Boyd Gaming elects St. Jude’s CEO to company board

By Las Vegas Sun Staff (contact)

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 | 2:56 p.m.

Boyd Gaming Corp. of Las Vegas announced today that Christine J. Spadafor has been elected to the company's board of directors.

Spadafor is the chief executive officer of St. Jude's Ranch for Children, a non-profit organization in Boulder City that provides services to abused, abandoned and neglected children.

She succeeds Michael Maffie on the board. The term of Maffie, formerly the chief executive of Southwest Gas Corp., expired during Boyd's May 21 annual meeting.

William Boyd, executive chairman of Boyd Gaming, said in a statement, "Christine brings a unique combination of legal expertise and strategic planning skills, making her ideally suited to enhance our board. We are proud to welcome her to Boyd Gaming and look forward to the benefit of her counsel and experience on an ongoing basis."

Boyd Gaming said Spadafor is recognized as one of the nation's top female lawyers with business expertise by the American Bar Association.

Spadafor began her career as a registered nurse specializing in intensive care before pursuing a career in law. After receiving a law degree from Harvard Law School, Spadafor embarked on a career as a corporate attorney specializing in family law. She has held various senior roles with global management consulting firms, specializing in strategy development and implementation, operational improvement and corporate turnarounds. Along with her J.D. from Harvard, Spadafor also holds a master's degree in science from the Harvard School of Public Health.