​To Our Chapter 57 IRWA Members . . .
Happy Summer Everyone! I want to start by saying thank you and farewell.  Serving as your President for Chapter 57  has been an honor.  I have met so many new people in this role and I have had the pleasure of working with so many of our members and an amazing Executive Board.  Many of you helped me through some challenges and I hope in return I was able to make an impact on others as well.
Thank you for all the support. I look forward to working with all of you on future events for Chapter 57.  Wishing the incoming Board all the best.
Cheers,
Darcy Mendoza, SR/WA, R/W-NAC

To Our Chapter 57 IRWA Members . . .
Hello Everyone!  My name is Ramie Dawit and I am the incoming Chapter 57 president for the 2025/2026 term.  For  those that are not familiar with the process, this was 4 years in the making.  I had been part of Chapter 57 for many  years, but I didn’t know about all the opportunities to get more involved.  It took one conversation about all the different layers the chapter had to offer, and from there I was sold!  I started off by being elected as the chapter  secretary, which was a 1-year term.  After I completed this term, I continued as the chapter treasurer for another 1-year  term, and by the 3rd year I took the position of President Elect (aka Vice President).  These 3 years have literally just flown by. Now on my 4th year I am thrilled to be serving as your chapter 57 president.

So, who am I?  I started my right-of-way career back in 2007 as an agent and fast forwarding to 2025, I am now a Sr.  Project Manager at Monument ROW.  I have been in the ROW industry for over 18 years and have been involved with  IRWA just as long.  I have managed many large transportation and rail projects, and I truly love my work.  I hold my RWP and am working towards obtaining my SRWA in the next few months.  This recognition will be achieved while I serve as  your chapter president, which I am excited about.  I am also a wife and mother of three kids, whom I absolutely adore.

This year, I want to encourage more of our members to attend our chapter luncheons.  These gatherings are not only an opportunity to network but also a chance to connect with fellow industry leaders.  I, along with our amazing executive team and board members, encourage you to take advantage of everything our chapter offers—from luncheons and events to leadership roles within the board or executive team.  I look forward to serving as your Chapter 57 president 😊.

​Ramie Dawit, RWP
Chapter 57 President 25/26

Colder weather is finally here. Time to pull out those warm sweaters and jackets and enjoy the Holiday season. The craziness of the Holidays has set in, and we had a very successful IRWA Tri-Chapter hosted by Chapter 57. I would like to extend a big shout out to my amazing Executive Board members, Ramie Dawit, Tim Green, and Paul Mim Mack for all your hard work in helping put on such a beautiful event. A special thank you to Holly Rockwell, Senior Executive Officer with LA Metro for being our Guest Speaker and a big thank you to all our sponsors and guests for attending.

We have a couple of in person IRWA Courses coming up so please don’t forget to sign up. Course 901 Engineering Plan Development & Application on February 27, 2025, and Course 902 Property Descriptions on February 28, 2025, both located in Riverside. Also, registration is now open for the 71st Annual International Education Conference in Virginia Beach, VA on June 1-4, 2025. If you are interested in Volunteering, please visit the website for more information.

Wishing you all a Happy Holiday and a very Happy New Year!

Cheers to 2025!
Darcy

Looks like Summer may be here to stay. We are in October and still in the 90’s. With Fall here, I am sure you all are wishing for sweater weather.

There are a few upcoming events locally I would like to share with you all. IRWA Course 901 Engineering Plan Development & Application February 27th and Course 902 Property Descriptions February 28th both in Riverside. We are also holding Course 701 Property Management on November 7th and 8th at RCTC. Please don’t forget to sign up. We are also getting ready to open registration for our 2024 Tri-Chapter Luncheon which will be held at the Victoria Club in Riverside on December 4th. Our speaker this year will be Holly Rockwell, Senior Executive Officer with LA Metro. We will be looking for sponsors as well so please reach out to myself at [email protected] if you are interested. I am looking forward to seeing everyone there.
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With the Holidays quickly approaching and our busy schedules lets remember to take a moment and be thankful for each day.

Cheers!
Darcy

Where did the year go? This time last year, I was sworn in as your Chapter President. It was an honor to be able to lead such a distinguished group of professionals. This past year I got the opportunity to sit down and pick the brain of our industries leaders and will take their advice to guide me through the rest of my right-of-way career. To those I called on almost weekly for advice and guidance, thank you. I wish the executive team nothing but the best and rest assured that your membership is here to support you. I’m looking forward to seeing most if not all of you in Long Beach. With Peggy and Hector as part of the planning committee, I can’t wait to see what they’ve put together.
Cheers everyone and I’ll see you at the next one.
Robbie ~

For those of you I have not had the pleasure of meeting, I am Darcy Mendoza, your Chapter 57 President for 2024 and 2025. I began my career in the right-of-way industry in 2012 with Epic Land Solutions as an agent and am now the Regional Manager for our California RW Department. I have had some amazing mentors throughout my career, and I have crossed paths with many amazing and knowledgeable people who have shaped me into the person I am today. As an agent who knew very little about right-of-way, I started taking courses with IRWA to get more familiar with the industry. Over the years I was able to obtain my R/W-NAC and my SR/WA and learn so much more about right-of-way. As I continued to grow in my career, I also became more involved with IRWA. If you know me, you know I love to plan a great event. Party and event planning is a passion of mine. I started by volunteering at certain events and then slowly started to help plan them. I was asked to join the board as the Events Chair and have had the pleasure of working alongside and learning new things from some of the best in the industry.

I am looking forward to this upcoming year and all it has to offer. I hope to see you all at board meetings and chapter luncheons as well as events. Speaking of events, Chapter 57 will be hosting the Tri-Chapter Luncheon this year in December at the Fox Banquet in Redlands. We also have our upcoming 2024 Education Conference right here in beautiful sunny Long Beach and this is one of our major events, which many of us will be attending. For those of you who have already registered, I look forward to seeing you and for those who still have not registered, I encourage you to do so. At the conference I hope to talk with many of you and get ideas and pick the brains of those who coordinated the event in preparation for the 2025 Education Conference which will be held in Virginia Beach.

I am excited to be working with this years Chapter leadership and serving as your Chapter President for Chapter 57.
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Cheers!
Darcy