Deb Machen, President
Deb Machen is a Seal Beach resident and marketing agent who is an avid supporter of the community. She currently sits on the Boards of Save Our Beach, Friends of the Library, and is a founding member of the Seal Beach Historical Resources Foundation. She works closely with The Youth Center and Los Alamitos Education Foundation (LAEF) and was a LAEF Queen of Hearts Candidate in 2016, raising funds to support our School District’s STEAM initiative. She is the new host of the SBTV3 public access program, Studio Café and was the 2022 Seal Beach Citizen of the Year.
In early 2020, Deb was called to served (and still serves) on the S.E.T.H. Memorial Scholarship Fund, focusing on leadership & kindness in the community and outward. In the late Summer of 2020, in the middle of strict COVID-19 restrictions, Deb created and implemented the Hold Fast Seal Beach marketing campaign for the City of Seal Beach, in support of small Seal Beach businesses. The highly successful 6-month campaign employed print advertising, bus stop ads, email campaigns, press releases to all local media, posters, banners and contests, engaging over 9,000 followers on social media channels.
Deb was a Planning Commissioner for Seal Beach District 3 for one year and for District 1 (Old Town) for nearly 3 years, serving as Commission Chair for over 2 years. She has served as Vice President and President of the Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce, Chair of the Seal Beach Community Thanksgiving Dinner for eight years, Co-Chair of the Seal Beach Centennial Marketing Committee, Governmental Affairs Chair for the Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce, Seal Beach Car Show Media Chair and a member of the Seal Beach Performing Arts Association. A member of the Seal Beach Lion’s Club, she served as an announcer for the SB Christmas Parade and Fish Fry for 7 years, chaired the parade judging for 6 years. Deb chaired the Thanksgiving Dinner distribution (partnering with the Chamber of Commerce and Pavilions) in 2020 and 2021. She was on the Board of Run Seal Beach for 5 years, as Secretary and Marketing Director through 2019. She also served on the Americana Awards Committee for 4 years. In 2011, Deb served as a Trustee for the Seal Beach Victim’s Fund. In 2012 she was named Small Businesswoman of the Year by the Seal Beach Chamber of Commerce and in 2016, she was named Seal Beach Woman of the Year by the Tri-City Women’s Conference. She has most recently been named Seal Beach Americana Citizen of the Year for 2022.
Deb lives with her husband of 28 years, Bob Machen, in Seal Beach and is the proud mother of their two beautiful daughters, Rene and Jenny, and two adorable grandsons, Jordan and Apollo.
Fun Fact – Deb’s first job was when she was 16 years old and worked as a roller-skating clown for B & I Circus Store in Tacoma Washington. Her “stage name” was BandI the Clown. She fudged on the application and claimed she knew how to skate but had never learned!