From the global stage to local frontlines, our speakers represent the heart of Rotary leadership:

• Rotary International President’s Representative
  A direct connection to the heart of Rotary International, sharing insights from around the world and the global vision that guides our collective work.
• Rotary International Director, Zones 26 & 27
  Leading with courage and clarity, our Director will illuminate how Rotarians across the western United States and beyond are advancing the areas of focus that define Rotary’s impact.
• Regional & Community Leaders
  Influential changemakers, peacebuilders, and partners in service who remind us that leadership isn’t about titles — it’s about transformation.

Wyn Spiller | Rotary International Director 2025-2027

Wyn Spiller is a proud member of the Rotary Club of Grass Valley CA. Since joining in 1994, she has served in a variety of club, district, zone and RI roles including District 5190 Governor 2008-09. She is the immediate past Zone 27 Endowment/Major Gifts Adviser, past Zone 27 Regional Rotary Foundation Coordinator and past District Rotary Foundation Committee Chair. She also serves on the D5190 Community Fund Board and chairs the District’s Visioning Committee. Wyn was honored to serve as the Rotary International 2022 Council on Legislation Trainer, the first Council to be presented both in-person and virtually. With a long-standing interest in education and leadership development, she has served as an International Assembly learning facilitator, facilitator for Regional Leaders Global Institutes, and faculty for President-Elect Training (PETS) for a number of years. She assisted in bringing both Visioning and Rotary Leadership Institute to D5190 and has served at the District and regional levels of each. She is a long-time supporter and past chair of Rotary Youth Exchange. Wyn and her husband Steve share a deep commitment to our Rotary Foundation and its humanitarian work, with a special interest in the Rotary Peace Centers, peace-building programs and polio eradication. They are fortunate to have had the opportunity to experience a National Immunization trip to India and humanitarian projects in Uganda and Mexico, each one life changing. They are Major Donors as well as members of Triple Crown, Paul Harris, PolioPlus and Bequest Societies. Wyn is the proud recipient of The Rotary Foundation’s Citation for Meritorious Service. Wyn retired as Chairman/CEO of Nevada City Winery in 2014. During her tenure, the winery renovated and expanded their historic building in downtown Nevada City, receiving the Best New Construction Award for building expansion in the historic downtown. She is a past chair of Sierra Nevada Memorial hospital Foundation, Nevada County Economic Resource Council, Miners Foundry Cultural Preservation Trust and currently serves as Treasurer of the North Star Historic Conservancy. She and Steve make their home in the small Gold Rush town of Nevada City CA. They have three grown children, two grandchildren and two Rotary Youth Exchange grown children and grandchildren. Wyn is very honored to follow in RI Director Dan Himelspach’s footsteps, serving as RI Director 2025-2027 representing the 30 districts here in the Big West.

Vicki Puliz | Trustee 2025-29 Rotary Club of Sparks Nevada, USA

Vicki Puliz earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing and a master’s in business administration from the University of Utah before becoming a partner in a commercial electrical contracting business in Nevada in 1984. She helped lead and expand the business until it merged with a publicly traded entity in 2003, and then she retired.

Puliz joined Rotary in 1992 as the first woman in her club. She has served Rotary as director, learning facilitator, and Rotary public image coordinator. She has been helped lead several presidents-elect and governors-elect training seminars. “I see Rotary as a leadership organization that provides service,” she says. “Leadership development is one of our key benefits to members.”

Puliz is also interested in leadership development for young people. It was when she witnessed more than a hundred Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) participants supporting one young woman who was struggling that her vision of the power of Rotary expanded. She has co-chaired RYLA events in her district, facilitated them in Benin, and co-created a district youth leadership program for 12- and 13-year-olds based on RYLA concepts. She also served on the inaugural Youth Advisory Council for Rotary International in 2022, which was composed of young leaders from all Rotary programs and reported directly to the RI Board of Directors.

Rotary’s peace initiatives are another passion for Puliz. She serves on the Rotary Peace Centers Committee and has participated in events at the peace centers in Bradford, England, and in Istanbul, Türkiye. She also completed Positive Peace Activator training offered through Rotary’s partnership with the Institute for Economics and Peace. She helped form a community of practice on building social cohesion and combating polarization, skills that she has applied in work with adults and young people.

For Puliz, it is critical for each member to know why they are in Rotary. “If each Rotary member could tap into that purpose and share it with others, it would be so powerful for our organization.”

Puliz and her husband, Tim, who is also a Rotarian, live in Reno, Nevada. Their blended family includes seven children, 12 grandchildren, and three Rotary Youth Exchange daughters. They enjoy outdoor activities in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and general aviation. Both are active members of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians.

They support The Rotary Foundation as Arch Klumph Society members and members of the Paul Harris Society, the Bequest Society, and the PolioPlus Society.

Miquette McMahon

Miquette McMahon is the author of The Voice Poverty Cannot Silence , a powerful memoir that chronicles her journey from poverty in Haiti to a life of purpose, leadership, and impact through education.

Miquette’s childhood mirrors that of many children in Haiti—marked by hardship and limited opportunity—except for one life-changing moment that set her story apart. In the fall of 2000, she was given a rare opportunity through Rotary International’s Youth Exchange Program to attend Detroit Lakes High School in Minnesota. With only limited English and no safety net, the transition was challenging, but Miquette persevered.

After returning to Haiti, she became determined to complete her education in the United States. That determination paid off when she graduated from Oak Grove Lutheran High School in Fargo, North Dakota, in May 2002. Four years later, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Nursing from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota—becoming the first person in her family to graduate from high school or college.

In 2007, Miquette founded Teach Haiti, a nonprofit organization committed to providing a comprehensive, Christ-centered education that empowers children to rise out of poverty and lead with integrity. Today, Teach Haiti operates two campuses—one in Port-au-Prince and one in her hometown of St. Michel—serving more than 700 students and employing over 130 staff members.

Miquette’s leadership and impact have been widely recognized. She has received the Sent Forth Award from Concordia College (2017), the Living the Mission Award from Oak Grove Lutheran High School (2000), and in 2024 was named one of the Top 50 Most Inspiring Women in Haiti.

Through her memoir, The Voice Poverty Cannot Silence , Miquette shares a compelling testimony of faith, resilience, and the transformative power of education—giving voice to millions whose stories often go unheard.

Miquette is married to Art McMahon, and together they are the proud parents of Max (12), Rex (9), and Raquel (9). They currently reside in Vermilion, Ohio.

John Chase

John Chase is a member of the Rotary Club of Boulder City and resides in Henderson Nevada with his wife, Elizabeth. They have two adult daughters, Ashley and Meghan.

A Rotarian since 2001, John has held numerous leadership roles, including Club President, Assistant Governor, Executive Assistant Governor, RYLA Chair, and District Governor (2018–2019) for Rotary District 5300. During his gubernatorial year, he led the chartering of two Rotary clubs and one Rotaract club.

John later chaired the Big West New Club Development Task Force (2021–2022) and served as Zone 26 Rotary Membership Coordinator from 2022 to 2025. He currently serves as Chief Operating Officer for Rotary Zones 26 and 27 and is the current Rotary International Director Nominee.

R. Gordon R. McInally | Trustee 2024-28 | Rotary Club of South Queensferry | West Lothian, Scotland

R. Gordon R. McInally was educated at the Royal High School in Edinburgh and at the University of Dundee, where he earned his graduate degree in dental surgery. He operated his own dental practice in Edinburgh until 2016. McInally was chair of the East of Scotland branch of the British Paedodontic Society and has held various academic positions. He has also served as a presbytery elder, chair of the Queensferry parish congregational board, and commissioner to the general assembly of the Church of Scotland.

McInally joined Rotary in 1984 at age 26. He has served as president and vice president of Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland. He has also served RI as a director and on several committees, including as chair of both the 2018 Toronto Convention Committee and the Operations Review Committee. McInally served as RI president in 2023-24.

McInally takes special pride in the way Rotary members all around the world embraced the focus on mental health and well-being that was initiated during his presidency and the fact that this focus is continuing well after his term.

McInally is a patron of the UK-based nonprofit Hope and Homes for Children and led a partnership between that organization and RIBI to support children in Rwanda who had been orphaned by the genocide there. He is a patron of Trade-Aid, an initiative of the Rotary Club of Grantham Kesteven, England, which provides sustainable humanitarian aid to individuals, families, and businesses in the developing world. He is also an ambassador for Bipolar UK, a national mental health organization. In August 2022, he was made a laureate of the Sino Phil Asia International Peace Awards Foundation.

In his free time, McInally enjoys rugby, good food and wine, and stick dressing, the traditional Scottish craft of making walking sticks.

McInally describes The Rotary Foundation as “the engine that provides the energy to do Rotary service.” He and his partner, Heather, who is a member of the Rotary Club of Borderlands (Passport Group), are Paul Harris Fellows, Major Donors, Benefactors of The Rotary Foundation, and members of the Bequest Society.

Captain Kyle Caldwell

Captain Kyle Caldwell, a native of Winnsboro, South Carolina, enlisted in the U.S. Navy in October 1990 and served more than a decade as an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate, advancing to Chief Petty Officer before commissioning as a Limited Duty Officer in January 2001. His sea assignments include service as Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment Maintenance Officer aboard USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT and USS RONALD REAGAN, as well as tours with the French aircraft carrier CHARLES DE GAULLE through the Personnel Exchange Program, and additional roles aboard USS CARL VINSON and USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

Ashore, CAPT Caldwell has held key leadership and operational roles, including Training Officer and Officer-in-Charge at CNATT Det. Lakehurst, Fleet Liaison at Naval Air Systems Command, Force Air Systems Officer at COMNAVAIRPAC in San Diego, and Executive and Commanding Officer of CNATT Unit North Island. He most recently returned to COMNAVAIRPAC as Force Air Systems Officer, overseeing both East and West Coast operations.

CAPT Caldwell holds a BS in Aerospace Engineering from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, a graduate degree in Acquisitions and Contracts Management from Florida Institute of Technology, and a graduate degree in National Security and Strategic Studies through Joint Professional Military Education at the Naval War College. A graduate of the Defense Language Institute (French) and a member of the Acquisition Corps with Level III certifications, his personal decorations include the Legion of Merit, multiple Meritorious Service Medals, Navy Commendation Medals, and Navy Achievement Medals, a French Commendation, and numerous campaign and leadership awards.

Geoff Cochran

Geoff Cochran is Senior Annual Giving Officer with The Rotary Foundation, with a special focus on Zones 26 and 27. He is a part of a team within The Foundation’s staff who apply giving trends, data analysis and connections to empower Rotary leaders to acquire, retain and upgrade donors, fund more grants, and create a strong pipeline of philanthropic support for The Rotary Foundation.

Geoff has been with Rotary International for seven years filling various roles but comes to the Foundation from a decades long career in nonprofit administration and management. He has a MS in Public Service Management, has volunteered on various boards and committees and is a firm believer in Rotary’s motto “Service above self.”

Laura Mello

Laura Mello is a 3rd generation San Diegan raised in the suburb of Poway.  After graduating business school at the University of Arizona, Eller College of Management, Laura started a 14-year career in finance.  She spent nearly 10 years with a large commercial bank working in private wealth management and financial advising. In 2009 Laura started her own 501c3, Oasis Haven, a US organization with a passion for the orphan crisis in South Africa. Through a Rotary connection she took a job as a financial advisor and planner with a private investment firm. However, three years later Laura had the opportunity to combine her passion for philanthropy with her knowledge and skill set of financial planning as the Director of Gift Planning for Rady Children’s Hospital.  Laura’s passion is working with individuals and families to think about their charitable planning through a strategic lens, weaving in the values and experiences that make each family unique.  Laura has been a member of the Rancho Bernardo Sunrise Rotary Club for 14 years holding numerous leadership positions including Club President. In June of 2023 with the guidance of PDG Chuck Pretto, Laura left Rady Children’s and accepted a full-time position with Rotary International as a Regional Major Gift Officer working with Rotarians throughout Southern California, Arizona, and Hawaii. She currently resides in San Diego with her firefighter husband Rob, and two daughters Grace and Eloise.