Four years ago, a group of dynamic women leaders were put together in one room and asked to share their individual journeys to success and what they learned along the way. The result was an empowering discussion about numerous topics, with those in attendance leaving with a renewed since of inspiritment. Thus, the annual 209 Women’s Leadership Round Table breakfast was created.

This year’s event, set for Oct. 24, promises to once again inspire those in attendance.

The theme of this year’s event is #ChangingtheCulture. The culture of a business or group is defined as the underlying beliefs, assumptions, values and ways of interacting that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization. The four panelists for this year, and all the panelists from the previous three events, have been instrumental in changing the culture of their respective workplaces, industries or fields.

The 4th annual 209 Women’s Leadership Round Table breakfast will be held Oct. 24 at Hilmar Cheese Company, 9001 Lander Ave., Hilmar. Doors will open at 7:30 a.m. for a buffet breakfast. The round table discussion will start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 10 a.m.

Tickets are $20 each and $160 for a table of eight. To purchase tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/womens-leadership-round-table-tickets-69216334921. Sponsorships are also available. For information on becoming a sponsor, contact Jennifer Webber at 209-249-3550 or jwebber@209magazine.com. 

Meet the 2019 Women’s Leadership Round Table panelists:

Dr. Sunita Saini

Dr. Saini was born and raised in Turlock. She graduated as valedictorian of Turlock High School at the young age of 16. She credits Turlock High for giving her so many leadership opportunities at such an early age, being a member of 11 school organizations and an elected officer of seven of them.  She continued that leadership at the University of California at Davis, where she was Co-president/vice-president/officer of seven college organizations such as the Pre-Medicine/American Medical Student Association and the Psi National Honors Society. 

In medical school and residency in the Midwest, her passion for serving the community and holding leadership positions did not falter. She was a councilwoman for her medical school’s government board.  She gave free medical care to the women and children of the Ohio Battered Women’s Shelter and empowerment sessions with the female victims, creating the hope and tools needed for their future success. 

Saini has since moved back home to the 209 permanently, where she can still serve the community that she says has given her so much. She is a full-time pediatrician with the Scenic Faculty Medical Group, a group that not only solely cares for the underserved, they are the faculty for the VCME residents affiliated with the UC Davis School of Medicine. 

Her latest project focuses on childhood literacy, becoming the Reach Out and Read Coordinator for the residents and county clinics. She assisted in the grant funding for her clinic to receive books for the underserved children via the Carole Stinson Literacy Foundation Clinic and helps assist the Stanislaus Health Foundation who also fund the literacy cause.  

Cheri Silveira

Lieutenant with the California State University, Stanislaus Police Department

Lt. Silveira has been in law enforcement for over 22 years.

While working as a patrol officer, she became involved in the Rape Aggression Defense program.  Lt. Silveira has been the primary instructor for RAD for over 15 years.  She was also named Officer of the Year twice, in 2006 and 2014.  

In 2015 she was promoted to Police Sergeant where she became the supervisor of evidence, a supervisor for Field Training and instructor for Principled Policing training.  

In May 2019, Silveira was promoted to Police Lieutenant. She is involved in the department’s accreditation process through the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators and in updating the department’s Computer Aided Dispatching & Records Management System, two programs that will have a substantial impact on the department for many years to come.  She is the Administrative Lieutenant who oversees the Parking Management Bureau, CSU Stanislaus Parking Program and Live scan fingerprinting.

Ali Cox

Founder of Ali Cox & Company Marketing 

Ali Cox attended the University of San Diego, where she majored in Communications and minored in Communications (graduated 2001). She is also a graduate of Turlock High School (1997). After college Ali went on to make seven US National Rowing Teams including the 2004 Olympic Team, where she won a silver medal with her teammates. 

Cox founded her boutique marketing agency, Ali Cox & Company, Inc., in 2007. She utilizes her leadership skills as an Olympian to develop business marketing strategies for her clients. Large agency and client-side experience has helped hone her digital brand strategy, website development and content generation specialties.

Since relocating home to Turlock from New York City, Ali has delved into her agricultural marketing passion and built out her agency to fifteen people presently. She is committed to helping her clients tell the dynamic, rich agricultural stories of California’s heartland. AC&C Marketing has emerged as the regional leader in food and agricultural marketing. 

Her company offers a number of services including, strategy development, branding, video development, website development, email marketing, graphic design, and a robust media buy and analytic specialty. 

Her company’s mission and values are to provide a relentless pursuit for marketing genius with sophisticated client service and teamwork. Her motto is, “nobody needs to be perfect on their own, but together as a team we have the resources to deliver perfect work for our clients everyday.”

To provide value to local Turlock community area businesses and the community, Ali founded Turlock Restaurant Week in 2018 and HeyTurlock in 2017. 

Prior to founding her firm, past roles include serving as Aereo’s first-ever Director of Marketing, where she was responsible for the branding, go-to-market strategy and $20.5 million series A announcement. Prior to Aereo, Ali was the Director of Sponsorship Sales and Services for IMG’s Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City. She has held positions in public relations at Ketchum PR and in IMG’s Sports & Entertainment Consulting Division. 

Christine Schweininger

CEO Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Co-founder of Vision Magazine

Christine Schweininger attended Delta College and Chapman University with a focus on communication.  

She believes strongly in participating in organizations that are focused on improving education, business and quality of life for all in the community.  In 2016 Schweininger was awarded” Amiga of the Year” (Women of the Year) from El Concilio. In 2017, she awarded “Friend of the Forum” from the GI Forum. In January 2018, she was awarded “Community Leadership” from New York Life.  In April 2018, she was also awarded Community Leadership from Sikh American Awareness Community.  Under her leadership, the Central Valley Chamber of Commerce was awarded the “2017 Chamber of the Year” in the State of California for which she was very proud.

Her participation in the community has always been one of her most important goals.  She feels true leadership begins with the ability to unite by bringing people together for a common goal. 

She is also involved in the following organizations: Hospice - Board Member; American Leadership Forum - Board Member; Stanislaus Housing Development - Board Member; SBDC - Regional Advisory Board Member; Focus on Prevention - Stewardship Council (Homeless Initiative); Central Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce - Board Member; PCAC - President Ellen Junn Ambassador Council for Stan State.