Merrilee Boyack - Poway City Council

SERVICE TO OUR CITY

When the Witch Creek Fires swept through Poway, Merrilee immediately took action and helped coordinate services at the Poway Evacuation Center set up at the Community Park. Merrilee is coordinating fire relief efforts for Poway and has been assisting with Rancho Bernardo as well. Merrilee has worked tirelessly to assist the families in finding housing, food, clothing, and furniture. She is assisting families in meeting their needs and coordinating the efforts of over sixty volunteer organizations – the Community Fire Relief Team. For up-to-date information, go to her blog.

Santa's shop for Fire Families

Poway Community Leadership Institute

Merrilee established the Poway Community Leadership Institute in partnership with the City, Chamber of Commerce, and Poway Unified School District. PCLI has graduated two classes so far with dozens of graduates who are now acting as outstanding community leaders. The Institute allows all those interested in Poway to learn everything they need to learn! Past team projects include Poway Spirit Day, business disaster preparedness plan development, the Poway Tutoring Group now offered by the Friends of the Library, a marketing plan developed for reaching businesses for Character Counts!, a youth water conservation project and many more. We are SO proud of these new leaders in our community and the role PCLI played in preparing them. For more information, go to: http://www.poway.com/pcli

Second PCLI Graduating Class

SERVICE TO OUR SCHOOLS

Merrilee Boyack has been serving in the community of Poway since she came here in 1989. She began by helping in the schools. In 2002 she received the Palomar Council PTA Honorary Service Award for outstanding service to the children of our community.

Boyack has served for 17 years on the PTA in many leadership positions. She received the Pomerado PTA Honorary Service Award for her dedication. When she was President, she led the Pomerado PTA in being awarded Outstanding PTA in the state of California. She was instrumental in having the largest mural in Poway painted at the school, donating over $20,000 in books to the school, developing and funding the first art program at Pomerado, and created the award-winning VIP (Very Involved Parents) program for the school. She has also served on the Poway High PTSA board as VP of Legislation and School Board Rep. Merrilee has served on many Site Councils, GATE Parent's Advisory Committees, and has served since 1989 as a parent volunteer. Her commitment to our schools and children has been tireless. She has also founded the group Informed Parents of Poway Unified School District to address issues of values and education.

Mural project at Pomerado Elementary

SERVICE TO OUR CHILDREN AND YOUTH

Merrilee served as the Community Campaign Chairman for the Boys and Girls Club of Poway. The Sulpizio Family Branch of the Boys & Girls Club opened January 20, 2004 to serve the thousands of kids in Poway. Boyack has been an integral part in helping this dream become a reality for our youth of Poway.

Boyack has been a volunteer Boy Scout leader for many years. Many of the boys in the Poway area remember her as Camp Director as she led summer day camps for all the Cub Scouts in our community. She has been a den leader, Unit Commissioner, Roundtable Commissioner, and countless more! She has received the distinguished Silver Beaver Award and the District Award of Merit. She is committed to the Scouts of our community.

Merrilee is also Vice-President of the Poway Family Service Chapter of Mothers Without Borders and serves on the National Board of Directors of the organization. As such, Boyack has led the chapter in providing service opportunities for the families of Poway including the Quilting Bee which made over 80 quilts for the firefighters of New York City, a business clothing drive for battered women, t-shirts and dresses for orphans, raising funds to feed the orphans of Zambia and many more. She is committed to providing ways for our families to serve locally and to helping orphans throughout the world.

Merrilee has traveled to Zambia and Zimbabwe doing humanitarian work to help orphans and needy families with Mothers Without Borders.

SERVICE TO OUR SERVICE COMMUNITY AND BUSINESS COMMUNITY

Merrilee Boyack is devoted to serving in our community. She is a past member of the Rotary Club of Poway and the Poway Kiwanis. She is also a member of the Republican Women Federated in Rancho Bernardo.

Merrilee received the Wallace Community Service Award from the J. Reuben Clark Law Society for her outstanding service to the community and to her profession.

Boyack is a leader in our business community. She is an active member of the Poway Chamber of Commerce. She runs a home-based law practice specializing in Estate Planning and Administration. Boyack is a professional speaker and writer as well.

PROFESSIONAL PURSUITS

Lecturing since 1984 on topics ranging from raising children, running home-based businesses, legal/estate planning issues, time management, self-improvement, and motivation

Merrilee Boyack is an estate planning attorney and conducts her law practice from her home. Her husband, Steve, is a computer software technical area manager and also works at home. Even with both working at home, Steve and Merrilee have had a great marriage of 28 years! They have four sons: Connor, 26, married and working in Utah, Brennan, 21, working and attending college, Parker, 19, serving an LDS church mission in Brazil, and Tanner, 17, a senior at Poway High School. Merrilee enjoys camping, skiing, and hiking with her family. She also loves to read and do community service in her "spare time"!