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John has been a member of the SCV Chamber of Commerce for 15 years and was first appointed to the Board in
2019. He currently serves on the their Finance Committee and this year John is serving as Chair-Elect and will
become Chair of the Board in 2021.

Bill West
Director, Friends of Hart Park and Museum
Nominating Organization
The Friends of Hart Park and Museum
Organizations
Director, Friends of Hart Park and Museum, since 2007
Organization Impact
See bio below
Other Contributions
See bio below
Biography
Bill West is a real-life Imagineer. How’s that for a job title?
More on that in a moment. Bill joined the Friends of Hart
Park in the early 2000s as a volunteer giving tours at Hart’s hilltop mansion, and on one occasion serving des-
sert at the group’s major fundraiser, Silents Under the Stars. That did it: Bill was hooked. Bill loves history and
film, so, supporting the people who manage silent film star William S. Hart’s property was a natural fit. Bill, like
many wise men, followed his wife’s lead. Santa Clarita Realtor and part-time model Liliana West, who had been
volunteering at the Mansion, talked Bill into joining her there. Later, Liliana served on the Friends of Hart Park
board of directors, and when she left the position in 2007, she convinced Bill to take her place. Bill has been
serving on the board ever since, and he managed to get roped into maintaining the friendsofhartpark.org website
and serving as editor of the organization’s “Hart of the Matter” newsletter. Coming full-circle to his initial duties
of dishing out ice cream at Silents Under The Stars, Bill is now one of the major planners of the event, and he
cohosts the event with his co-conspirator, film historian E.J. Stevens. Outside of family and Hart Park, Bill and
E.J. host a local SCVTV show about movies with Santa Clarita Valley connections called “SCV In The Movies”
(scvinthemovies.com). By trade, Bill is a software engineer. When Bill graduated from Cal State Fullerton with
a degree in Computer Science, he had two goals: to work for NASA and to work for Disney. For the next 14
years, Bill worked at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he met his future wife Liliana, and then moved
on to Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI), where he recently celebrated his 20th year. At WDI, he has worked on
many Disneyland attractions including upgrades to classics such as Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain
and the Matterhorn, as well as newer rides like Toy Story Mania and Guardians of the Galaxy-Mission Break-
out! He has also worked in Florida on Walt Disney World attractions like Pandora the World of Avatar, and
Tokyo Disneyland’s Star Tours-the Adventures Continue. He’s contributed to both Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge
lands, and focuses on Audio Animatronic(tm) robotic figures. What a life, right? When Bill and Liliana’s son
Josh was born in 2005, the Friends of Hart Park threw Bill and Liliana a baby shower, making them feel like the
Friends of Hart Park were forever part of Bill’s family. Bill says he is most comfortable at home with his family
and serving at William S. Hart’s ranch in Newhall with his fellow Friends of Hart Park and Museum. He is very
thankful and humbled by the nomination.