Wendell W. Jones II
Wendell retired as of August 2024 as the CFO of Trace Genomics. Previously he has been a Serial CFO and has been a CFO and/or co-founder of several technology companies in multiple industries including biotechnology, medical device, software, and internet related companies. Wendell has also served as consulting CFO to a number of companies including a laser manufacturer, a medical device company, a cybersecurity company and several technology companies which require finance and/or accounting advice. He has been a financial consultant to several companies and start ups in developing business plans, establishing their financial and internal control infrastructure, and driving their fundraising efforts. Wendell serves on a number of boards of both nonprofit and for profit organizations. Wendell has a B.B.A in Accounting from George Washington University. M.B.A. in Finance from Washington University’s Olin School of Business.
Mark Alan Lindquist
Mark directs the marketing and product development of Hartley Construction which he started with Nathaniel Hartley in 2010. Mark has 40 years of project experience, which includes: large industrial, retail, and commercial complexes; historic renovations; architectural review; and code enforcement. Mark is Past President of the Associated General Contractors of California, and a long time Board Member and Past Chair of the Salvation Army of Alameda County. Mark is an architect and holds numerous licenses in both engineering and building construction.
Matt Ching
Matt Ching pursued a career in banking after seeing how much his banker father was able to help the community where he worked, enabling people to raise families and create jobs in their neighborhoods. Matt served as Vice President & Manager at City National Bank. Before that, he served on the board of directors at OASES and as Vice President and Manager at Citi. Matt retired from banking in 2021 and moved to Las Vegas. He currently volunteers for voting rights groups and food security organizations. Despite physically moving from the Bay Area, he still acts as a consultant to various organizations serving the community. Matt holds a BA in Economics and Asian American Studies from University of California, Santa Cruz.
Stephanie Jones
Stephanie has contributed her financial services expertise to the Main Street Launch Board for over a decade. Prior to her retirement in 2020, she served as Senior Vice President and Business Acquisition Manager with Wells Fargo Bank. Her introduction to banking began over 40 years earlier as a bank teller. She progressed to become a Premier Banker, focusing on investments and client portfolio management, followed by several Branch Manager roles. With a passion for supporting small businesses, she left Retail Banking to join the Business Banking Group where she gained knowledge of commercial lending, sales, and treasury management. Stephanie remains active in several non-profit organizations and is currently treasurer of her Women’s Golf Group. She holds a BS degree in Business Management from University of Phoenix.
Eric Nelson
Eric, Senior Vice President and Commercial Loan Team Leader for Heritage Bank in the Walnut Creek Office, manages a lending unit with $200M in loan outstandings and over $300M in deposit balances. His primary responsibility is to develop and manage client banking relationships and serve as the primary contact officer. Directly responsible for structuring credit products, his extensive banking experience lends guidance and perspective to a client’s overall banking needs. As such, he serves as a conduit to the various specialized units within the bank, including cash management, trade finance, and retail operations. He received a B.S. in Business Administration from California State University, Hayward in 1984 and has worked in all facets of consumer and commercial banking since 1985.
LaSandra Hunt
LaSandra Hunt is an Executive Director with JP Morgan Chase Commercial Bank. She also serves as the firm’s first Supplier Diversity Ambassador and leads their diverse business practice in Northern California, educating internal and external stakeholders about the firm’s mission and resources dedicated to supporting diverse-, women-, and veteran-owned businesses as they scale, overcome challenges, and become more resilient. She has 20 years of experience in the financial industry, supporting clients navigate capital markets, drive optimum operational efficiency, grow, and scale. Prior to that, she worked as an Account Executive for NBC and CBS. She received a BA in Business in spring of 2015 from Golden Gate University.
Arthur Washington
Arthur a small business advisor with experience in small business financing and strategic business planning. Arthur’s finance background includes serving as a loan officer for the Small Business Administration and formerly as CEO for Nor-Cal FDC, a California Small Business Financial Development Corporation that serves the Bay Area counties. Arthur is the author of Finding Money for Your Business and, Business Plans for Financing. Arthur is also the Executive Director of the Business Resource Center (BRC), a Northern California-based financial publisher and seminar provider.
Jim Wong
Born in China, Jim served as an enlisted U.S. Marine in Vietnam later becoming a presidentially decorated Marine officer. Following military service, he worked at GM’s Packard Electric Division in quality and reliability engineering, and at PepsiCo in training and development. Since 1988, Jim has worked in entrepreneurial ventures in management consulting, technology exploration and application. Among his entrepreneurial pursuits, he is part of a veteran-owned company building a 30 MW colocation data center in northern California, while also supporting a Native American and Disabled Veteran-owned company to build affordable and resilient homes. Jim has served on the board of two publicly-traded companies and a number of private firms.
His philanthropic efforts include serving as Chairman of the National Veterans Transition Services, Inc. (REBOOT), a board member of the Military Spouse Chamber of Commerce and as advisor to NPower, which provides free IT training to veterans and disadvantaged young adults. During the pandemic, Jim and friends founded the California Veterans Chamber of Commerce. He earned a degree in Systems Dynamics and Organization Development from MIT.