chamber board
Beth Harring
Beth Harring, founder of Harring Properties, LLC joins our Board in 2022 and brings forth 15 years of real estate experience and a lifetime of community involvement to her native Columbia County. As a full time, active broker, she was awarded the Columbia Greene Board of Realtors “2019 Realtor of the Year”, and “2018 Most Cooperative Broker of the Year”, and currently holds a position on the Community Service, Awards, and former MLS Committee within that Board. Beth shares her extensive background of operations/project management in the medical and technologic field with knowledge of real estate blending them to meet her client’s needs. In her spare time, you can find her hiking, biking, and walking many of the beautiful trails Columbia County has to offer!
Barbara Klassen
Barbara Klassen joined the Columbia Memorial Health Foundation as Executive Director in March 2019. She works with the Foundation board of trustees to lead development initiatives to further enhance the mission of CMH, including: philanthropy, event planning, marketing, and community relations. Barbara has over 25 years of experience in not-for-profit and healthcare fundraising. Prior to joining the CMH Foundation, Barbara held the position of Executive Director of the Benedictine Health Foundation in Kingston. Barbara and her husband, John, live in Saugerties. They are the parents of twins, Lauren, a social studies teacher at the Bronx Academy of Letters, and Nicholas, 1st Lt., United States Air Force 121st Fighter Squadron.
MARTHA LANE
Martha Lane is Vice President of Business Development at Columbia Economic Development Corporation. She joined the organization in 2000. Martha works closely with the U.S. Small Business Administration to provide loans, technical assistance and training to small business owners in Columbia and Greene Counties. Martha’s career began in market research, followed by several years in banking in Seattle, Washington. She has called Columbia County home for the past 35 years. In addition to the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce board, Martha also serves on the board of Hudson Development Corporation.
Scott Mathias
Scott Mathias is the Director of Community and Resource Development for Columbia-Greene Habitat for Humanity, a local nonprofit organization that transforms the lives of working families by building safe, sustainable and affordable homes by working in partnership with qualified families, community volunteers, local organizations and area businesses.
Prior to joining Habitat, he was a marketing consultant and strategist that specialized in the development of nonprofit organizations. He served as a faculty member at Rockefeller College’s Institute of Nonprofit Leadership and Community Development and established a micro-credentialed course at UAlbany for officers and employees of nonprofit organizations focused on marketing and communications.
Over the course of his career, Scott has worked with dozens of Chambers of Commerce, economic development agencies and SBA-backed organizations including Women’s Business Centers, SCORE chapters, and Small Business Development Centers all across upstate New York.
Michael A. Torchia Jr
Michael A. Torchia Jr., has been with the firm since 1987, and a shareholder since 1997. Michael was instrumental in establishing the Firm’s Business Valuation Division of Business Valuation Services, and is currently the Firm’s Director of Business Valuation Services. In addition, he has vast experience in a variety of industries and his practice includes services in the following areas: preparation of corporate and personal income tax returns, estate planning, business succession planning, accounting and consulting for Towns and Villages.
Michael received his Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from Marist College in 1987. He holds the Certified Valuation Analysts (CVA) designation, which is instrumental in the Business Valuation Services. In addition Michael holds FINRA Series 7 and FINRA Series 66 licenses along with a New York State Insurance License all of which allows him to provide Financial Planning services and investments services to the Firm’s clients.
Michael holds FINRA Series 7 and FINRA Series 66 licenses along with a New York State Insurance License all of which allows him to provide Financial Planning services and investments services to the Firm’s clients. In addition, Michael is very active in the firm’s membership with the BDO Alliance USA which allows him to extend enhanced services in all areas of service on both a national and international level. He also assists with the firm’s continuing education programs as a presenter and a professional consultant, in the tax area of the firm’s practice.
In addition to his professional career, Michael is involved in a number of local community organizations. He currently serves as Treasurer of a number of local Non profit organizations within the community and has held multiple officer positions in other community agencies.
Michael resides in Greenport, New York with his wife Doris and their twin sons, Zachary and Joshua. In his spare time, Michael enjoys outdoor activities with his family including attending college football games, camping, skiing, hiking, and golf.
Michael maintains memberships in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the New York Society of Certified Public Accountants, and the National Association of Certified Valuations Analysts (NACVA)
Judy Tice
Judy Tice, is a 35-year employee of Ed Herrington Inc. and has been their Accounting Manager for the last 20 years. She is a graduate of Siena College with a major in accounting, a lifelong resident of Columbia County, and a member of the Village of Philmont Planning Board. Judy lives in Philmont with her husband Jake. They have two grown children, Jackie, a Hudson City School District employee and John who is also employed at Herrington’s, and two grandchildren, Ella and Bentley. They all reside in Columbia County.
Jock Winch
Born and raised in Columbia County Jock attended Hudson High School, Columbia Greene Community College and The University of Saint Rose for Graphic Design. A member of the Dutch Reformed Church of Claverack. He spent the first part of his professional career as a manager/director in the automotive industry. He then took the name of his father’s building company, Claverack Builders Inc. and started his own company. That company evolved into the design build corporation it is today. Jock has served on the Claverack planning board and several committees for the town and county. He is the proud father of his 3 daughters Rose, Scarlett and Fiona, with his wife Meredith.