🔒Company and personnel news

New Hires

Sebago Technics Inc., an architecture and engineering firm headquartered in Westbrook, recently promoted Mark Adams from executive vice president to president and CEO.

Mercy Health System of Maine recently hired Wayne Kruithoff as a cardiologist at Mercy Cardiology in Portland.

Yarmouth Boat Yard recently hired Chrissy Walls as parts manager.

GEI Consultants Inc., an engineering firm in Portland, recently hired Sarah Christian as a hydrologist.

iBec Creative, a design firm in Portland, recently hired Seth Storey as its new web advisor.

Verrill Dana, a law firm in Portland, recently hired Seth Coburn and Andreea Sabin as associates, Matthew Bahl as an associate in its labor and employment and franchise and dealership groups, and Gary Rosenberg as counsel in its health care group.

United Way of York County recently hired Kristine Jenkins as coordinator for the Partners for a Hunger-Free York County initiative.

Community Credit Union in Lewiston recently hired Andrew Lunn as accounting supervisor.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection recently hired Heather Parent as policy director. Previously, Parent was a shareholding attorney in Eaton Peabody's environmental and land practice group.

Mercy Health System of Maine recently hired Fredrick Poulin as a cardiologist at Mercy Cardiology in Portland, Bianca Monteiro as a physician at its pulmonary practice and Toby Fitzgerald as a doctor of osteopathic medicine in obstetrics and gynecology for its All About Women practice in Portland.

Highliner Events, an event management company in South Portland, recently hired Imogene Altznauer as partner, Jay Perrotta and Karen Thomas as sales directors, and Kristi Braun as event coordinator.

TD Bank recently hired Ryan Goding as manager of its two Farmington branches and William Olsen as senior relationship manager and team leader in commercial lending in Portland.

Tilson, an IT services provider in Portland, recently hired Cameron Kilton as a senior consultant and Tom Kinney as a principal consultant, as well as members of its wireless and telecommunications group.

Androscoggin Bank in Lewiston recently hired Melissa Rock as senior marketing specialist. Previously, Rock was director of marketing and communications for Shawnee Peak in Bridgton.

United Way of Greater Portland recently hired Alison Hickey as vice president, resource generation, and Ainsley Wallace as director, resource generation.

People's United Bank in Portland recently hired Tara Perruzzi as commercial loan officer, vice president.

Rudman Winchell, a law firm in Bangor, recently hired Colin Howard as an attorney.

Norway Savings Bank recently hired Karen Perry as vice president and Congress Street branch manager and Anthony Mellon as vice president and commercial lender.

Building Solutions, a construction firm in Oxford, recently hired Bob Hale as a project manager. Previously, Hale was with R&R Construction Co. in Lewiston.

PFBF, an accounting firm in Oakland, recently hired Janet Audette as an accountant.

Runyon Kersteen Ouellette, an accounting firm in South Portland, recently hired Chris Albert, Megan Hamilton, and Josh Kochis as assistant accountants, Jodie Heal as senior accountant, and Lisa Dunbar and Jeffrey Raab as managers.

Drummond Woodsum, a law firm in Portland, recently hired attorneys Erin Feltes, Kimberly Pacelli and Rodney Lake.

Hannaford Bros. Co. in Scarborough recently hired Heather Paquette as vice president of retail operations for its eastern division.

Promotions

Patriot Insurance Co. in Yarmouth recently promoted Erica Hutchins to personal lines underwriter II.

The Portland Museum of Art recently promoted Susan Danly to senior curator.

Woodard & Curran, a law firm in Portland, recently named Mary House, senior project manager, and Randy Tome, civil and environmental engineering group manager, as senior vice presidents.

United Way of Greater Portland recently promoted Kerry Smith to senior associate, resource generation.

Willis of Northern New England Inc., an insurance broker in Auburn, recently promoted Judith Conley to vice president, client advocacy, human capital practice, and William Lewis to the vice president, alternative markets.

Appointments

Rick Dacri, president of Dacri & Associates in Kennebunkport, was recently appointed to Maine's Fee Arbitration Commission, which provides arbitration of fee disputes between clients and attorneys who practice law in Maine.

College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor recently named John Visvader, a faculty member in philosophy, as the inaugural holder of the Richard J. Borden Chair in Humanities.

Amy Cotton, nurse practitioner and director of operations and senior service quality for Eastern Maine Healthcare System Continuum of Care, recently chaired The World Congress Leadership Summit on Innovative Care Delivery Models for the Aging Population in Vienna, Vir.

Susan Doliner, associate vice president of development at Maine Medical Center in Portland, was recently appointed chair of the board of directors of the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy.

The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust recently appointed the following to its board of directors: John Swenson, a member of Bath's planning board; Betsy Ham, a project manager for the Maine Coast Heritage Trust; and Nancy Perkins, secretary for Bath Trails.

John Butler, Lewiston city councilor, was recently named to the Maine Municipal Association's executive committee.

Greg Mitchell, Portland's economic development director, was recently selected to serve as acting director of planning and urban development upon the departure of current director Penny St. Louis.

Downeast Lakes Land Trust recently appointed Sydney Lea as president and Lee Whitely as vice president. The trust also appointed Susan LaPlante and Dale Tobey to its board of directors.

Spotlight

Northern Maine Community College in Presque Isle was recently highlighted in an article in the October newsletter of the Washington, D.C.- based Sustainability Education and Economic Development Center, according to a press release from the college.

The article, titled "Northern Maine Community College: Rural Partnership to Build a Green Economy," highlights the college's efforts to develop educational curriculum in alternative energy and specifically focuses on the college's work as a lead partner in the Mobilize Northern Maine initiative. The planning process involves representatives from Northern Maine Development Commission, work force development, the business community, nonprofits, government and higher education.

SEED supports community colleges building a green economy and was created by the American Association of Community Colleges.

Company News

The Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development recently announced the Top Gun class of 2011. Portland class: Stephen Andrews, AboGen; Mark Tuttle, Azarias International; Nova Ewers & Lynn Peel, Beach Glass Transitions; Stephen Voltz and Fritz Grobe, Eepybird; Christy Hemenway, Gold Star Honey Bees; Ian Engelman, Insightful Products; Kay Aikin, Introspective Systems; John Wipfler and Darrin Landry, Mobile Health Group; Ben Polito, Pika Energy; Mike Davis, Solar Roof Systems; Michael Goldman, Wealth Gathering; and Stan Farrell, Wizbe Innovations. Bangor class: Donald McCann, Evironetix; Peter Holmer, Flagsuit; Tim Lo, Kahbang; Claire Kiedrowski, Kappa Mapping; Brooke Ligon, Mitokine; Patrick and Jillian Glover, No Country Comforters; Todd O'Brien, O'Brien Medical; Brian Rahill, RainStorm; and Nancy Kravit, Tethys Research.

Port Resources in South Portland recently joined the Old Orchard Beach/Saco Adult Ed to provide the Certified Residential Medication Aid Certificate Program, an affordable health care certificate program.

Simmons Ardell, a communication design firm in South Portland, was recently engaged by CruiseMaine to provide design and branding services. CruiseMaine markets the state as a premier destination for the cruise industry.

The Gulf of Maine Research Institute in Portland was recently selected to join a growing multi-sector movement called 100Kin10, currently composed of more than 80 partners committed to working to recruit, develop and retain 100,000 science, technology, engineering and math teachers over the next 10 years. The movement is being led by Carnegie Corp. of New York and the Opportunity Equation.

Consigli Construction Co. Inc. in Portland recently broke ground in East Boothbay on the third building at the new 64-acre Ocean Science and Education campus it is constructing for Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences. Due to be completed in November 2012, the $11.4 million Bigelow Center for Ocean Health will be one of three complementary and interconnected research centers on the campus built by Consigli and designed by WBRC Architects • Engineers in association with Perkins + Will.

Louis Cavallaro from Sysco Northern New England Inc. in Westbrook recently graduated from the Master of Brand Advantages program offered by Certified Angus Beef.

Jeanne Pickering recently announced the opening of Cyber Colleague, a virtual assistant business in Portland.

Insurance Automation Group, an insurance software developer in Westbrook, recently announced that Aspen Insurance has chosen iAutomate: Company Surety to help launch its commercial surety business.

Trask-Decrow Machinery, a distributor of pumps and compressors, recently announced it has moved to a new facility at 52 U.S. Route 1 in Scarborough.

Allen Insurance and Financial in Camden recently announced the creation of an annual scholarship at Unity College. Each year, a $2,000 scholarship will be awarded to a Unity College student studying in the Center for Sustainability and Global Change.

Burroughs Payment Systems, a Michigan-based provider of document and payment processing image technology, and KICTeam, manufacturer of cleaning cards headquartered in Auburn, recently released a cleaning card designed specifically to remove inks, paper particles and other dirt from the scanner lenses of the Burroughs SmartSource check and document scanners.

Public accountant Donald Bissonnette recently merged his practice with Robustelli, Soucy and Hussey, an accounting firm in Lewiston. Bissonnette closed his office on Highland Spring Road in Lewiston and moved all operations to the Robustelli, Soucy and Hussey offices at 1071 Lisbon St.

Hannaford Bros. Co. recently donated more than $83,322 worth of goods to Good Shepherd Food-Bank in Auburn.

Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington recently earned The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval for accreditation by demonstrating compliance with the commission's national standards for health care quality and safety in hospitals. The hospital also was recently awarded a three-year term of accreditation in nuclear medicine as the result of a recent review by the American College of Radiology.

Maine Boats, Homes & Harbors Inc. recently announced the national launch of USHarbors.com, a free website that delivers tide charts, weather data and forecasts, photography, and a steady stream of local stories and information through a social network of more than 1,100 harbors.

Concentra, a subsidiary of Humana Inc., recently celebrated the grand reopening of its medical center in Lewiston.

The Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory was recently awarded $84,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to expand its environmental education programs.

Blue Marble Geographics, a developer and provider of software products in Gardiner, recently announced it has been awarded a contract with the U.S. General Services Administration allowing it to offer its products to federal organizations.

Maine's Baxter State Park was recently recertified by Scientific Certification Systems under the Forest Stewardship Council's standards for responsibly managed forests.

The Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory was recently awarded $84,000 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to expand its environmental education programs.

U.S. Cellular recently announced a new cell site in Mapleton to help improve coverage in the towns of Castle Hill and Mapleton, along Route 163 between Presque Isle and Ashland. It also announced a new cell site in Youngs Corner to help improve coverage in the towns of Auburn, Lewiston and Minot, and improve in-building coverage in the downtown Auburn and Lewiston area.

N. H. Bragg & Sons, a distributor of industrial, safety and janitorial supplies headquartered in Bangor, recently announced the retirement of John Bragg. Jon Eames assumes leadership of the company.

PenBay Solutions, a geographic information systems software developer in Brunswick, recently announced the launch of its InVision Toolkit, a data conversion tool.

The Maine Public Broadcasting Network recently announced it is pulling the plug on its annual Great TV Auction after 40 years, citing reduced margins and a need to put scarce resources to more efficient use.

Hope Orchards in Hope was recently named an Eco Apple certified orchard from the Integrated Pest Management Institute of America.

Nicole Avery recently announced the opening of Zone 3 Fitness, a fitness and personal training center on Route 1 in Scarborough.

R. H. Price, an energy services provider in Searsmont, was recently acquired by Blue Sphere Energy Solutions in North Haven, Conn.

Accolades

Portland-based Burgess Advertising & Marketing recently won six awards at the 20th annual Maine Public Relations Council's Golden Arrow Awards ceremony at the Hilton Garden Inn in Freeport. Also, Vreeland Marketing & Design in Yarmouth was honored for excellence in social media and technology.

Camden National Corp. recently presented employees with the following awards: Elizabeth Winslow, retail banking officer and manager of Camden National's Kennebunk and Portland branches, received the Commitment to the Customer Award; Kim Nason, vice president and secondary market manager in the loan production center, was presented with the Bob Daigle Achievement Through Innovation Award; Steve Thomas, vice president and commercial banking officer in the Bangor market, was honored with the Commitment to the Shareholder Award; Jane Dagley, vice president and market manager for the bank's Camden market, earned the Commitment to the Community Award; Monica Tolman, vice president and commercial administration manager, was presented the Commitment to Core Values Award; and Judy Folsom, vice president and education and development manager, was recognized as its Officer of the Year.

Marie Varian recently received the Ethel Kelley Memorial Award from the Maine Municipal Association for distinguished community service.

Skelton, Taintor & Abbott, a law firm in Portland recently announced that attorney Gretchen Jones was named the Portland Best Lawyers Financial Services Regulation Law Lawyer of the Year, and attorney Bryan Dench was named the Portland Best Lawyers Tax Law Lawyer of the Year for 2012 from Best Lawyers. Rudman Winchell, a law firm in Bangor, also announced that Best Lawyers named Edmond Bearor as the Bangor Best Lawyers Land Use & Zoning Law Lawyer of the Year for 2012.

Jim Gerritsen, owner of Wood Prairie Farm, a potato farm in Bridgewater, was recently named by the editors of Utne Reader to the magazine's 2011 list of 25 People Who Are Changing the World.

Breast Care Specialists of Maine, an affiliate of Mercy Health System of Maine, was honored recently with the outreach and education award from Cure Breast Cancer for Maine for outstanding leadership in promoting awareness of breast health in Maine.

Nancy Marshall, president of Augusta-based Nancy Marshall Communications, was recently awarded the Edward L. Bernays Achievement Award by the Maine Public Relations Council.

Imbibe Magazine's first cocktail book, The American Cocktail, includes the Camden Hike created by bartender Tom Laslavic from Natalie's, Camden Harbour Inn in Camden.

Portland Buy Local recently announced the winners of its fourth annual Indie Biz Awards: Soul of Portland, Longfellow Books; Flavor of Portland, Silly's Restaurant; Portland's Best Kept Secret, Lucid Stage; Environmental Hero, Portland Farmers' Market; Community Hero, Sebago Brewing Co.; The Business with No Front, Portland's Farmers' Market; Global Hero, Coffee By Design; Best New Business, Athlete's Touch; and Portland Icon: Micucci Grocery & Wholesale Foods.

Studer Group recently honored Charles A Dean Memorial Hospital, a member of the Eastern Maine Healthcare System in Brewer, for being a top performer in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems national survey.

Yarmouth-based Islandport Press has been honored with three Moonbeam Awards for its books from the Jenkins Group.

Nancy Perkins, a member of the Maine State Board of Education, was recently presented with the 2011 Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of State Boards of Education in recognition of outstanding service to public education.