|
| |
Meet the Board of the Belgian Club of Florida
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact us
at info@belgian-club-florida.com.
 |
Name |
Marc De Vlieger |
| BCOF Function |
President and co-Founder. Honored with the Knight's
Cross of the Order of the Crown by Minister Pieter De Crem, November 23,
2010 in Tampa, FL.
http://www.stropke.com/Knight.htm |
| Place of Birth |
Aalter, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Coral Springs, FL |
| Family |
Arrived in Florida 1979 -Married in Florida to Mona
Helene Howard (USA-NY) 1982 . we have 2 Boys. Matt 26 & Justin. -Justin
25 . are the proud grandparents of our lovely Briana. (3) |
| Moved the the US in |
1979 |
| Why he moved to US? |
Left Belgium in 1979 to make a world trip. Last stop
was Florida. |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
co-founded the BCOF in 1987 with Paul Cuypers,
Philippe Boets, and Jef Verhelst |
| Educational background |
Aalter -A3, Bruges - A2 Bruges, Specialization
Electronics - Deinze. |
| Professional background |
Business owner.
Custom Furniture Installers, Inc.(
All Furniture Services) |
| Hobbies |
Playing guitar and singing all the best songs ever
made...I sometimes DJ a party, so feel free to
call when you need
music.... |
 |
Name |
Caroline Sucaet |
| BCOF Function |
Vice-President |
| Place of Birth |
Antwerp, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Miami, Florida |
| Family |
Married in Mexico and Belgium to Martin Castanon
in 2003. We have 1 boy: Max almost 5 years old. |
| Moved to the US in |
1999 |
| Why she moved to US? |
Left Belgium in 1990 after finishing university,
worked first in Paris, then in Mexico City and finally in the US |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
2002 |
| Educational background |
TEW (Toegepaste Economische Wetenschappen = Applied
economics in International Trade) at UFSIA, University of Antwerp. Also
a Telecommunications course in Mexico City. |
| Professional background |
Complex telecom project management, international
account management, office and back office management, contract review |
| Hobbies |
sports, socializing, receiving visitors from abroad. |
 |
| Name |
Paul Cuypers |
| BCOF Function |
Honorary President and co-Founder |
| Place of Birth |
Anderlecht, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Fort Lauderdale, FL |
| Family |
My daughter, May-Li, lives in Largo Florida (Tampa area)
where she is a veterinarian. My Dutch girlfriend, Mary Kraus, is
from
Enschede, in Holland. |
| Moved the the US in |
1980 |
| Why he moved to US? |
Transferred by my employer from Brussels to Miami. |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
co-founded the BCOF in 1987. |
| Educational background |
Belgian merchant marine engineer officer (Marine
School in Antwerp, Belgium) |
| Professional background |
Until 1980. with the
Bobcat Company (construction equipment), in the position of
sales and marketing manager for Europe, Middle East and Africa,
located in Brussels area. Promoted and transferred as general
manager for the Latin America area working out of the Coral Gables
office. Retired in 2000.
|
| Hobbies |
Biking , socializing, watching football (101%
supporter of
RSC Anderlecht) and last but not least drinking Belgian beer. |
 |
Name |
Philippe Boets |
| BCOF Function |
Honorary VP & co-founder. |
| Place of Birth |
Antwerp, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Amelia Island, FL |
| Family |
Vivian (married in Miami, 1992), Sebastian, Adrian &
Carolina |
| Moved the the US in |
1984 |
| Why he moved to US? |
Hired by
Bekaert, the steel
wire people. |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
Co-founded the BCOF in 1987. |
| Educational background |
OLVC, UFSIA, international shipping. |
| Professional background |
shipping (Antwerp), Belgian Embassy (Jamaica), int'l
trade (Miami) and
Petanque
America. |
| Hobbies |
Same as Paul Cuypers, except for the biking and the
football. And
pétanque! |
 |
Name |
Cathy Heylbroeck-Travaglia |
| BCOF Function |
Treasurer and backup Webmaster |
| Place of Birth |
Ghent, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Davie, FL |
| Family |
Married in Ghent to Carlos Travaglia in 1990. Two
daughters (Melissa and Victoria) |
| Move to the US
in |
1998 |
| Why she moved to US? |
Company employee transfer (Baxter Healthcare) -
Carlos |
| Member of the
BCOF since |
1999. I found out about the club by accident,
while at the Hollywood beach I saw the Belgian flag hanging
between the trees. The rest is history... |
| Educational background |
Translator English-Spanish - MBA (2004) - MSMIS
(Master Science Information System Management - 2008) |
| Professional background |
Program Manager Citi Technology Infrastructure
(Citigroup Latin America) |
| Hobbies |
Puzzles (the bigger, the better, preferably
paintings), orchids, aerobics, tennis |
 |
Name |
David Laffineuse |
| BCOF Function |
WebMaster |
| Place of Birth |
Tournai, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Parkland, FL |
| Family |
Married to Laura since 1993, children: Nicolas, Mia, and Zoe |
| Move to the US
in |
1993 (lived in MD, VA, PA, OH, and FL) |
| Why he moved to US? |
Spent a year in the US in 1987 as part of an
exchange program (AFS),
met Laura, and came back in 1993 after graduating from college in
Belgium. |
| Member of the
BCOF since |
2008 (when I moved to FL from OH) |
| Educational background |
B.S./M.S. Business Engineering (Ingenieur Commercial) from the
Catholic
University of Mons, Belgium. Project Management
Professional (PMP)
and Certified ScrumMaster (CSM). |
| Professional background |
Held senior engineering management positions with
companies such as EDS, Philips, Bosch, and Bendix. I am now a
professional day trader
and founded IBIS Capital Management,
LLC, a trading systems development and coaching company. If you would also like to learn how to
generate income from day trading, email
me at david@ibistraders.com. |
| Hobbies |
Cycling, swimming, and lots of reading
(including Belgian authors
Georges
Simenon and
Amelie Nothomb). |
 |
Name |
Koen Roelens |
| BCOF Function |
Belgian Business Club of Florida |
| Place of Birth |
Kapellen, Belgium |
| Family |
Life partner Belkis Serrata, we have a daughter
of 5 months old called Sofie. |
| Current Residence |
North Miami, FL |
| Moved to the US
in |
1991 |
| Why he moved to US? |
Was living in the Caribbean, then the company
transferred me to South-Florida to manage a hotel in Miami
Beach. Contacted Marc De Vlieger in 2000 for a summer party with the
Belgian Club. |
| Member of the
BCOF since |
1991 |
| Educational background |
Communication and Marketing studies in Belgium |
| Professional background |
President and owner of
Go Florida Investments
Inc., a real estate brokerage company. |
| Hobbies |
Boating, watching soccer, teaching my daughter
new things, houses |
 |
Name |
Annick van Wulpen |
| BCOF Function |
South Beach/Miami Event Planner |
| Place of Birth |
Hamme, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Miami, FL |
|
Moved to the US in |
2006 |
| Why she moved to US? |
Got transferred from Geneva (where I lived 6
years) by company |
| Member of the
BCOF since |
2006 |
| Educational background |
University Degree in Computer Science (VUB) |
| Professional background |
Manager in Temenos (leading Banking Software
Company) |
| Hobbies |
Traveling, fine dining, wine tasting, reading |
 |
Name |
Pascale Van Cleemput – Benyahia |
| BCOF Function |
Honorary Member- Consul Emeritus - Editor monthly
newsletter |
| Place of Birth |
Lokeren, Belgium |
| Family |
Married for 15 years with Ben and we have two
boys Steven & Michael, 3 dogs, 3 cats, 2 birds & a fish. |
| Current residence |
Doral, FL |
| Moved to the US
in |
1993 |
| Why she moved to US? |
After I came a few times to Miami Beach and met
my husband |
| Member of the
BCOF since |
1993 |
| Educational background |
Programmer (St. Lodewijk College – Antwerpen) |
| Professional background |
Vice President
CCM Inc. |
| Hobbies |
Driving my kids to all their activities, taking
care of the zoo at home. |
 |
Name |
Luc Torfs |
| BCOF Function |
Event Planner West Palm Beach area |
| Place of Birth |
Merksem, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Lake Worth, FL |
| Family |
Sharon Hazelet-Torfs (my wife), Debbie Torfs (25, my
daughter), Ailani Kegels (3, my grandaughter). |
| Moved to the US in |
2002 |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
2002 |
| Educational background |
Economy / Political science |
| Professional background |
18 years in banking / 12 years self-employed, dealer
in rare records and CD's. Real Estate Associate with Coldwell
Banker. See
Luc's real estate web site. |
| Hobbies |
music, soccer, hockey |
 |
Name |
Johan Van Vooren |
| BCOF Function |
Programmer |
| Place of Birth |
Waarschoot, Belgium |
| Current Residence |
Albertville, AL |
| Family |
My wife's family all live in Alabama. Two children
from my wife's previous marriage. |
| Moved to the US in |
1999 - became a US citizen in 2005 because I needed a
security clearance for work |
| Why he moved to US? |
Founded a software business doing graphic design,
online applications and e-commerce. Belgium was too small for what I
wanted to do back in those days |
| Member of the BCOF
since |
2011 |
| Educational background |
3 years St Vincentius College Eeklo
– 3 years IVV Brugge A2 Bakery & Food |
| Professional background |
Business owner and programmer for US Gov in Redstone
Arsenal Huntsville, Alabama
site:
www.johansgraphics.com |
| Hobbies |
Study history and evolution is about
all I do when I’m not in Belgium . Not much else to do here in A’ville. |
|
