Meet Our Team
Management Team
Pete Howmiller CEO
Pete Howmiller has a proven history of success overseeing all aspects of day to day company operations, management and communications in various professional environments. As CEO, Pete provides leadership for the company and directs the operations of Orca with a focus on customer relations, staff management, contracts, budgeting and finance. Pete holds a Bachelor of Science…
Wendy Roberts Vice President & Managing Director, Public Relations
Wendy Roberts is a skilled marketing and public relations professional with a rich career background. Prior to her 12 years at Orca, Wendy was the Director of Marketing & Promotions at RAZOR, a national men’s lifestyle magazine , where she was in charge of leading the team responsible for the publication’s national marketing agenda, including high-profile…
Cynthia Guiang Chief Marketing Officer
Cynthia Guiang has over 30 years in marketing and management experience with companies in a variety of industries as well as advertising and public relations agencies. In 1993 she co-founded a full service PR and advertising firm and grew it from two to 60 employees over a period of seven years. During the course of…
Julie Simon Senior Vice President
Julie Simon brings 10 plus years of experience in television news. For more than a decade she was on the front lines covering dangerous wildfires on the Nevada/California border, Hurricane Rita on the Texas coast, and rebuilding efforts for a new generation in Communist Vietnam. On a lighter side, she’s covered tryouts for American Idol…
Valery Lodato Vice President
Valery Lodato brings 12 years of local and national news media experience to the Orca Team. An Emmy award-winning television producer, Valery joined Orca after working as the Senior Executive Producer at KPHO-TV, the CBS affiliate in Phoenix. There she supervised the daily news product and dozens of producers and reporters. Before her move to…
Publicity Team
Lacy Gambee Senior Publicist
Lacy Gambee joined Orca Communications after years of working in the television news industry. Most recently, she worked as an Investigative Producer for the NBC Affiliate in Tucson, Arizona. There she also served as the Special Projects Producer where she coordinated media coverage for various companies and organizations around the country. Lacy graduated from the…
Krista Loew Senior Publicist
Krista Loew is a former television news anchor and award-winning reporter who brings 15 years of broadcast experience to Orca Communications. She’s worked in television markets including in Knoxville, Tennessee, Phoenix, and Tucson, Arizona where she received countless awards for her weekly crime-stopper reports. The years she spent reporting the news, hosting programs, and building…
Tana Siebold Publicist
Tana Siebold is one of our leading publicists in the food, beverage and personal health space. She has secured phenomenal national press for top brands such as Genesis Today, Blue Diamond Nut Thins, Blue Diamond Almond Breeze, Hero Nutritionals, San-J Asian marinades, Betty Lou’s all-natural snacks and many others. Her contacts and relationships in the…
Staci Torgeson Publicist
Staci Torgeson’s career includes experience in media relations, marketing, promotions and event coordination. She thoroughly enjoys becoming a member of her clients’ team and finding the timely angles that will help their business shine with the media. Her qualifications include work in the hospitality, entertainment, non-profit, and business industries. Through the years, she has worked…
Michelle Molison Publicist
Michelle Molison brings more than a decade of television news experience to the Orca Team. Michelle joined Orca after working as an Anchor and Reporter in television markets including Arizona, Colorado, and Nebraska. During her time in TV news, Michelle has covered presidential elections, wildfires, snow storms, high profile court cases, crime, and health stories….
Jennifer LaVoie-Trimble Publicist
Jennifer LaVoie-Trimble brings a combined experience in media relations, media monitoring and media sales. She has publicized a former Miss America, the Arizona Cardinals and Super Bowl XXX for the National Football League. As a published writer for athletic publications, she also championed public relations for a cheerleading organization in Columbus, Ohio through local, regional,…
Allyson McCormley Publicist
Allyson is a public relations specialist who is passionate about the way businesses and entrepreneurs benefit from exposure to the media through public relations outreach. Allyson has more than a decade of experience working in both television news and public relations and has formed many strong relationships with national and regional media contacts during this…
Martin Stein Publicist
Martin Stein has over eight years of experience in public relations and social media marketing for a wide variety of clients, ranging from award-winning tech startups and cutting-edge digital currency groups to major Las Vegas nightclubs and even an international online dating corporation. He has placed clients’ stories in an array of media outlets, including…
Debbie Koke Publicist
Debbie Koke brings over 20 years of successful public relations experience to Orca Communications. Her passion for creating results-driven media campaigns for a diverse range of clients is what fuels and excites her. As a publicist, Debbie’s solid track record in promoting global lifestyle brands and businesses of all sizes, including wine & spirits, health…
Rita Tennyson Publicist
Rita is a hard-working PR professional with over 27 years of experience who enjoys connecting media contacts with great client stories. Her specialties include consumer products, video games, technology, personalities, books, and authors. She’s placed hits (both in print and online) in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, KTLA, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Shape,…
Tammy Marino Publicist
Tammy Marino is a seasoned publicist with over 20 years of experience working with clients across a variety of industries. Prior to joining Orca Communications, Tammy was running her own boutique PR shop, Pitchcraft PR, where she was able to fine-tune and tailor her PR programs to meet the distinct needs of each client. In…
Vivian Wolf Publicist
Vivian Wolf is a long time journalist with a background in both TV and radio news. Over the past 20 years she has worked as a news anchor/reporter and producer across stations in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. After years of working in the news industry, she knows how the media works. That media experience helps…
Bridget Argana-Hope Publicist
Bridget Argana-Hope has a diverse background in public relations, marketing, social media, international trade and real estate. With this broad range of experience, she has been highly successful in assisting companies with their media exposure goals through direct and concise public relations strategies. She is a Walter Cronkite School of Journalism alum and is currently active…
Lora Reuther Social Media Manager
Lora Reuther is a creative marketing professional with ten years of experience in writing, social media, blogging and design. She was an early social media influencer with her vintage fashion blog in 2010. Lora shared products and stories for businesses like Mod Cloth and was featured in articles and magazines around Washington DC. She loves…
Cassidy McCombs Social Media Coordinator
Cassidy McCombs finished her studies at San Diego State University with experience in social media, marketing and sales. She is set to receive her diploma in December 2019 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, emphasizing Journalism, Rhetorical Writing Strategies and Communications. Her earlier work experiences include Sony Music Marketing, GracebyGrit Marketing and Sales and working…
Business Development
Kim Krigsten Account Executive
Kim Krigsten has made the move from television to public relations and brings a wealth of experience to the Orca Communications team! She is a former TV news reporter and anchor with more than 20 years of media experience. Kim graduated from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. She began her…
Lisa Kelly Account Executive
Lisa Leigh Kelly brings 20 years experience in television newsrooms around the globe. Her reporting has landed her on national news outlets including The Today Show, MSNBC, and Fox News Channel. Notable news stories include covering the events of 9/11 from Ground Zero in New York and Princess Diana’s funeral in London. Lisa also spent…
Amanda Green Account Executive
Amanda Green is a former TV producer with more than a decade of newsroom experience. Her hometown of Orlando, FL is one of the hottest news markets in the country. She’s produced everything from lifestyle shows to terror attacks, but her passion is with consumer news. She loves finding new products and technologies and sharing…
Administration
Laura McGeary HR/IT/Financial Assistant
Laura McGeary is self driven individual with a variety of talents in the business and finance arena. She came to Orca after 8 years of managing 25 valley locations for a local mortgage company. Her primary job functions included overseeing day to day operations along with the corporate Human Resource, Accounting, and Branch Coordinator…
Melissa Ireland Executive Client Coordinator
Melissa Ireland’s extensive career background in Retail Marketing, Small Business Marketing, Client Coordination and Public Relations ensures she is well-equipped for her role as Orca’s Executive Client Coordinator in which she prepares our new clients for their upcoming PR campaigns. Melissa serves as a liaison between new clients and our publicists providing both with pertinent…
Sean Corgan IT Specialist
Sean Corgan has a diverse background in Information Technology. He has worked for over ten years in the industry, and has been involved with Information Technology his entire life. His past experience involved being a master technician for a major computer retailer. He has a CompTIA A+ certification and is a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer,…