🔒IN SHORT

New hires

Fontaine Family – The Real Estate Leader in Auburn hired Sally Christner as a real estate agent and Sarah Higgins as a sales agent at its Scarborough office.

Preti Flaherty, a law firm in Portland, hired Kristin Collins as an attorney in the firm's municipal law group in Augusta.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine's Auburn/Lewiston Clubhouse hired Maura Moody as unit director. Moody was previously public relations manager for the Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council.

Sterling Rope Co. Inc. in Biddeford hired Liz McLellan as director of marketing. McLellan was previously senior client strategist with The VIA Agency in Portland.

The Trump-Pence Maine campaign in Augusta hired Leland Graves as deputy state director and Lauren LePage as coalitions director.

Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington hired Stephen Gorman as medical director of its sleep center. Gorman is also director of Maine Sleep Center at Chest Medicine Associates in South Portland and serves as medical director for the Maine General Medical Center Sleep Disorders Clinic and Sleep Diagnostics Center in Waterville and Augusta.

The Kennebunkport Resort Collection hired the following people: Corinne Finn-Heyl, as general manager of Kennebunkport Inn and Cape Arundel Inn & Resort; Barbara Press, as human resources manager; Brenda Darroch, as digital marketing manager; and Michelle Sazehn, as assistant general manager at Cape Arundel Inn & Resort. Finn-Heyl was with The White Barn Inn and Spa in Kennebunk, Press was with AG Supermarkets Inc., Darroch was with Yankee Magazine and Sazehn was with The Milestone in Ogunquit.

Skelton Taintor & Abbott, a law firm in Auburn, hired Amanda Meader as of counsel to the firm. Meader, who will join the firm's municipal law practice, was previously a staff attorney with the Maine Municipal Association.

Bernstein Shur, a law firm in Portland, hired Sara Hellstedt as an attorney in the firm's labor and employment practice group. Previously, Hellstedt was labor relations manager for the University of Southern Maine and an associate at a local law firm.

Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, a financial planning firm in Portland, hired Tammy Weston as a financial advisor. Weston is a certified financial planner with more than 20 years of experience.

CBRE|The Boulos Co., a real estate firm in Portland, hired Cole Smith as an associate.

Waterville Creates!, an arts and cultural organizations, hired Shannon Haines as president and CEO. Haines, who was executive director of the Maine Film Center, is scheduled to start her new position Oct. 1. She is the permanent replacement for Nate Rudy, who resigned to be city manager of Hallowell. Patricia King had served as interim leader after Rudy's departure.

Maine Medical Center in Portland hired Janessa Leger, Lauren Wendell, Michael Bohanske and Christina Wilson as physicians in its department of emergency medicine. Leger was chief resident at the hospital, Wendell was a clinical assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Bohanske was chief resident in the department of emergency medicine at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and Wilson completed the Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency program sponsored by Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital.

The Maine Women's Lobby in Augusta hired Victoria Rodriguez as community organizer and program assistant.

Wright-Ryan Construction Inc. in Portland hired Sebastien Leclerc as an integrated project manager/foreman in the firm's select projects group.

Coastal Healthcare Alliance, which oversees Pen Bay Medical Center, Waldo County General Hospital and their community-based health care services, hired Mark Fourre as CEO. Fourre, who is currently chief medical officer at LincolnHealth in Damariscotta and Boothbay Harbor, will assume the role at the end of year when the current CEO, Mark Biscone, is set to retire. With the move, Fourre remains within the MaineHealth group of hospitals and health care organizations.

NL Partners, an advertising agency in Portland, hired Georgia Dixon as assistant account executive. Dixon was previously office administrator for Legacy Properties Sotheby's International Realty.

Franklin Health Farmington Family Practice hired Karren Seely, who was providing interim care at the practice as well as at Franklin Health Livermore Falls Family Practice for the past 10 months.

Maine Medical Center in Portland hired Robyn Ostrander as a member of its department of psychiatry. Ostrander, previously the senior medical director at The Brattleboro Retreat in Vermont, will serve as medical director for the division of child and adolescent psychiatry and be chair of the Glickman Family Center for Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at Spring Harbor Hospital, a division of Maine Behavioral Healthcare.

TIQA, a restaurant in Portland, hired Derek Federico as chef de cuisine. Federico was previously a sous chef at 555.

Promotions

Patrons Oxford Insurance in Auburn promoted Eric Swanson to vice president of claims and George MacKinnon to vice president of underwriting.

Kennebunkport Resort Collection promoted Holly Paradis to general manager of The Boathouse Waterfront Hotel and Grand Hotel and Amy Caramante to restaurant general manager at The Tides Beach Club. Paradis was previously general manager at The Boathouse Waterfront Hotel while Caramante was assistant general manager of Earth at Hidden Pond.

cPort Credit Union in Portland promoted Evan Lovely to loan operations supervisor, Kelly Brogan to director of lending and Peyton Dostie to executive assistant.

Southern Maine Community College in South Portland promoted Charles Gregory to dean of academic affairs. Gregory, who has been with the college for 23 years as a faculty member with stints as department chair, division chair and faculty senate president, served as interim academic dean for the past year.

Becker Structural Engineers Inc., an engineering firm in Portland, promoted Christopher Williams to senior engineer, Alexander Wheelock to project engineer II and Adam Sampson to project engineer I.

SeniorsPlus, an agency on aging located in Lewiston, promoted EIM Home Visitor Laurie McFarren to training and quality assurance manager and EIM Care Coordinator Anne-Marie Maheux to care management supervisor.

Wright-Ryan Construction Inc. in Portland promoted Michael Mooney to field operations project manager and estimator. Mooney was previously a select projects integrated project manager and foreman.

Appointments

Maine Municipal Association in Augusta elected Laurie Smith as president of its executive committee and Linda Cohen as vice president. Smith is town manager in Kennebunkport while Cohen is a city councilor in South Portland.

Bruce Wagner, CEO of the Finance Authority of Maine in Augusta, was elected to the board of directors of the National Council of Higher Education Resources, a national, nonprofit trade association representing state, nonprofit and private organizations that assist students and families in paying for college and managing their student loan debt.

Achievements

The Portland Water District's Westbrook/Gorham Wastewater Treatment Facility received a Silver Peak Performance Award and the Peaks Island Wastewater Treatment Facility a Gold Peak Performance Award from the National Association of Clean Water Agencies. The awards recognize public wastewater treatment facilities for outstanding compliance records in 2015.

The Maine Small Business Development Centers in Portland, a statewide program that helps entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses, selected Christine Long as the “2016 State Star.” Long is an administrative manager at the Maine SBDC at the University of Southern Maine in Portland.

Kaplan University said that it received Reaffirmation of Accreditation by the Institutional Actions Council of the Higher Learning Commission. The determination continues the university's regional accreditation through its 2025-26 academic year.

The Associated General Contractors of America Maine honored Peter and Paul Labbe, owners of Ray Labbe and Sons Inc. in Brunswick, with its Major Achievement in Construction Award.

Laurence Gross, executive director of the Southern Maine Agency on Aging in Scarborough, received The John A. Hartford Foundation Business Innovation Award from the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging. The agency also received Aging Innovations Awards for its Simply Delivered for ME Program and Vet to Vet.

Maine Maritime Museum in Bath presented Eimskip USA, a shipping company in Portland, with its 11th annual Mariners Award, given to an individual or organization that has made contributions to Maine's maritime heritage and impacted the state's culture and economy.

Heart of Biddeford was designated as an accredited Main Street America program for meeting performance standards set by the National Main Street Center.

The state of Maine earned a “Making Progress” distinction from the National Safety Council, the highest rating bestowed by the Council in its Prescription Nation report, for its efforts to address opioid abuse. Only four other states — Kentucky, New Mexico, Tennessee and Vermont — earned a similar distinction.

Maine Valuation Co. in Gorham announced that Craig Plourde received a Certified General Real Property Appraiser license from the state of Maine Department of Professional and Financial Regulation to appraise real property of all types.

Pierce Atwood LLP, a law firm in Portland, said that 47 of its Maine-based attorneys were selected by their peers for inclusion in “The Best Lawyers in America 2017.” In addition, seven of the firm's Maine attorneys were named “Lawyer of the Year,” a recognition presented annually to a single outstanding lawyer in each practice area and designated metropolitan location.

Machias Savings Bank announced that it was ranked No. 8 in the nation by American Banker Magazine in its list of “Best Banks to Work For.” It's the second year in a row the bank was named to the list.

The Maine Department of Labor awarded its Safety and Health Award for Public Employers to Maine Veterans' Home – Caribou.