Four Members Elected to GVB Board of Directors

The Guam Visitors Bureau (GVB) membership has elected four members to serve on the GVB Board of Directors.

They will serve for a two-year term for the Guam Visitors Bureau that starts immediately.

The election meeting was held at Hotel Nikko Guam.

The elected board members are:

• Paula LG Monk, United Manager of Sales for Guam and Micronesia

• George Chiu, Executive Vice President of Tan Holdings Corporation

• Joaquin Cook, Bank of Guam President & CEO

• Jeffrey Jones, Triple J President & Chief Operating Officer

“We thank our members for choosing who will represent them in our board of directors for the next two years and also thank the candidates for their commitment to the visitor industry.”

GVB President & CEO Carl T.C. Gutierrez added: “Vice President Gerry Perez and I have worked very hard the past several months in the absence of a board to focus on Guam’s recovery efforts. We must work magnanimously together toward a new golden age of tourism. If tourism works at all, then it must also work FOR all! I look forward to a new board and management working together harmoniously while following the laws of Guam.”

The GVB Board of Directors is made up of 13 total members. Four members are elected by GVB’s general membership to serve two-year terms. The Governor of Guam appoints five members, including a Mayors’ Council of Guam representative. The Legislative Speaker also appoints three members, including one alternate member. One member is additionally selected by at least 8 board members to serve two-year terms.

PAULA LG MONK

Paula LG Monk is currently the Manager of Sales at United Airlines for Guam and Micronesia. Paula oversees the sales and marketing in Micronesia and the management, operations and sales at United City Ticket Offices in Guam and Micronesia.

Paula joined Continental Micronesia in March of 1994 as an Executive Secretary for Technical Services and was appointed Executive Administrator in 1997. In 2003, Paula relocated to Hawaii as a Senior Executive Administrator until 2005 when she returned to Guam to manage the sales administration and Corporate Travel and Executive Offices for Guam and Micronesia.

Paula is an active community member and currently serves on the Pacific Asia Travel Association Micronesia Chapter’s Board of Directors as the immediate Past Chair. She also serves on the USO Advisory Council.

GEORGE CHIU

Born in Okinawa, Japan, George Chiu grew up in Guam and has been a resident of Guam for the past 48 years. He graduated from JFK High School Guam and graduated Cum Laude from the University of Guam with a double major in Accounting and Management.

Mr. Chiu is the Executive Vice President of Tan Holdings Corporation, a diverse holding company which does business in more than a dozen industries in the Western Pacific. In addition to his responsibilities with Tan Holdings Corporation, he is also the President of Luen Thai Fishing Venture, Ltd. which owns various companies in the fishing industry and is a sister company of Tan Holdings.

Mr. Chiu also holds various positions with affiliated companies of Tan Holdings and reports to the President of Tan Holdings. These positions are: Chairman, Asia Pacific Airlines; Chairman/President/CEO, Take Care Insurance Co.; President, Century Insurance Co, Guam Ltd.; President, Blue Bay Petroleum; President, Cosmos Distributing Co. Ltd. (Guam and Saipan); President, D&Q Company, Ltd.; President, Gemkell Corporation; Executive Vice-President, CTSI Logistics; Executive Director, Asia Pacific Hotels, Inc. DBA Crowne Plaza.

 Mr. Chiu’s primary role as Executive Vice-President of Tan Holdings is to oversee all the Tan Holdings companies in Guam and Micronesia. Very active in community service on Guam, Mr. Chiu is a member of the Tumon Bay Rotary Club, Director for Guam Junior Golf League, Treasurer/Director for the University of Guam Endowment Foundation, President of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Guam and President of the Guam Chinese Association.

He and his wife Jennie Lin have been married for 33 years and they have one daughter, Allyson who was born and raised in Guam.

JOAQUIN P.L.G. COOK

For Joaquin “Kin” Cook, banking is in his blood. A third-generation leader, Kin continues the family legacy as the current President and CEO of Bank of Guam, succeeding his mother, uncle and grandfather. But for Kin, leading the Bank isn’t only about blood-it’s about heart. Since taking the helm, Kin has been at the forefront of the Bank’s transformative era, focused on its digital strategy, customer experience, corporate philanthropy and most of all, taking care of our People. From the inside, this transformation has led to greater diversity with the introduction of new roles and the transition from legacy leadership to the next generation – fusing together the experience of the past with the bold, fresh ideas of a diverse set of new thinkers, dreamers and doers. From the outside, he continues to prioritize the needs of our customers and the needs of our communities. This has led to greater investments into smarter financial solutions that don’t just meet the demand but build the type of financial service experiences customers deserve.

Kin has filled a multitude of roles with the Bank that go back as early as age 8, when he would follow his grandfather to work. His career officially began in 2001, when he joined the Bank’s Management Training Program and was assigned to the Credit Department as a Loan Officer. In 2006, after a brief hiatus to further his education, he returned and went on to serve the Bank in various capacities including Assistant Vice President/Upper Tumon Branch Manager, Vice President/Compliance Manager and Executive Vice President/Chief Sales and Service Officer and in 2018, was named Interim President and Chief Executive Officer.

Kin is an alumni of St. John’s School, obtained his undergraduate degree from University of California, San Diego, his Master of Business Administration from the University of San Diego, and is a graduate of the Pacific Coast School of Banking.

As busy as the Bank keeps him, Kin enjoys spending time with his wife and four daughters. When not surrounded by his ladies, he enjoys time on the golf course, his cross-fit workouts with friends or hitting the tennis court. Kin also saves time to serve on the boards of IP&E Holdings, LLC, ASC Trust, LLC and the Pacific Coast School of Banking. Kin previously served on the board of St. John School, Make-a-Wish Guam and CNMI and the Guam Young Professionals.

JEFF JONES

Jeff Jones is the President and Chief Operating Officer of the Triple J Group of companies, a family owned and operated business with operations and offices in Guam, The CNMI, Palau, The Marshall Islands, Japan, China, and California. Triple J is a diversified company with businesses in several tourism related industries including Hertz and Dollar Car Rental, Outback Steakhouse, Surf Club Restaurant, Triple J Five Star Wholesale Foods, and the Surf Rider Hotel. In addition, Triple J owns and operates automotive, truck and bus dealerships, tire stores and is involved in logistics, construction, and real estate development. In 2022 Triple J was listed as the 5th largest company in Micronesia by Guam Business Magazine.

Jeff was recognized as the 2015 Guam Business Magazine Executive of the Year; he is a current board member and secretary of GVB and past chairman of the Guam Chamber of Commerce. He was born and raised in Guam, graduated for Father Duenas Memorial High School, and has a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of North Carolina. He resides in Guam with his wife Jane and has five children.

MEDIA CONTACT:

JOSH TYQUIENGCO

Public Information Officer

GUAM VISITORS BUREAU

Office: (671) 646-5278

[email protected]