JVC announces new Board members at luncheon

The annual luncheon of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) was recently held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, Friday on 9 January, 2009, to intridcue the new Board members. It was attended by more than 140 jewellery industry leaders, with JVC Chairman, Eli Haas and Board members, who received an encouraging talk by keynote speaker Thomas DiNapoli, New York State Comptroller, to let New York State Governor David Paterson know its concerns. DiNapoli also saluted JVC’s focus on ethics, noting “ethics is something we all have to take greater care of and pay more attention to.”

While introducing the new Board memebrs, JVC chairman Eli Haas applauded the crucial role that JVC had played in working with the government. The new members to JVC’s Board of Directors include: Jeffrey Bilgore - Jeffrey Bilgore, LLC, Terry Chandler - Diamond Council of America, David W. Cochran – Manufacturers Jewelers and Suppliers of America, David Pillow - Zale Corporation, and a change in Board representation; Donna Baker, president GIA, is taking the place of Ralph Destino, who is retiring.

At the occasion, the Committee handed over its Stanley Schechter Award to Sue Saarnio, the State Department’s former Special Advisor for Conflict Diamonds.