Missouri Public Transit Association Elects New Board Members

Missouri Public Transit Association Elects New Board Members

mptaThe Missouri Public Transit Association (MPTA) has announced the appointment of Sheila Holm of AARP in St. Louis and Mike Sokoff of the City of Columbia to its Board of Directors. Holm and Sokoff were officially elected to the board during the 2021 MPTA Annual Meeting as a part of the Midwest Transit Conference, held on September 7. The organization also elected officers and extended the appointment of seven existing board members during the event.

Holm has over 25 years of nonprofit management experience and currently serves as the Community Outreach Director for AARP in St. Louis. In this capacity, she is responsible for volunteer recruitment and development, building and maintaining local partnerships and creating and managing community engagement opportunities for people 50+. Holm also is the staff lead for “Livable Communities” efforts in the St. Louis region and the AARP Network of Age-Friendly Communities in Missouri. She also serves on the board of directors for Citizens for Modern Transit and Missouri Main Street Connection. She has been elected to serve a two-year term on the MPTA Board of Directors.

Sokoff is the Transit and Parking Manager for the City of Columbia. He joined the City in 2020 after many years of working in parking and transit in Higher Education, most recently serving as Director of Parking and Transportation Services at the University of Missouri-Columbia. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Central Oklahoma and has done extensive work in leadership studies through both the University of Oklahoma and the University of Central Oklahoma.

During the event, new officers were also elected. Each of the following will serve in this capacity for one year:

  • President – Chance Gallagher of St. Joseph Transit
  • Vice-President – Robbie Makinen of the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA)
  • Past-President – Mark Mehmert of the Jefferson City Transit Division (JEFFTRAN)
  • Secretary – Matt Crawford of City Utilities of Springfield
  • Treasurer – Taulby Roach of Bi-State Development
  • At-Large – Dorothy Yeager of OATS Transit

Janine Clampitt of Ray County Transit, Sara Fields of the Ozarks Transportation Group, Chance Gallagher of St. Joseph Transit, Laura Machala of Mid-America Regional Council (MARC), Mark Mehmert of the Jefferson City Transit Division (JEFFTRAN), Rachel Pawlak of East-West Gateway Council of Governments and Denny Ward of Southeast Missouri Transportation Service (SMTS) were all appointed to serve additional two-year terms.

“We are thrilled to have Sheila Holm and Mike Sokoff on our board, in addition to our new slate of officers, those who has been elected to serve another term and all others who dedicate their time to this organization,” said Kimberly Cella, executive director of the Missouri Public Transit Association. “Their collective experience, coupled with their diverse backgrounds and areas of expertise, will continue to go a long way towards furthering MPTA’s efforts of developing a variety of programs to facilitate education and networking among transit professionals in Missouri.”