The Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors unanimously appointed Supervisor Jim De Martini and Supervisor Terry Withrow as the chairman and vice chairman, respectively, of the board for 2014.

The appointments came at the Tuesday, Dec. 17 meeting.

As the new chairman, De Martini brings a lifetime of commitment to Stanislaus County. Having graduated from Grace Davis High School, De Martini immediately turned to farming more than 1,000 acres between Ceres and Patterson where he grows almonds, walnuts, peaches, grapes and row crops.

During his time on the Board of Supervisors, De Martini has represented most of Ceres and the cities of Newman and Patterson. His district has also includes thousands of acres in the unincorporated area of west Stanislaus County combining areas of Patterson and Newman that make up the west side.

In addition to his role as a county supervisor, De Martini serves on the Airport Advisory Committee, the Agricultural Advisory Board, is an alternate on the CSAC Board of Directors, the Central San Joaquin Valley Foreign Trade Zone Advisory Board, the Economic Development Action Committee, the Emergency Medical Services Board of Directors, the General Plan Update Committee, the Local Agency Formation Committee, the Retirement Board, the San Joaquin Valley Supervisors Board of Directors, the San Joaquin Valley Supervisors Endangered Species Committee and the Stanislaus County Disaster Council. He is also a member of the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau in addition to the Ceres, Newman, and Patterson Chambers of Commerce.

Throughout his first term in office, De Martini took the leading role on several important issues including authoring the scrap metal ordinance, writing the agricultural element of the county general plan, and forming a health care task force for communities on the west side.

Serving as vice chairman for 2014, Withrow has spent the majority of his lifetime in the Modesto area where he attended St. Stanislaus School and Central Catholic High School before receiving his bachelor's degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting from California State University, Stanislaus.

In 1984, Withrow became a certified public accountant and formed the accounting firm Ciccarelli and Withrow in 1991, located in downtown Modesto. In addition to accounting, Withrow farms almonds and grapes.

Over the past 25 years, Withrow has been actively involved in the community having helped found St. Luke's Family Practice and the Stanislaus County Farmland Trust. In the past, Withrow has served as a board member of the Woodland Avenue Fire District, the Gallo Center for the Arts, Central Catholic High School and the Stanislaus County Assessment Appeals Board, before joining the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors in 2011.