Heads of Magic Mountain and Optimize Inc join the board.

Single Mothers Outreach announced the addition of two prominent community members to its Board of Directors: Jay Thomas, president of Six Flags Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor, and Marc Emmer, president of Optimize Inc., a management-consulting firm located in Valencia.

“Of all the nonprofits in Santa Clarita, I think Single Mothers Outreach has the most compelling mission,” Emmer said. “At no fault of their own, many of the families we serve find themselves in severe circumstances and these moms and their kids need our help. Our community needs to get behind the organization.”

Emmer brings a wealth of management experience as an expert in strategic planning and performance management. He has advised dozens of CEOs in a diverse range of industries.

Emmer is the former chairman of the SCV School and Business Alliance and serves on the SCV Facilities Foundation Board of Directors.

Under the leadership of Jay Thomas, Magic Mountain continues to thrive and make a profit in a challenging economic climate. The Valencia theme park is the largest and most innovative capital investment in the Six Flags organization. Thomas assumed the role of president in fall 2007 and previously served as president of Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom.

“I realize how difficult it is for my wife and me to raise our children as a team, and it is tough for me to imagine doing it on my own,” said Thomas. “Ashley and I consider ourselves blessed to have an opportunity to help serve single mothers and single fathers through this organization.”

DaAnne Smith, executive director of Single Mothers Outreach, says the strength of the board and diversity of talent is allowing the organization to help families and make a real impact.

“It’s very difficult for those who live in this community to believe that there are moms losing their jobs or their homes who are actually homeless right here in Santa Clarita, moms who are sleeping in their cars with their children, waking up and dropping their kids off at school,” Smith said. “Our clients are not moms on drugs, just single parents who have suffered significant hardship. They need the support of our community.”