Christian has a background in marketing and technology management, helping develop products and services across a number of different industries. He has worked with some of the world's largest technology companies, as well as participated in numerous startups as both advisor and team member. Christian was a co-founder of the East Bay IT Group (eBIG.org), a non-profit technology forum serving the San Francisco East Bay, and is currently a Senior Program Manager at Microsoft in Redmond, Washington, where he works in the collaboration space.

Christian is an active networker, avid blogger, and enjoys reading science fiction and writing technical papers. He is the author of three technical books, the most recent of which was published in August 2006 (Implementing IBM Rational ClearQuest, IBM Press). Though born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he currently lives in the Seattle area with his wife and four children.

Mr. Beattie maintains a corporate and technology law practice, emphasizing start-up and private company representation, venture fund representation, mergers, acquisitions and strategic joint ventures, technology licensing, protection and transfers, and securities and commercial law. He represents a broad spectrum of computer device, networking and infrastructure companies, venture capital firms and a variety of distribution, retail, service and manufacturing concerns.

Mr. Beattie graduated from Harvard Law School in 1980, (J.D., cum laude). He received his B.A., with distinction and departmental honors, from Stanford University in 1976.

Mr. Beattie's past law firm experience includes Reed Smith, where he served as firmwide Chair of the Technology and Venture Group (2003-2005), Crosby Heafey Roach & May (combined with Reed Smith in 2003), Bay Venture Counsel, LLP (combined with Crosby in 2002) and Cooley Godward. He was also law clerk to California Supreme Court Justice Stanley Mosk (1980), and General Counsel and Secretary of UB Networks, Inc., a pioneering data networking company (1986-1989).

Mr. Beattie has lectured widely on early stage and privately held companies, venture financing, director and officer liability, and angel investing. He has served on the Board of the East Bay IT Group (EBIG) and the East Bay Venture Forum, the advisory board of Technology Ventures Corporation, and is the founder and a regular lecturer for the Keiretsu Forum Academy.

Mr. Beattie is also an accomplished songwriter and performer. His songs have won several awards and have been published and performed in television and movies. He and his wife Victoria perform in the band Calaveras, which receives airplay on independent radio stations around the country.

Morris Hoodye is a Computer Engineer at HP and has been there for the past 6 years working on large scale mission critical enterprise servers and data storage, security and management. Previously, Mr. Hoodye has designed and implemented secure large scale computer systems for such companies as Wells Fargo Bank, Chase Manhattan Bank, Safeway, Livermore Labs, American Cancer Society, Brown & Company and others. Mr. Hoodye attended National University working towards degree in Computer Science and Stanford University with an advanced study in Computer Security. His "Improving SQL Database Performance" published in IBM Magazine in 1988 earned him acclaims from colleagues in the security realm.

Mr. Hoodye lives in the San Francisco Bay area and enjoys working on interesting and diverse projects such as his current endeavor with Will Smith's upcoming film "Pursuit of Happiness." When Mr. Hoodye is not busy teaching his daughter about computers, he can be found in his role as Officer at the HP Silicon Valley Radio Club and other Volunteer activities such as the American Red Cross, US Air Force Auxiliary (Civil Air Patrol) and the East Bay I.T. Group "EBIG.org".

Mr. Tardif is the founder and CEO of Eravita, Inc., and one of the founders of Story of My Life Foundation. He is also a founding Director and main sponsor for the not-for-profit organization East Bay IT Group, and helped co-found Engineers Without Frontiers Quebec in Quebec City in 1993. Mr. Tardif has B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Laval University, Quebec, Canada. He switched careers 13 years ago from Mechanical Engineering to his original love of software development, which had begun at an early age when he laid hands on a new Commodore 64. His ongoing involvement in emerging technologies propelled him to move to Silicon Valley over a decade ago, where he is now realizing his long term dream of launching Story of My Life and being a part of the Foundation to keep peoples’ Stories forever.

Ms. Backer is the Senior Vice President of Member Services for the United Fresh Produce Association in Washington, DC, the national trade organization that represents the interests of fresh produce companies and their partners. In her current position, she oversees all member services and communications and directs the association's educational programs. In addition, Ms. Backer directs the activities of the United Research & Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization that was founded in 1998 to offer specialized programs to meet members' needs in educational training, leadership development, food safety outreach and industry research. She serves as the senior liaison to both the Association and Foundation Board of Directors. Ms. Backer joined United in June 1997. She holds a bachelor's degree in International Studies, Latin American Development, from American University and has an advanced knowledge of the Spanish language.