Business Beat

NEW FACES:

Robert Magnuson and Mark Ellingsen have joined the law firm of Witherspoon, Kelley, Davenport & Toole P.S. as associates.

Magnuson is a 1987 graduate of George Washington University School of Law and has practiced in Baltimore, Md., for the past seven years. He will continue to practice in the area of insurance defense.

Ellingsen graduated from Willamette Law School in 1992 and has been a deputy prosecutor for Whitman and Stevens counties. His practice will focus on business and real estate law.

Able Claims Service Inc. has added the following three people to its staff:

Jack Dinwoodie, formerly with Allstate and Pemco, joins Able as an adjuster handling auto physical damage and property and casualty. Dinwoodie, who has 20 years of experience as a staff adjuster, is a member of the Auto Collision and Refinishing Advisory Committee at Spokane Community College.

John Kurtz, formerly with Continental Loss Adjusting, joins Able with 38 years of experience as an adjuster. Kurtz will handle property and casualty and multiline claims.

Jim Wieber, who previously worked for United Pacific/Reliance and American States Insurance, brings more than 20 years of experience as a multiline adjuster to Able. Wieber will handle property and casualty and multiline claims.

Robert Yuditsky has joined the Coeur d’Alene office of D.A. Davidson & Co. as an investment executive. Yuditsky, who received a master’s degree from Eastern Washington University, has managed and owned a variety of businesses.

Washington State University Spokane has hired eight new full-time faculty members:

Carol Molinari, assistant professor of health policy and administration, will team with Bill Lassey to teach “An Introduction to the Health Care System.” Molinari holds a PhD in health policy and management from John Hopkins University and master’s degrees in public health and business administration.

Nancy Vaughan, assistant professor of speech and hearing sciences, will teach “Advanced Audiometric Procedures.” Vaughan received her doctorate from Pennsylvania State University.

Chris Blodgett serves as senior research associate with the Washington Institute for Mental Illness Research and Training. Blodgett holds a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Manitoba.

Richard Bates, assistant professor of pharmacy, holds a doctoral degree from Ohio State University College of Pharmacy. He previously served as infectious diseases research fellow at Ohio State.

Kathy Schwanz is serving a 10-month appointment as librarian and interim director of the Cooperative Academic Library System. Schwanz holds a master of librarianship from the University of Washington.

Patrick Leung, a recent graduate of WSU Spokane’s Pharm.D. program, will serve a half-time position with the Visiting Nurses Association. He also supervises WSU Spokane interns at the VNA.

Angelo Ballasiotes, another recent graduate of the Pharm.D. program, works with a Yakima physician on the Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health Program.

Lisa Woodard coordinates the hospital externship program for the WSU College of Pharmacy and is stationed at Sacred Heart Medical Center. Woodard graduated with a bachelor of pharmacy from WSU and a master of public health form the University of Washington.

MOVING UP:

Richard Weston, general manager of Coeur d’Alene Mines’ 80 percent-owned Golden Cross Mine in New Zealand, has been named vice president. Weston has more than 21 years of precious metals and coal mining experience in Australia and New Zealand and holds a master’s degree in applied science in mining geomechanics from the University of New South Wales.

William Wrigglesworth has been named managing executive of Sedgwick’s Spokane office. Wrigglesworth will oversee the firm’s insurance brokerage and risk management services. He has 21 years of experience in the insurance brokerage industry and was previously property and casualty sales manager and an account executive.

Kathy Smick has been promoted to certified dry cleaning manager for Westco Martinizing. Smick will manage Westco’s store at 7704 N. Division.

STARTING UP:

Inland Northwest Bank has opened its sixth branch, and the first in North Idaho. Roberta DeBower will manage the branch, located in the Super 1 Foods store at 805 E. Polston Ave., Post Falls. DeBower has experience in branch management, lending, operations management and staff supervision.

Fairway Floor and Design Center has opened a new 8,000-square-foot floor and window coverings showroom at 4065 E. 16th, Post Falls. Owner Art Trenkle has been in the carpet business for more than 30 years.

KUDOS:

Debra Ballinger of Able Claims Services has earned the associate in claims (AIC) designation. Ballinger, who has been with Able since 1981, has been awarded the Conte Award through the National Association of Independent Insurance Adjusters.

ELECTED:

The 1996 officers of the Spokane Chapter of the American Institute of Architects include: Jeffery Warner, associate principal with ALSC Architects, president; William Rash, associate in Northwest Architectural Co., vice president/president-elect; Douglas Menzies, associate professor of architecture and architecture coordinator, Interdisciplinary Design Institute, secretary; and Glen Cloninger, principal, Glen Cloninger and Associates, treasurer. 1996 directors include: Sam Rodell, commissioner of chapter affairs, principal for Architects Rodell; Keith Ballantyne, commissioner of design/ environment with Bernardo/Wills Architects, Sue Lani Madsen, commissioner of education, associate with ALSC Architects; Gary Joralemon, commissioner of professional practice, principal with Integus Architecture; J. Christopher Green, commissioner of public affairs and president of Architectural Concepts P.S.; Ronald Wells will continue to serve on the board of directors as past president and Evelyn Creager remains executive director.

Rita Hutchinson, inventory manager of Rings and Things Wholesale Division, has been elected president of the Spokane Northwest Bead Society. Hutchinson has been with Rings and Things for more than seven years and a member of the Bead Society since 1993.

OPPORTUNITIES:

The Spokane Advertising Federation will accept entries for the 1996 ADDY awards competition from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday at North by Northwest Productions, 903 W. Broadway. Fees are $25/single entries and $30/campaign/series entries for members of the Spokane Ad Club and $40/single entries and $50/for series/ campaign entries for non-members; for information or an entry packet, call 448-5255.

CERTIFICATIONS:

Pat Bale, co-owner of Re/Max West Plains Realty, was awarded the G.R.I. designation. Bale has been in real estate for 5 years and specializes in Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake properties.

Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz has satisfied the requirements to be re-certified as a SportsChiropractor for professional rodeo. Schwartz also received one of 12 Outstanding Service Awards at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas.

IN TRANSITION:

Feed Specialties in the Spokane Industrial Park has been renamed ADM Animal Health & Nutrition to reflect its affiliation with a national division of Archer-Daniels-Midland Co. ADM bought Feed Specialties, a manufacturer of vitamin and mineral premixes for 500 Inland Northwest customers, in 1994. The Spokane-based company at that time was called the Leo Cook Co.

EVENTS:

Thursday - The Small Business Development Center presents a class on how to buy or sell a business from 6-9 p.m. at the Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute (SIRTI), 665 N. Riverpoint Blvd. Cost: $35; call 358-7544 for information and to register.

Thursday - The Hanford Health Information Network Resource Center Advisory Board will hold its quarterly meeting from 9 a.m.-4:45 p.m. in the Foley Center Library at Gonzaga University. Public comment sessions are scheduled for 11:45 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. For information, call (206) 223-7660.

Feb. 5 - Tim McGreevy of the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Association will speak on “Looking Ahead to Pea and Lentil Issues - Domestic and International Opportunities” during the Whitman County Crop Improvement Association’s annual banquet and meeting at 6:30 p.m. at the Elks Lodge in Colfax. Cost: $4; to register, call 397-6290 by Thursday.

Feb. 6 - Dr. Dave Bragg, WSU extension agent in Garfield County, will present an update on Hessian fly and Russian wheat aphid research at a no-host breakfast meeting of the Whitman County Ag Tech Association at 7 a.m. at Hartley’s Wheel Inn Restaurant in Steptoe. For more information, call John Burns at 397-6290.

Feb. 6-8 - The 35th Annual Washington Potato Conference and Trade Show will be held at Big Bend Community College in Moses Lake. For information, call 765-8845.

Feb.6 and Feb. 8 - The Small Business Development Center presents a class on understanding and using your financials to manage your business from 6-9 p.m. at SIRTI, 665 N. Riverpoint Blvd. Cost: $45; call 358-7544 for information and to register.

Feb. 6 and Feb. 8 - The Training and Education Coordinating Center presents a class on skills for the new supervisor form 6-9 p.m. at the Business Training and Applied Technology Center, 3939 N. Freya. Cost: $59; call 533-4700 for information and to register.

Feb. 7 - The Automatic Transmission Rebuilders Association will hold a written examination for automatic transmission rebuilders, R&R technicians, and service writers at 3 p.m. at Spokane Community College’s Automotive Building. Call (805) 654-1700 for information or to register.

Feb. 7 - Sten Stovall, European bureau chief for PBS’s Nightly Business Report, will be the guest speaker at the Gonzaga University Dean’s Business Forum at 7:15 a.m. in the Jepson Center. Cost: $6.50/person; call 328-4220 information or to register.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 12 Photos

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