Meeting of the Minds
Dec. 16th, 2011 – 5:00pm – 8:00pm
This event will be held at Amber Seattle – 2214 First Avenue, Seattle, WA, 98121
Jill Lamoreaux – Jill Lamoureux founded the first medical marijuana center in Boulder with her husband, Mike Leigh, in 2008 following Mike’s experience as a registered medical marijuana patient and caregiver. Jill’s extensive experience in municipal bonds and finance prepared her well for her role as a business owner, advocate, and citizen lobbyist. In managing administration, finances and investor relationships for Colorado’s Northwest Parkway, Jill developed relationships with regulators and lenders, led investor and lender communications, and managed multi-million dollar projects and budgets. Jill represents business owners on the Colorado Department of Revenue’s Medical Marijuana Rules Workgroup, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Medical Marijuana Advisory Committee, the board of directors for the National Cannabis Industry Association, and the Medical Marijuana Business Alliance’s advisory board. As an advocate, she fights to maintain patient access to medical marijuana and to keep regulation for businesses as reasonable as possible. Jill, who was raised near Chicago, earned her BS at Bradley University in Illinois and relocated to Denver to complete her MBA at University of Denver. In Denver, Jill met Mike–a fellow lover of music, cannabis and travel–and together they are raising their two children and the CDS brand
Oleg Rutman started his first business at age 24, Architectural Glass Design. He sold this business in 2001 to open a mortgage company for the construction industry. His work in the mortgage industry lead him to the construction and land development business. In 2004 he founded Great West Development. Oleg became an exclusive builder in the 5 most prestigious developments in Colorado. In 2009, as the MMJ laws in Colorado were changing, he was drawn to the Cannabis Industry opening one of the first MMJ Dispensaries in the state. Late in 2009 Oleg founded Denver Canna Club. At it’s height Canna Club grew to 19 stores throughout Colorado and managed a 40,000sq ft grow operation. Oleg left Denver Canna Club in 2011 to develop and implement Integrated Health Solutions, Inc.
Samantha Sandt graduated from University of Colorado with a degree in Marketing. She is a principal at Centennial Seeds, the first licensed and regulated cannabis seed company in Colorado. She and her company have been featured on programs such as CNBC’s Marijuana USA and in publications such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Needless to say, Samantha is a recognizable face in the Colorado cannabis community. She has most recently joined the Integrated Health Solutions team to deliver a much needed program to the MMJ industry.
Robert F. Calkin is the author of STARTING YOUR OWN MEDICAL MARIJUANA DELIVERY SERVICE: THE MOBILE CAREGIVER’S HANDBOOK. He is a Delivery Service expert, marijuana business consultant and podcaster on the subject of creating marijuana businesses and has been in the cannabis industry for over 30 years. He has helped create literally hundreds of marijuana businesses. He created his own Green Dot delivery service in Los Angeles in 1988. He was a chief organizer of attendees at one of the first Smoke-Ins on the Mall in Washington D.C. in 1976 and the Marijuana March to the White House in 1984. As one of the original members of the American Hemp Council in 1988 with Chris Conrad and Jack Herer, he has always been at the forefront of cannabis advocacy. His band Rude Awakening has done numerous concerts benefitting the legalization of hemp and actively promote this message on their CDs and promotional materials. He was also asked to be a consultant on the TV show “WEEDS”. He is the professor of Delivery 102 at Oaksterdam University and his book is used as their curriculum. He founded Cannabis Career Institute in 2009 and Cannabis State University in 2010 and is President and CEO of both. In 2011, he created Cannajobs, a Monster.com for the Cannabis industry that has been featured on Drudge Report, the Daily Mail and the New York Times. He is also the host of “Careers In Cannabis” a talk show that features the top names in marijuana business
Sammy Trujillo is the founder of www.itsok2grow.com, Haze Consulting, and the Cannabis Commodities Network. He opened a dispensary in January of 2010 only to be shut down by a judge’s order citing the city’s lack of an ordinance on medicinal marijuana. Since then Sammy has travelled the country consulting, interviewing, and/or assisting thousands of patients, growers, business owners (both ancillary and stores )to determine the real needs of the industry. Featured on Msnbc as one of the top entrepeneurs in medical cannabis, Sammy has put together a team of professionals that teach the model that works for the lawmakers, the community, and most importantly the patient.
Ken Hoffman, California. With a lifelong love of horticulture and entomology, Ken brings a unique blend of technical experience and perspectives from both law enforcement and the medical Cannabis patient. Ken and his work have been featured in print and on television. An Eagle Scout and collective owner, Ken strives set a positive example and challenge the stereotypes so often associated with Medical Cannabis
Ryan Griffin operates The Griffin Law Firm, with a presence in Seattle, Sacramento, and San Jose. He is admitted to practice in
Washington and California and is also admitted to appear before the United States Supreme Court. He has been involved with Cannabis related legal issues since being admitted to the bar, with a particular focus on the business formation and regulatory issues that face the medical marijuana community from co-op gardens to wellness centers and related industries. His bi-jurisdictional practice in CA and WA gives him a unique vantage point from which to observe and predict the the direction of this rapidly evolving area of the law.
Benjamin Cadranel is an entrepreneur and California licensed attorney in Long Beach, CA (www.UnitedLegalDefense.com.) He has actively researched and advocated for the medical marijuana industry since 2004. His experience ranges from consulting collectives and dispensaries on state and local law issues to successfully defending patients, collectives and dispensaries in criminal court. Mr. Cadranel’s perspective is invaluable to the patients and collectives that he represents because he understands medical marijuana best practices and how to defend potential criminal cases. Mr. Cadranel is an alumnus of UC Davis (Departmental Citation) and McGeorge School of Law (with Distinction)