Rasmuson has new board, staff members
Rasmuson Foundation has elected a new member to its Board of Directors and has added two new employees to its team: Rebecca Brice Henderson, Kris Palmatier and Courtney Brooke Smith.
Henderson brings her experience as a lifelong Alaskan, small business owner and advocate for children to the Rasmuson Board. Henderson spent the first decade of her professional life working with at-risk children and families. She served as a board member for the Resource Center for Parents and Children and Fairbanks Counseling & Adoption. She is the owner of Santa’s Vagabond Travel, and keeps up with the changing issues that affect the travel industry through her service as President of the Pacific Northwest Board of the American Society of Travel Agents.
Lifelong Alaskan Kris Palmatier joined the Foundation staff as accounting manager in 2016. After graduating from West Anchorage High School, he co-founded a local dance studio. He started Underground Dance Company with his talent and passion for dance, and discovered that he also had an interest in and aptitude for the business side of the operation. Palmatier went on to work in a variety of financial functions with the State of Alaska, Cornerstone Construction Company, and Kimura and Associates. Palmatier currently serves as a board member and officer for Alaska Junior Theater.
Smith was hired as the foundation’s communications manager in 2016. Smith has more than 20 years of experience as a senior corporate management professional. She has held senior positions specializing in the small business market with Fortune 50 firms, including JPMorgan Chase, American Express and Goldman Sachs. She recently led the Marketing and Communications Department at the University of Alaska Anchorage-Matanuska-Susitna College campus. She also serves as an adjunct professor in the business department at the university. A strong advocate for the Mat-Su Valley Community, Courtney has served as V.P. for the Greater Wasilla Chamber of Commerce and President of the Colony High School Music Booster Club.
