Meet the Board
District Commissioners
Public Hospital District No. 1 is governed by a five-member board of commissioners, each elected by district residents to a 6-year term. The district is divided into three subdistricts, each represented by one commissioner. The remaining two commissioners are at-large members of the board. Terms of the subdistrict commissioners are staggered. The commissioners delegate the accountability for day-to-day operations of the hospital district to the administrator, or chief executive officer (CEO).
Our commissioners work hard to balance the hospital district's fiscal responsibility with its social responsibility without placing a burden on taxpayers. Valley Medical Center devotes close to $11 million in charity care and outreach programs each year.
Board Meetings
Regularly scheduled Board meetings are held on the first and third Mondays of each month at 3:30 p.m. at the Board Room at Valley Medical Center.
Don Jacobson
President of the Board
Commissioner Position No. 1
Occupation: Retired—labor relations
Don Jacobson became a member of the board in 1993. Don and his wife, Pearl, have lived in Renton for over 50 years. They have two children and four grandchildren. He was named Renton's Citizen of the Year in 1994. He has served as business representative and financial secretary for the Western Washington Plasterer's Union. Currently, Don is on the Board of the Renton Chamber of Commerce.
A few of his past civic and service activities includes scouting, PTA, Jaycees, United Way Board, Trustee on Health and Pension Trusts for the Plasterer's Union, Renton Library Board, Renton School Board (14 years), and Renton Technical College Board.
Mike Miller
Vice President
Commissioner Position No. 4
Occupation: Businessman
Mike joined the hospital district board in 1996. He has provided financial expertise to the hospital management team and serves on the Finance Committee of the board. Mike was involved in the financial review of the 1997 and 1998 bond issues that provided new funds for the capital needs of the hospital at a time of low interest rates. Mike encouraged the hospital's participation with Valley Radiology in a new MRI joint venture that opened on the Valley campus in November 1999. Mike was also an advocate for a new 20,000-square-foot clinic in Covington that opened in 1998.
In addition to his career in business and raising children with his wife Kay, he has remained extremely active in community service. Mike serves as the Senior Vice President of Valley Bank and is President of the Kent Downtown Partnership. He is the former president of the Kent School Board and Kent Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Kent Rotary. He also served in the Kentwood Parents Group and on the Washington State Research Council. A Washington State University graduate, Mike and his family live on the East Hill of Kent.
Carolyn Parnell
Secretary
Commissioner Position No. 2
Carolyn Parnell was elected to Valley's board of commissioners in 1997 to represent subdistrict no. 2. A native of Selma, Alabama, Parnell has lived in Renton for 33 years. She is married and has five children and three grandchildren. Her husband, Ernest, is her most enthusiastic supporter of her many community activities, which have included serving on the West Hill Community Council, Renton Area Youth and Family Services, Citizens Advisory Committee, Renton School–linked Health Clinic, Renton School District's Citizens Advisory Committee for Instruction, and parent advisor for West Hill Family Enrichment Service Center. She is a strong supporter of children and worked as a para educator in the Title One Lap Program. Carolyn is interested in increased access to healthcare regardless of ability to pay, preventive care, and community health education, especially on such issues as AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, and Alzheimer's disease.
Sue Bowman
Commissioner Position No. 5
Sue Bowman was elected to the VMC Board of Commissioners in 2007. Sue has 27 years of experience working in health care as a Program Administrator at Western State Hospital. Her experience spans from participation in Joint Accreditation Commission Healthcare organization to developing policies and procedures for program development for the mentally ill.
Sue is the Northwest Administrator for “Opera By Children” an educational outreach program of the Utah Festival Opera Company promoting children’s creativity through music in elementary classrooms. Sue serves as Public Affairs, Media Director for the Renton LDS Church. A graduate of Washington State University she resides in Renton and is a widow with three grown children, one of whom is a nurse, and six grandchildren.
As a VMC Board Member, Sue hopes to generate grassroots and community activity in support of the hospital’s mission with a great emphasis on health care for children and the elderly.
Anthony Hemstad
Commissioner Position No. 3
Occupation: Maple Valley City Manager
Anthony Hemstad brings to the board a wealth of public policy experience, having worked in government or consulting at the local, state, national and international levels. He earned advanced degrees from the University of Chicago, the University of London and the University of Puget Sound.
Anthony worked as a policy analyst for three US Senators in Washington, D.C. and later spent over 12 years in Europe, initially working to establish the first private university in post-communist Central Europe. He later established an international consultancy that worked extensively on health care issues, including health care public policy issues in several countries.
After returning to the United States at the end of 2002 he joined the City of Maple Valley where he serves as City Manager. Anthony is active in many local organizations including Rotary, Communities that Care and the Boy Scouts of America. He was elected to the Board in 2007. Hemstad's focus is on preventative health care and governance reform.
