The district manager of Community Board 7 recently announced his resignation from the board.
Dustin Engelken, CB7’s district manager for the last year and a half, announced his resignation at the community board’s last general board meeting on Tuesday, September 15.
Engelken, who was appointed to the position in May 2014, told the board his wife informed him that she had a potential job opportunity to work as an operations manager for a multi-national company based in Franfurt, Germany.
After consulting with Dustin, his wife took the job offer, and as a result, Dustin will officially leave the community board in mid-October to accompany his family to Germany. His last day as district manager is October 9.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for him,” said Adaline Walker-Santiago, chairwoman of CB7, who appointed Dustin as DM in 2014. “He has done so much for the communities within (CB7) and we at the community board are all very happy for him. We thank him for all of his hard work and truly wish him all the best.”
Dustin, who hails from Kansas and is of German descent, is eager to get back to his ancestral roots while he enjoys a new experience.
“I am so excited,” said Engelken, whose father’s side of the family left Germany shortly after World War II. “This is a great opportunity for her, and for me, it’s a great chance to experience life in a foreign country. This opportunity also provides me with more time to spend with my family than I had before.”
Dustin said that he is currently unsure if he will look to take another district manager position or a similar role in the near future.
As of now, he plans for his primary focuses in Germany to be supporting his wife with her job and taking care of their children.
“I truly have no idea what job position I will take in the future,” said Engelken, who had previously lived in Bedford Park, Soundview, Riverdale and West Farms for a total of 10 years. “However, if there is an opportunity, and it’s up to me, I would love to eventually move back to the Bronx.”
When reflecting on his year and a half tenure as district manager, many thoughts came to mind.
“I learned a lot (as district manager) – I learned about community concerns, issues, needs and priorities, as well as neighborhood development,” said Engelken. “Then there was the other side of it – it was my first management position, which taught me what it took to run an office.”
“As a whole, it was a great learning experience for me and I certainly wish the community board well. They taught me so much, and I want thank everybody from the community and political leaders to residents and board members for this opportunity.”
When Engelken leaves the position in mid-October, it will be CB7’s third district manager in four years.
Fernando Terrado held the position from 2008-12 and Socrates Caba was DM for six months in 2013. Previous chairman Paul Foster stepped down in 2013.
CB7 will not start the search for Dustin’s replacement until after his final day at the board.
