, Monica. His daughter, Nada, was previously at Canyon Elementary and is now a 6th grader at Sycamore Community School. Birdsong is currently serving as president of the BOCA Neighborhood Association. He has held various positions in the MedTech industry over the past 20 years.

Secretary Robyn Buecker has lived in the Canyon for 6 years with her husband, Brad, and 3 kids: Beau, 16, Jane, 13, and Sammy, 6. All three kids are currently attending Crossroads. They also have two Australian Cattle Dogs, Blue and Ollie, and a cat named Jazzy. Buecker spent most of her career working for large internet media companies and software startups as a product manager. She currently works for denim brand The Only Jane and  is the president of the board for Uplifters [an LLC for the private segments of Latimer and Haldeman].