Heather Hamilton, CMCA, LCAM
President
Heather Hamilton joined Pinnacle Community Association Management at its start as its focal Community Association Manager, with over 25 years in the service industry including 6 years in the Community Management industry.
Within these 25 years of customer service, Heather has a background in banking and hospitality, specifically in expense control and budgeting as well as hiring, training and team building. In the 6 years in the Association Management Industry, Heather has experience including as an onsite/dedicated Community Association Manager, Portfolio CAM and as a Corporate Community Association Manager position with a territory from Orlando to Naples.
Overall her experience with US Bank, LaQuinta Inn & Suites, International Hotel Group and the Hilton Hotel Group has led to a customer service driven philosophy focused on the need for a new level of service in Association Management, with rapid response times, frequent and professional communication, and knowledge when the Board of Directors needs answers.
After working for two large local management companies Heather found a lack of customer service in the industry that Pinnacle could fulfill with professionalism, experience and service excellence. Her experience ranges from homeowner controlled established homeowners’ associations and condominiums to developer-controlled Golf and Country Clubs communities with amenities including tennis courts, swimming pools, playgrounds, bocce courts and small and large Clubhouses.
Heather has worked with one of the largest home builders in the country as well as other well-known builders in Florida. She has a vast network of service partners as a result, including insurance professionals, water and mold remediation experts, engineers, attorneys, landscapers and handymen.
Heather has been a member of Community Association Institute (CAI) since 2012 where Pinnacle Community Association Management is also Sapphire Chapter Investor, a sponsorship reserved specifically for Community Association Management firms. Heather earned her Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA) certification in June 2022.
Jason Hamilton, MBA, CPP, LCAM
Chief Financial Officer
Mr. Hamilton started Pinnacle Community Association Management in 2017, after 25 years in a very employee centric service industry. Working with Boards of Directors, Association Management Companies and Community Association Managers since 2006 Jason encountered a very mediocre field of service providers and saw an opportunity to create a different type of Community Association Management company. He created Pinnacle along with his partners Heather Hamilton and Amy Pacella to raise the level of professionalism, experience and service excellence to the industry.
Jason holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin and has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of South Florida. He has over 25 years of experience in customer service, specifically in Security Services, Loss Prevention and Risk Management. This expertise includes financial and business management, safety and security operations, employee training, asset protection, risk management security consulting.
His experience has come from a variety ownership and management roles with small and large corporations alike, that included: ALERT Protective Services, Harley-Davidson, Briggs & Stratton, Target Corporation, JCP Company Inc., Securitas and Allied Universal Security Services, working both directly for and servicing them as clients. Mr. Hamilton’s primary role with Pinnacle Community Association Management focuses on marketing, business growth and back office support.
Mr. Hamilton is a Certified Protection Professional (CPP™), as awarded by ASIS International, the world’s largest organization with over 35,000 members worldwide. As such, he was Board Certified in Security Management. This certification is awarded to individuals that have the necessary experience & education and who have demonstrated advanced knowledge in eight separate disciplines that include:
- Security Principles & Practices
- Business Principles & Practices
- Personnel Security
- Physical Security
- Information Security
- Emergency Practices & Response
- Investigations
- Legal Aspects
Jason is also a Licensed Community Association Manager (LCAM) as provided by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Both he and Pinnacle are active members and Sapphire Chapter Investors in CAI’s West Florida Chapter, a sponsorship reserved specifically for Community Association Management firms. In addition, he has been an active member of ASIS International since 1997, obtaining his (CPP™) certification in 2007. Jason has served the community as a past member and board member of the Stoneybrook At Venice Community Development District and an instructor at the Longboat Key Education Center. He is a current member of the CAI West Florida Chapter’s Board of Directors, where he serves on its Executive Committee as its President-Elect, for the 2024 calendar year.
Rick Fathauer, CPA
Vice President
Rick joined Pinnacle Community Association Management in July 2018 as a partner, shortly after the company’s acquisition of Markel Management. With over 24 years of accounting experience, Mr. Fathauer has worked directly with some of Sarasota’s most distinguished companies as their CPA, having also worked with Mr. Hamilton’s previous company, ALERT Protective Services, as well.
Mr. Fathauer holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of South Florida. He also completed 30 additional graduate level courses that are required in order to take the certified public accounts test. Rick passed the CPA exam in April 1994 and has maintained an active license to date. In order to maintain an active
license Rick has completed the required 80 hours of continuing education courses over each two-year period. Rick is also a member of the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.
Mr. Fathauer has 25+ years of public accounting experience. During the majority of his career, Rick has managed the bookkeeping and tax department for a local CPA firm and has recently started his own firm. Rick has a wide range of experience, including HOA and Condo Association accounting. He has assisted in the auditing of many Associations, as well as the preparation of the year-end tax returns. This type of experience will ensure that each of Pinnacle’s clients receive accurate and timely financial statements that are critical to the decision making and planning process of the Board of Directors.
Craig Smith, CMCA, LCAM
Vice President
Craig became a part of Pinnacle Community Association Management in October 2018, after a very successful seven year run as Executive Vice President and Managing Director for Sarasota based ALERT Protective Services. Mr. Smith was instrumental in helping to grow that security service-based company from 200 to 450 employees, prior to the ownership team selling to Allied Universal.
As a Licensed Community Association Manager (LCAM), Mr. Smith took over a portfolio of Pinnacle clients and quickly applied his over 25+ years of executive management experience to enhance the experience of its clients. Shortly after joining the Pinnacle team, the company came to agreement with Craig to add him to the company’s
ownership group. In April 2019, Mr. Smith was promoted to Vice President, Customer Relationships. Craig continues to manage a portfolio of Pinnacle clients, while also focusing on forming new customer relationships through marketing and community outreach efforts.
Craig has over 20 years of experience in community client service contracting, delivery, and management. His past experiences include working with some of the most prestigious communities in South Florida and executive positions with the world’s largest security providers, with a specialty in the development of combined solutions
designed to reduce security risks while meeting budget requirements.
Prior to joining Pinnacle Community Management, Craig served in executive management with Allied Universal and was an equity partner in ALERT Protective Services. He served for nine years as a Regional President, for Securitas Security USA. As Regional President, he managed a $250 million region that included over 7,500 employees. Mr. Smith also served as Director of Solutions Development for G4S Secure Solutions, Americas where he was responsible for developing organic growth within all technology products and services across the U.S. for the largest security provider in the world. He specializes in manpower + technology combined services,
software support, data analytics, security assessments, access control systems, video management platforms and integrated strategies.
Craig earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering and his MBA from Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA. He is a member of ASIS International and the West Florida Chapter of the Community Association Institute, where Pinnacle is a Sapphire Chapter Investor, a sponsorship reserved specifically for Community Association Management firms. . Craig earned his Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA) certification in January 2022.
Jim Markel, PCAM, AMS, CMCA, CRS, LCAM
Sr Advisor, Community Association Manager
To say that Jim knows a lot about community association management is an understatement. The founder and former owner of Markel Management, he has been involved in the management of homeowners and condominium associations since he first moved to Sarasota in 2001 and opened his own company. As a Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM), he also has achieved the highest professional designation in the industry.
After selling Markel Management to Pinnacle in 2018, Jim joined our staff as a Senior Advisor and Community Association Manager, where he continues to serve our customers with the advanced knowledge, personalized attention to detail, and dedicated professionalism for which he is renowned.
A native of Alabama and a graduate of Auburn University, he began his career in real estate and strongly believes that smaller associations deserve the same level of top-notch service as their larger counterparts.
Despite his Southern roots, Jim is an avid hockey fan and follower of the Tampa Bay Lightning. For the
past decade, he has had season tickets to their games and is ever hopeful that they will raise the Stanley
Cup again soon.
Ginny Deck, LCAM
Community Association Manager
With nearly 20 years of experience in the Community Association Management field, Ginny brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our customers that extends from the front office to the board room. And like a character from one of her favorite movies, it all began with a combination of talent and hard work.
Upon relocating to Florida in 2002, Ginny began her career in the management industry working first as a receptionist and then as an administrative assistant and bookkeeper for one of the largest community association management companies in the Southeast. She then joined a local firm and worked her way up the ladder, receiving her Community Association Manager License in 2005 and eventually managing a portfolio of 14 properties throughout Sarasota and Manatee counties.
Following a move to Charlotte county in 2007, she took over the on-site management of five related associations for Placida Properties that included a mix of COAs, HOAs and a recreational master association. Since joining the Pinnacle team in 2019, Ginny has continued to bring that same level of drive and determination to each and every one of our clients she serves.
In addition to her CAM license, Ginny holds the CMCA designation from Community Associations Institute (CAI) and is currently pursuing her PCAM certification. She is also a notary public. But don’t be misled into thinking that Ginny is all work and no fun. During her time away from the office, she loves to solve jigsaw puzzles and is an aficionado of classic black and white movies!
Joe Deshane, CMCA, LCAM
Community Association Manager
Joe is living proof of the saying that “life is a little better with sand between your toes.” Although you may still catch a hint of his native Down East accent, Joe gladly traded in his winter boots and warm clothes for sunshine and salt air following the sale of his company, Maine Pest Solutions. Now, he considers Florida his adopted home state.
A graduate of the University of Maine with a bachelor’s degree in communications, Joe understands customer service, budgeting and quality assurance inside and out having spent the past 20 years working with property management companies and some of the nation’s leading retail giants while building Maine Pest Solutions into one of the largest privately-owned pest services companies in the state.
Now, he’s looking forward to helping Pinnacle grow by providing that same level of customer service and expertise to our valued clients along Florida’s Gulf Coast. A history buff, Joe enjoys exploring Florida’s abundance of historical sites when he’s not at work. But beware, he has a “wicked good” golf game as well!
Joe has been a member of the West Florida Chapter of Community Associations Institute since joining the Pinnacle Team. More impressively, Mr. Deshane earned her Certified Manager of Community Associations (CMCA) certification in June 2022.
Jennifer Smither, LCAM
Accountant, Accounting Supervisor
A veteran accountant with more than 15 years of experience serving the property management industry, Jennifer ensures that each of our HOA/COA clients, property owners and vendors receives the highest quality of customer service and financial reporting available.
Although originally from Arizona, Jennifer has lived in Florida for most of her life and is a proud graduate of Florida Southern College in Lakeland, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Education.
When she’s not at work, Jennifer enjoys spending time with her feisty, fun-loving black cat named Edgar. She is also an avid outdoor enthusiast, a dedicated community volunteer and an experienced world traveler, who has enjoyed exploring the canals of Venice, Italy, by gondola and getting an up close look at lions, elephants and hippos while on safari in South Africa.
Robin Estep
Office Manager & Assistant Community Association Manager
As our Office Administrator, Robin is likely to be the first person you talk with when you contact Pinnacle. You won’t be disappointed. With nearly 30 years of experience in customer service, she brings the friendly demeanor, professional background and precise organizational skills it takes to keep our office running smoothly while also making sure we meet your business and association needs.
Prior to joining Pinnacle, Robin worked for a number of leading medical office and supply companies in the area, where she handled a broad range of duties that included office management, appointment scheduling, payment processing, and insurance verification.
When she is not busy helping our customers, Robin enjoys rooting on her favorite college sports teams – Go Noles! She is also an avid golfer whose team regularly competes for the league crown at her Venice club.
Susan Nixon
Assistant Community Association Manager
Following 22 successful years as a senior design director in New York’s highly-competitive fashion industry, Susan and her family made a pivotal change in 2017 and decided to move to Florida. Upon relocating to Sarasota, she became the guest services manager at one of the area’s leading boutique resorts and made it her mission to deliver a positive experience to each and every guest.
Now, as our newest assistant community association manager, Susan is bringing that same drive, attention to detail and enthusiasm for unparalleled customer service to Pinnacle’s valued clients. Whether it is answering your questions over the phone or helping organize the details for your next annual meeting, we promise that you won’t be disappointed.
When not focused on client service, Susan enjoys getting outdoors and experiencing Florida’s natural beauty with her daughter, husband and two shelter pups. She is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a bachelor of science degree from the school’s College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning.
Richard Baird
Maintenance Supervisor
Richard’s career has taken him everywhere from teaching construction to special needs students to owning and operating his own small catering business. Yet, tying it all together, he says, is an understanding of two critical values. The first is the importance of clear and effective communications, and the other is an understanding that nothing gets done until you roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty. Both are traits that make him a valuable member of our Pinnacle team.
A native Floridian who grew up on the east coast, Richard graduated from Fort Pierce Central High School before heading west to Tampa and the University of South Florida, where he earned a B.S. in Physical Education. He later returned to USF and earned his MBA in 2011.
A proud father of three grown children and one grandchild, Richard and his wife have been married for 36 years. He is also an avid outdoorsman who enjoys hunting, fishing and anything else that can get him out into nature.