Business Beat

NEW FACES:

Mary Vlasin has joined LeMaster & Daniels PLLC as a senior pension consultant. She formerly was with West One Bank of Idaho and has more than 10 years of experience in pension consulting.

UniShippers Association has added the following people to its staff:

Christie McKee is customer service coordinator. She has more than 15 years of customer service and client relations experience.

Heidi Anderson, who has more than 26 years of experience in the transportation industry, was named territory manager for the Inland Northwest.

Jim English, president of Idaho Forest Industries, has been named to the board of directors of Hayden, Idaho-based Mountain West Bank. English has practiced law in Coeur d’Alene for 22 years and previously served as legal counsel for the former First Federal Savings and Loan of Coeur d’Alene.

Donald Morgan Sr. has joined the Coeur d’Alene office of Smith Barney Inc. as a financial consultant. Morgan’s background includes small business ownership and management.

Group Health Northwest has hired Kathleen Wegener as senior operations administrator. Wegener and the HMO’s associate medical director are responsible for the medical and support staff and operations of Group Health’s eight health care centers in Spokane and Coeur d’Alene. Wegener previously was administrator/CEO at Houston County Hospital in Crockett, Texas.

Furniture 1900 has hired the following people:

Susan Brazier is an interior design consultant. Brazier earned a bachelor’s degree at the American College for Applied Arts in London, England.

Diana Witherspoon is an interior decorator/sales associate. She has 15 years of experience in the field.

Coeur d’Alene-based Idaho Independent Bank has added Gary Mahn, general manager of the Boise Cascade Office Products distribution center in Boise, and Boise dentist Terry Gustavel to its board of directors.

James Seed was appointed to the board of directors of Fischer-Watt Gold Co. Inc., Coeur d’Alene. Seed currently serves as a trustee of the Galaxy Funds and as a commissioner of the state of Rhode Island Investment Commission.

The following physicians have been accepted as members of the Spokane County Medical Society:

Dr. Jette Benedetto has joined Rockwood Clinic in the practice of family medicine. A graduate of the University of Copenhagen, she completed an internship and residency at the University of Massachusetts.

Dr. Richard Freeman has joined First Care Med Centers in the practice of urgent care/occupational medicine. He graduated from the University of Rome/ Johns Hopkins, completed an internship there and a residency at Philadelphia General.

Dr. Ernest Gumprecht has joined Inland Cardiology Associates P.S., in the practice of internal medicine. A graduate of the University of Washington, he completed an internship and residency at Rutgers Medical School and a fellowship at Mid-America Heart Institute of St. Luke’s Hospital.

Dr. Curtis Henderson has joined Rockwood Clinic in the practice of dermatology. He graduated from Baylor College of Medicine, completed an internship there and a residency at University of California-Irvine.

Dr. Charles Laudenbach has joined Rockwood Clinic in the practice of internal medicine. He graduated from the University of Minnesota and completed an internship and residency at Michigan State University.

Dr. Andrea McCrady has joined Spokane Valley Family Medicine in the practice of family medicine. She graduated from McGill University and completed an internship and residency at St. Michael’s Hospital.

Dr. Dan Mornin has joined Sacred Heart Medical Center in the practice of pathology. He graduated from the University of Washington and completed an internship and residency at the University of Washington Affiliated Hospitals.

Dr. Charles Threlkeld has joined Rockwood Clinic in the practice of family medicine. He is a graduate of Wayne State University and completed an internship and residency at St. Luke’s Hospital.

MOVING UP:

Northwest Broadcasting Inc. has named Grant Kuwada local sales manager for KAYU-TV. Kuwada, who earlier was a Nordstrom manager in Seattle for 10 years, joined KAYU in 1993 as a local account executive.

Kerry Damiano has been promoted to president and chief operating officer of MOR Manufacturing of Post Falls and of Phoenix Transformer Co. Inc., of Phoenix. Damiano formerly was vice president and general manager of Phoenix Transformer.

Templin’s Resort Hotel and Conference Center Inc., Post Falls, has promoted the following personnel: Bob Buvel was named catering and conference center director. Buvel has been with Templin’s since 1986 as Mallard’s restaurant manager and conference center manager.

Diane Zuk was promoted to senior catering coordinator. Zuk has held several positions since joining Templin’s in 1993.

Mark Jeffrey was named conference center manager. Jeffrey, who has 10 years of experience in the hospitality industry, has been with Templin’s since 1992.

Pamela Kammeyer has been promoted to catering coordinator. Kammeyer, who previously was the catering secretary, has been with Templin’s since 1994.

Tom Scrupps was named senior credit underwriter at Farm Credit Services. Scrupps joined Farm Credit in 1990 as a credit officer trainee and has served as credit officer and senior credit officer in Spokane, Cottonwood, Colfax and, most recently, Yakima.

John Butler was promoted to sales manager at Information Mini Mall. Before joining IMM, he was regional sales manager for Itron, account manager for Atlantic Scientific and sales manager for Boston Cadd Systems.

MOVING:

UPF Inc. has moved its corporate offices to 2017 W. Northwest Blvd.

TRANSACTIONS:

Autodesk Inc. has certified PacifiCAD Inc., of Spokane, as an Autodesk Systems Center Solutions Training site. PacifiCAD qualified for the certification by employing an Autodesk certified instructor and having at least six networked training workstations.

Sears, Roebuck & Co. has named K-Designers and American Home Improvement Products Inc. as authorized Sears home improvement contractors for the Spokane area. K-Designers will market siding and American Home Improvement Products will market windows and cabinets as exclusive area representatives for Sears.

ELECTED:

Len Bogue was elected president of the Inland Empire unit of Manufactured Housing Communities of Washington. Bogue and his wife, Bette have managed and owned manufactured housing communities since 1973.

The Spokane Chapter of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters Society elected the following officers: Christman Howell, Firemans Fund Insurance Co., president; Colleen McGraw, Safeco Insurance Co., vice president; Allan Moorhead, Physicians Insurance, secretary; Barbara Keevan, Grange Insurance Group, treasurer.

KUDOS:

Nicole Hillman, a business recruiter for the Spokane Area Economic Development Council, received an economic development service excellence award from Moran, Stahl & Boyer, a management consulting firm specializing in business location selection and relocation. Hillman was one of four recipients and was the only individual honored.

Albuquerque-based Philips Semiconductors has presented Johnson Matthey Electronics its Supplier of the Year Award for Metals. This is the sixth straight year that JME has received the award.

Hanna & Associates, Coeur d’Alene, was awarded best of show at the Spokane Advertising Federation’s 1996 Addy Awards, and at the Idaho Advertising Federation’s 25th Annual Rockie Awards in Boise. A television commercial for Coeur d’Alene Tribal Bingo earned the firm top honors at the Spokane Addy Awards. At the Rockie Awards, Hanna won best of show for a radio campaign for Tidyman’s.

Christian Retailing magazine has ranked Christian Gift/Evangel Book Centers among the top 100 Christian bookstores in the nation based on sales volume. Christian Book/Evangel Book Centers, owned by Daryl Bursch, has six locations in Spokane and Coeur d’Alene.

EVENTS:

Monday-Thursday - The Institute for Extended Learning presents an introduction to the Internet from 5:30-8:30 p.m. each day at the Business Training and Applied Technology Institute, 3939 N. Freya. Cost: $140; call 533-4700 for more information or to register.

Tuesday - The Small Business Development Center presents a prebusiness workshop from 6-9 p.m. at Spokane Intercollegiate Research and Technology Institute, 665 N. Riverpoint Blvd. Cost: $25; call 358-7544 for more information or to register.

Tuesday-Thursday - The Service Corps of Retired Executives offers business counseling to potential and existing small business owners from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at the Business Information Center in the Spokane Area Chamber of Commerce, 1020 W. Riverside. Call 353-2820 for appointments, or 924-4994 for appointments at the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce.

Thursday - The Spokane Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America will honor public relations and advertising executive Ken Degerness at its annual summer social from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at the Schoenberg Conference Center (formerly MONAC), 800 N. Pearl. Cost: $8 for members, $10 for non-members; for more information or reservations, call Teresa Stueckle at 325-6063.

July 24 and 25 - Continental Mortgage Co. presents a free seminar about FHA 203(k) and conventional remodeling/rehabilitation home loans from 6-7:30 p.m. July 24 at the Holiday Inn Express, 1190 Bishop Blvd., Pullman; from 9-10:30 a.m. July 25 at the Comfort Inn, 166 N. Canning Drive, Colville; and from 6-7:30 p.m. July 25 at the Monroe Court, 901 N. Monroe, Spokane. For reservations, call Amy Mathiason at 325-9955.

CONVENTIONS:

Sunday-Tuesday - Alcoholics Anonymous, Pacific Northwest conference, WestCoast Ridpath Hotel.

Tuesday-Thursday - Administrators for the Courts, evidence program, WestCoast Ridpath Hotel.

Friday-July 28 - Watchtower Bible & Tract Society, district Watchtower convention, citywide.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 12 Photos

MEMO: Do you want to submit an item for “Business Beat?” Send a brief press release to: Bill Sallquist, P.O. Box 2160, Spokane WA, 99210-1615. Photos will be used, space permitting, with new staff additions, promotions and new businesses. Put names on backs of photos. If you want a photo back, write “WILL CALL” on the back and pick it up at the newspaper reference library. Allow three weeks for publication.