Teresa Saldivar, of Teresa’s Jewelers, Santa Ana, has been elected President of the California Jewelers Association (CJA) for 2009, succeeding Lexi Kern Hirst of Churchill Jewelers, Santa Barbara as the head of the 1,200-member organization which serves retail jewelers, suppliers and designers throughout the state.
Other officers elected include Stuart Benjamin, of Stuart Benjamin & Co. Jewelry Designs, San Diego, President-Elect; James Orloff, of Orloff Jewelers, Fresno, First Vice President; David Hayman, of David Hayman Jewellers, Yorba Linda, Second Vice President; and Allen Kessler, of Kessler Jewelers, Burbank, Treasurer.

“We are pleased to announce that Teresa Saldivar of Teresa’s Jewelers in Santa Ana has been elected as President of the California Jewelers Association in 2009.  She is the first Latina to serve in this capacity and only the fourth woman in the CJA’s 76-year history to serve as President of this prestigious association,” said CJA Executive Director & CEO Rossana Aguilar.

It was in 1985 that Teresa Saldivar knew it was time to spread her wings and go on her own, and so Teresa’s Jewelers was established.  Today, Teresa’s Jewelers is one of the leading jewelry stores in Santa Ana.  Saldivar was a two-term President of the Downtown Santa Ana Business Association and is an active leader in numerous civic and philanthropic organizations in Orange County.  She joined the California Jewelers Association’s Board of Directors in 1997 and was elected as an officer of the CJA in 2006.
“Our goal this year will be to provide even more cost-saving member benefits to our membership in order to help them run their businesses more efficiently,” Saldivar said.

The California Jewelers Association is an affiliate of Jewelers of America (JA), the national trade association for retail jewelers. JA and the California Jewelers Association advocate high ethical standards, promote professional business and leadership skills, and enhance their members’ profitability by offering education, certification, marketing and cost-saving programs.