Michael held a variety of management positions with Cox Communications; Westfield Corporation; the San Diego Opera Association, the San Diego Symphony Orchestra, and the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center. He sat on and chaired numerous boards and committees for the telecommunications industry, the Arts community, and the cities of San Diego, La Mesa, and El Cajon.
He earned BA degrees in Psychology and Biblical Studies from Wheaton College (Illinois) and an MBA from National University. Michael served in the Armed Services twice: as an Avionics Technician in the Marines and as an Engineer Officer (Airborne/Ranger qualified) in the Army.
Originally from Indianapolis, Indiana, Michael moved to San Diego 24 years ago after separating from the Army in Fort Hood, Texas. He is the father of three beautiful and talented daughters: Brittany, Laura, and Amanda.
James Zimmerman
James Zimmerman, Secretary
James is currently a Country Specialist for China (Refugees and Business) with Amnesty International (AI). He holds a M.Phil in History from Yale University with a concentration in Chinese history. James was a Yale Fellow in East Asian Studies as well as a Research Fellow for the Institute of Humanistic Studies at Kyoto University, Japan.
In 1996, he created the first China website for AI. He has also worked with AI groups throughout the country for the release of prisoners including Tegexi, Jigme Sangpo, and Wei Jingsheng. James has spoken at numerous public forums, and conducted many interviews with the media. He has worked with numerous organizations including the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. James has been particularly active in political asylum cases, and has testified in person or in writing at more than a dozen immigration hearings. In 2008, he participated actively in AI's campaign for the Olympics. He has also prepared criticisms of U.S. government documents, including the annual State Department Human Rights report.
James reads Chinese, Japanese, French, and German. He lived in Japan for nine years and lectured at Shoin University in Kobe for five of those years. James has also lived in Taiwan for a year and has frequently traveled to Hong Kong, mainland China, and throughout other areas of Asia as well as Europe.
James is the founder of Kongo Associates, an intercultural consulting firm.
Susan Reed
Susan Reed, Treasurer
A California native, Susan was born in Berkeley, but raised in the San Diego area. She attended San Diego State University, studied in Heidelberg, Germany for her junior year of college, and graduated from SDSU with a BA in languages (German).
Susan went on to earn a teaching credential and taught high school in San Bernardino. She married soon afterward and returned to the San Diego area where she continued teaching for a number of years. In addition to teaching German, Susan also worked in such diverse areas as computer programming, bookkeeping, sales, and clerical.
Susan’s volunteer work spanned a variety of organizations, including the American Association of University Women and Zero Population Growth. She has been an active member of the San Diego Humanist Fellowship for over 12 years.
Judith Hand
Judith L. Hand
Judith Hand is a scientist, novelist, futurist, and peace ethologist. Her work on war and peace offers a message of hope, based on a biological foundation, that we could abolish war. Her emphasis isn’t on what’s wrong, but on what we can do about it. Dr. Hand earned her Ph.D. in biology from UCLA. After a Smithsonian Post-doctoral Fellowship at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., she returned to UCLA as a research associate and lecturer.
Now a free-lance writer, Judith is a member of the International Society for Human Ethology (ISHE), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Ornithologists Union (AOU), and San Diego Professional Writers (SDPW).
Her most recent work on social conflict includes a book, “Women, Power, and the Biology of Peace”. Essays found on the website www.afuturewithoutwar.org and a book by the same name are “how to”ť outlines of a campaign to abolish war. For more information about her work, both fiction and non-fiction, see the website www.jhand.com.
Gary Linscott
Gary had a long and successful career as pastor of a church. Today he heads the San Diego Secular Humanist Outreach (SHOut), which he founded. This group meets in close coordination with the Humanist Fellowship of San Diego, and schedules events in Chula Vista, East County, and North County. You will often find SHOut events listed on the HFSD website under "Lectures and Meetings".
Debbie Allen Skomer
Debbie is completing her first year as a member of the HFSD board of directors. She is an active volunteer with the Humanist Fellowship, director of the San Diego Coalition of Reason, and co-facilitator of Recovering from Religion (along with fellow board member Gary Linscott). Debbie retired from a career in clinical psychology and neuropsychology research. She loves to dance, hike, read, and debate.
