Bremerton Housing Authority - Board of Commissioners

Harriette Bryant, Chair

Ms. Bryant is a board member and past Chair of the Kitsap Community Foundation. Serves on the SPSBGC Board of Governors. Member of Schools out Washington (SOWA) Board of Directors. She holds the current position as the Senior Mentor Coordinator for Partnering for Youth Achievement (PYA). Harriette has held a seat on the YWCA of Kitsap Board of Directors for 17 years. She served as the Chair of the YWCA for 10 years. She is the co-founder of OurGEMS (Our a girls Empowered Through a mentoring and Service) a program that mentors teenage girls in the Bremerton, Central, North and South Kitsap school districts, and she serves as a treasure hunter for many non-profit organizations. She has received numerous awards and is a recipient of the 2010 Thunderbird award.

Stanley (Bo) Palmer, Vice Chair

Mr. Palmer was appointed by the Bremerton City Council to the office of Commissioner on July 17, 2013 to serve on the Bremerton Housing Authority board beginning July 22, 2013 to July 23, 2018. Mr. Palmer is a lifelong resident of the Bremerton area and attended Olympic High School. He operates multiple businesses in the City of Bremerton including Defiance Boats, Defiance Marine and SP Marine Fabrication.

Will Maupin

Mr. Maupin is a retired engineering manager and former president of the Bremerton City Council.

Victoria Hilt

Victoria lives with her five year old daughter, Lisa. She discovered a natural talent for leadership roles serving as the Head Start Policy Council Chairperson, twice, as well as a Parent Ambassador Alumni with the Washington State Association of Head Start and Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, as well as a member of their Board of Directors. In addition, she is a member of the board of Directors for a local community action agency, Kitsap Community Resources. In 2013, she was honored by the Department of Early Learning's Strengthening Families Washington "Unsung Hero Award". In 2013, she received the State Parent of the Year Award for her actions involving Advocacy and speaking at a National Head Start Association rally on Capitol Hill in protest of the sequestration. Victoria is currently working through schooling with a focus on changing public polices surrounding Early Childhood Education and building stronger families. Although she has discovered a passion in advocating and assisting other parents, she views her role as a mother to be the most important role she could undertake.

Joan Hanten (picture not available)

Joan Hanten has lived and worked in the Kitsap Community for 27 years. Professionally, she has served in senior leadership roles at Olympic College, Leadership Kitsap, and Kitsap Community Resources. She has also served as a board member on several non-profit organizations and been active in local civic organizations.

Kurt Wiest, Secretary and BHA Executive Director

Mr. Wiest is Executive Director of the Bremerton Housing Authority, where he leads all activities of the agency, including acquisition and management of multi-family affordable housing, and administration of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program in Bremerton and throughout Kitsap and Mason counties. Kurt also directs the activities of BHA’s Contract Management Services division, which administers performance-based contracts for HUD in the states of Nebraska, Utah, Washington, and Hawaii. Prior to joining the Housing Authority in 2006, he held senior management positions with housing agencies California, Oregon and Utah. He received Bachelor and Master degrees from Brigham Young University in City & Regional Planning. He also earned Certificates from the University of Utah (Planning) and California State University - East Bay (Public Administration). Kurt resides in Port Orchard with his family and volunteers his time with a variety of religious and civic endeavors in the community.