All posts by Becky Nixt
Sustainability-Children’s Toys
Malte Niebelschuetz is the Founder and CEO of Shore Buddies, a sustainable and educational children’s brand with a focus on preventing plastic pollution in the world’s oceans by using recycled bottles as the material to make stuffed animals, while additionally teaching youth about the dangers of inaction. He is also the Founder of the $1 For the Ocean nonprofit organization whose network connects ocean minded businesses who commit financially to support ocean protection projects and nonprofit organizations with a $1 donation for every product or service purchased within the network.
Malte grew up in Germany, and, after getting his graduate degree from a school near Hamburg, he became the Chief Knowledge Officer for Germany’s largest defense contractor in Dusseldorf. He found himself wanting more from a career and found an opportunity here in San Diego to make an difference in the world by starting these two companies whose missions are grounded in sustainability and education. Eleven years later he is a green card recipient, and now a proud resident of San Diego, though he considers himself a global citizen.
In his free time he enjoys surfing, soccer, yoga, reading, writing, and cooking. His “real life super power is getting the best out of people.” Malte’s life purpose is to empower kids to improve the world and to disrupt the toy industry. Luckily, he now knows there is more to California than just the “Golden Gate Bridge, LA and David Hasselhoff!”
Malte’s sponsors are Phil Blair, Judy Thompson and Douglas Arbon.
Consultant-Information Technology
Rudy Michelon is the CEO for Skyriver IT, where he has been a partner since 2017. Skyriver is an outsourced information technology company. Rudy’s background in accounting and financial management helps his company’s clientele understand the financial implications of technology and managing risks. Their unique business-centric, rather than technology-centric, approach is aligned with their mission to ensure their clients stay focused on their businesses while knowing their environment is reliable and secure.
Rudy’s father came from Italy and his mother was born in Peru, making him the first person in his family to be born in the United States. As a child he lived in Los Angeles, then later Peru and Argentina, before coming back to the US to attend USC. He studied abroad in France, at the La Sorbonne University, where he learned fluent French after getting his degree in accounting. After starting his career he moved back to Argentina, he later worked for a company in India, and, several Fortune 500 companies from Michigan to San Francisco, before settling here in San Diego.
He has four grown children of his own, and his life partner has three. He recently moved to East Village and is excited to meet new people through Rotary. Some of the community service organizations he is currently involved in include the Knights of Columbus and United Way.
Rudy thanks his sponsors Judy Thompson, David Oates, and Nicole Deberg.
Senior Care Services-St. Paul’s
Michael McHale assumed the role of President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at St. Paul’s Senior Services on April 11, 2022 after more than 22 years of executive management and development experience in the senior care and hospice industries.
McHale began his career in senior living administration at St. Paul’s Nursing & Rehabilitation Center (McColl Health Center) in 1999, where he served as Associate Administrator and offered support during the initial phase of the Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) application process.
Before returning to St. Paul’s in 2022, McHale served as the President and CEO of TRU Community Care in Boulder, Colo., where he improved operational performance and expanded services including hospice, home health, palliative care, memory care and PACE.
Additionally, McHale has served as the President & CEO of Rainbow Hospice and Palliative Care in Illinois; Chief Operating Officer (COO) and CEO of Hospice of the Chesapeake, Inc. in Maryland; Vice President of Business Development and Sales at The Washington Home and Community Hospices in Wash. D.C.; Corporate Director of Marketing and Access Services at Hospice of Michigan; and Director of Access Services at the San Diego Hospice & Palliative Care, Inc. Throughout his career, McHale has served on multiple Rotary Club boards and is published in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management for his innovation in hospice tele-health services.
Michael is originally from the state of Wisconsin, and he and his spouse have four children, one daughter-in-law, a granddaughter, and interestingly, an Alpaca Farm.
Michael thanks his sponsors Cheryl Wilson, Mark Allan and Troy Wilson.
Social Service & Welfare – ECS 
Elizabeth Fitzsimons started her career in San Diego as a journalist at the San Diego Union Tribune. She then became Senior Director of Marketing and Communications at Rady’s Children’s Hospital, and later, Vice President of Leadership and Engagement at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce where she led LEAD San Diego. In April of 2021, Elizabeth began serving as Chief Executive Officer for Episcopal Community Services, where she works today. In this role she inspires children, empowers adults and transforms communities by providing vital, high-quality social services that focus on early childhood education and development, homelessness, mental health and substance use disorder.
Elizabeth recently completed two terms as Library Commissioner on the City of San Diego’s Board of Library Commissioners; she currently serves on the Board of Governors for the University Club Atop Symphony Towers. Previously she served on the Board of Directors for the Jacob’s and Cushman San Diego Food Bank, and on the Governance Committee for the San Diego Public Library Foundation.
She lives in Del Cerro with her husband, daughter and twin sons: though her oldest is leaving for her freshman year in college.
Elizabeth’s sponsors are Wendy Urushima-Conn, David Oates and Valerie Attisha.
