Business Beat

New faces:

Christopher L. Roberts has been named manager of Sterling Savings Bank’s Northtown branch. He previously managed the Cheney office of Farmers & Merchants Bank. Earlier, Roberts was a consumer and commercial loan officer at Farmers & Merchants’ Valley office. He received a bachelor’s degree in finance from Washington State University.

David J. Crowner has been named operations manager for Spokane Airports. He will be responsible for day-to-day aviation activities at Spokane International and Felts Field airports, as well as short- and long-term planning and coordination with governmental agencies. Crowner had been manager of the Moscow-Pullman Regional Airport since 1991 and earlier was an operations superintendent and supervisor at New Orleans International Airport. He earned a bachelor’s degree in aviation management from Southern Illinois University. Crowner holds a commercial pilot’s license with an instrument rating and is a certified flight instructor.

Recent additions to the staff of Kimmel Athletic Supply Co. include:

Al Vorderbrueggen joined Kimmel as a team sales representative. He will live in Colfax and handle school, league and commercial accounts in southeastern Washington and central Idaho. Vorderbrueggen previously was recreation superintendent for the Pullman Parks and Recreation Department. He is a graduate of Whitworth College.

Heidi Deffenbacher was hired as an accountant and will be responsible for general ledger accounting. A graduate of Gonzaga University’s School of Business, she previously worked for Sterling Savings Bank as a financial reporting accountant.

Cori Cummins has been hired as special events coordinator at Spokane Valley Mall. Cummins, who will promote and direct special events and promotions, is a 2000 graduate of Gonzaga University, where she studied public relations and advertising. Most recently, she served internships at Brett Sports and KSPS Television.

Lori Grasham has joined the Coeur d’Alene branch of D.A. Davidson & Co. as a financial consultant. Grasham, who received a bachelor’s degree in finance from the University of Idaho, will assist individual investors in reaching their financial goals. She was most recently a financial adviser for American Express and previously worked as a financial consultant for the World Marketing Alliance.

Moving up:

JP Realty Inc., the Salt Lake City based owner and developer of Spokane Valley Mall, has promoted Mike Ferguson to marketing director at the shopping center. He was most recently the marketing director of Silver Lake Mall in Coeur d’Alene, which JP Realty also owns. Earlier, he was the special events coordinator at Spokane Valley Mall. Ferguson is a 1996 graduate of Washington State University, where he studied public relations and political science.

Starting up: CitiMortgage has opened a new branch office at 1038 Northwest Blvd., Suite 150, in Coeur d’Alene. Toni Patrek was appointed branch manager. Other staff include Dick Jones, loan officer, and Jessica Lennon, sales assistant. Both Patrek and Jones have more than 20 years of mortgage experience. CitiMortgage specializes in the nationwide lending of residential home mortgages through residential retail, wholesale, Citigroup and corporate loan origination channels.

Appointed:

Wallace Mayor Ronald G. Garitone has been appointed to the Association of Idaho Cities Legislative Committee for the 2001 legislative session. The committee is responsible for setting the association’s legislative agenda and serves as a resource while the state Legislature is in session.

Kudos:

Technet, the Inland Northwest Technology Alliance, has chosen the following recipients for Catalyst Awards 2000, which recognize those who have done the most to advance high technology initiatives in the past year: Individual, Rick Hansen, Visontec, who was honored for his “visionary leadership and commitment to employee development;” company, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories of Pullman, chosen for its “international leadership in the electronics industry;” and organization, Engineering Consortium, consisting of Washington State University at Spokane, University of Idaho and Gonzaga University, honored for developing a “first-of-its-kind educational offering for the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene area.”

AMCAL Inc. has received the 2000 Licensee of the Year Award from Mumm’s the Word founder Debbie Mumm. AMCAL was recognized for “creating quality products, great communication, consistent presentation and promotion of the Debbie Mumm brand, wonderful packaging, sending samples and just being great to work with.” Sakura Inc. was named the brand’s Top Sales Licensee.