DACC Board of Directors 2008
As of the General Membership Meeting 2008 on May 15, the Board of Directors for DACC of Southern California consists of the people presented below (in alphabetical order):

Torben Aaskov (President) Torben is originally from Sønderjylland and arrived in California in 1987 to pursue his education. He has extensive experience in the international sales & marketing industry and among others worked six years as the Senior Trade Officer with the Danish Consulate General in Los Angeles. He is the owner of TradeWorks LLC, an international sales company marketing consumer products to distributors and retailers worldwide. In the U.S. marketplace, TradeWorks specializes in promoting European specialty foods & beverages as well as unique non-food items. The customers include some of the nations best known specialty food distributors as well as retailers like Trader Joe's and Cost Plus World Market and Ikea. The company is well known for its strong sourcing capabilities and offers a large number of unique branded and private label items. TradeWorks is also involved in promoting American consumer products abroad. The focus is on assisting manufacturers with setting up distribution for their products overseas. TradeWorks has strong contacts in Europe, Canada and Mexico. Torben completed his Bachelor degree in International Business & Business Economics in 1991 and his MBA in 1993 at Chapman University in Orange County. Torben lives in Old Towne Orange with his wife Melinda, a Psychoanalyst, and their two children; Ella and Jonas. He joined the board of DACC in 2004.

Christian Aaen (Vice President) Originally from Helsingor in Denmark, Christian works as an entertainment and recreation consultant for the leading hospitality, tourism and entertainment industry consulting firm, Economics Research Associates (ERA). He joined ERA in London in 1997 and transferred to the headquarter in Los Angeles in 1998. In 2007 Christian became a Partner of the company. He specializes in entertainment development projects, leisure and tourism economics, and attraction development worldwide, and he has consulted for LEGOLAND, Tivoli, Danfoss, REKA Gruppen, City of Malmo, Universal Studios, Coca-cola, Toyota and many others. Christian graduated from Copenhagen Business School in 1997 which included MBA graduate studies at the S.C. Johnson School at Cornell University. He joined DACC in 1998 and the Board of Directors in 2004.

Lone Sorensen (Treasurer) Lone is originally from Kissendrup, Fyn. After getting her HF in Denmark, she decided to take a vacation to the Los Angeles area - and is still here. Lone is the Vice President Controller for Halferty Development Company, a Commercial Real Estate Development Company in Pasadena, where she has been for the last 20 years.  She holds a BS in Business Administration from California Polytechnic University, Pomona, and took and passed the CPA exam in 1988.She is an active member in her community and has been affiliated with several business, civic and educational associations. She is a past president of the Los Angeles Chapter of the American Society of Women Accountants, past Board Member and Treasurer of Reading is Fundamental of Southern California and a member of the West Covina Sunrise Rotary.  Lone joined the DACC in 2003 and has been a board member since 2006. Lone resides with her family in Covina.

Jens Bechmann (Secretary & Director of Marketing) Born in Gentofte, Denmark, the United States has been Jens' second home since he first visited in 1978. After completing an apprenticeship at Danske Bank and securing a position at Great American Bank, he moved to Newport Beach, California in 1989. He returned to Denmark to pursue and complete a Master of Science degree in Economics & Business Administration, International Marketing & Management from Copenhagen Business School, during which, he held a position with the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Still interested in Danish-American business relations, he returned to Washington D.C. in 1995 where he worked with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) on the Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Community Task Force as he analyzed the cost of U.S. market entry for European companies. He has been responsible for sales management, process management, CRM and business development in companies such as DHL Worldwide Express A/S and Forbruger-Kontakt A/S. In addition, he has extensive private sector experience in key account sales and, sales training and corporate education. Jens joined DACC in February 2007 after moving to Los Angeles permanently in 2006.

Soren Eilertsen (Past President) Soren came from Aarhus in Denmark to California in 1984. As President and CEO of Kollner Group, Inc., Soren works as a business and management consultant to help organizations improve and grow. With 20 years of leadership and general management experience in senior executive roles, he is recognized for blending business strategy, organization development and information technology skills to create outstanding results for companies across a wide array of business categories. Soren has consulted with leadership teams in for-profit and non-profit companies covering a variety of industries including entertainment, technology, investment, education, construction, airline, automotive, retail and distribution. Soren holds a Ph.D. in psychology and is also known for his workshops and coaching in business strategy, business planning, career planning and creativity. He lives in Pacific Palisades with his wife, artist Elizabeth Ranelagh, and daughter Josefine. Soren joined DACC in 1997 and the Board of Directors in January 2003.

Martin Stenkilde (Director of Technology) Martin moved to America from Amsterdam in 2006, the same year he joined DACC. Originally from Copenhagen in Denmark, Martin has over ten years of experience in the IT sector and has worked for various companies throughout Europe and the U.S. In his capacity as an acknowledged leader in his field of expertise, he has advised such companies as Price Waterhouse Coopers, Ikea, British Inland Revenue, YBK in Turkey, Cedars Sinai, Toyota, Honda, and Fox Multimedia.

Christian Braemer (Director) Christian Nielsen Braemer is the CEO and founder of Joe Media Inc., a wireless internet and advertising company and active member of the board since 2005. He is a graduate of Copenhagen Business College with an emphasis in International Business and Economics.  His background includes working with 'wall street' firms such as Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley where he attained his series 7, 66, 31, and insurance designations. His previous professional background includes a leadership role in the Royal Danish Army, small business owner (restaurant), and 'top 5' performer as a project manager with a major national construction company. He is also a current board member of the Rebuild National Park Society as well as acting President of the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce SD/TJ.

Carsten Heering (Director) Carsten is part of the Union Bank of California Global Foreign Exchange Trading Advisory & Sales group with more than 20 years of international banking experience. Prior to joining Union Bank of California, Carsten was originally posted to Los Angeles by the Danish State Department. He decided to go into international banking, especially Foreign Exchange, and has held various positions within the field with National Bank of Long Beach, Wells Fargo, and Allied Irish Banks as well as establishing his own Foreign Exchange brokerage. Carsten received his Bachelor of Arts degree in International Marketing from the Niels Brock's Commercial Academy in Copenhagen. He is married to Helle and they have eight-year old daughter; Hannah.

Charlotte Rubin (Director) Originally from Copenhagen, Denmark Charlotte came to San Diego in 2000. She is the Managing Director and founding partner of Crux Communications. With over 12 years of global experience in the communications field - eight of which were in telecommunications - Charlotte has worked with fortune 500 companies and has expertise in all levels of communications disciplines. Prior to establishing Crux Communications, Charlotte was a part of Ericsson Wireless Communications executive management team responsible for its global communications function. Charlotte began her career in Danish politics in 1989, as a member of the executive committee of the Danish European Movement and later worked three years for the Danish Conservative Party responsible for establishing campaign organizations and coordinating campaign strategies. Charlotte received her MBA in international marketing and management from Copenhagen Business School in Denmark in 1994. She lives with her family in Encinitas. Charlotte joined DACC in 2003.

Henrik Wendelboe (Director) Originally from Als in Denmark, Henrik came to California in 2006. As President and CEO he is in charge of Sea Recovery, Corp. in Rancho Dominguez, which is a newly acquired company within the Danfoss Group. Prior to settling down with family in California, Carsten held the position of Director of Sales & Marketing of Danfoss A/S. Henrik holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electronics and an HD in Marketing from the University of Southern Denmark.