In Short from Jan. 19, 2009 | A roundup of new hires, promotions, accolades and appointments from Maine's business community

New Hires

Frank Martin Sons Inc., a forestry and construction equipment dealer in Fort Kent, recently hired Jeff Fogg as sales representative.

BeneTrac of Yarmouth, a provider of web-based electronic enrollment and employee benefits administration software owned by Paychex, based in Rochester, N.Y., recently hired Chris Taylor as regional sales director for Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Norton Lamb & Co., an information technology consulting firm based in Yarmouth, recently hired Susan Ferro-Kinne as an account manager.

Norton Insurance Agency of Cumberland Foreside recently hired Maria Amador as a personal lines account representative. Previously, Amador was co-administrator at Amador Foster Home in Harpswell.

Assistant Vice President Brenda Moore was recently hired as manager of the York Kennebunk Savings office in York. Previously, Moore was the branch manager at the Main Street office in Kennebunk.

Kennebunk Savings recently hired Kevin Gray as manager of its Berwick office. Gray, who has been with Kennebunk Savings since 2007, previously managed the bank’s office in York.

Leisa DuPuy recently was hired at the engineering consulting firm Stantec in its Scarborough office as a financial manager for New England. Previously, DuPuy worked at Idexx Laboratories in Westbrook.

Cross Insurance, based in Bangor, recently hired Carol Kelley as an account executive.

Norton Insurance Agency of Cumberland Foreside recently hired Debi Dyer as personal lines account representative. Previously, Dyer was an underwriting assistant with One Beacon Insurance.

Devine Strategies, a public affairs and issues management firm in Concord, N.H., recently hired Kimberly Cook of Portland as an advisor providing consulting services to clients throughout Maine.

Promotions

Norway Savings Bank recently promoted Tina Croteau to vice president and personal and small business development officer. Previously, Croteau was vice president and branch manager of the South Paris office.

Christopher Rugullies was promoted to commercial loan officer in the commercial lending department at TD Banknorth in Auburn and Oxford. Previously, Rugullies served as a commercial portfolio loan officer.

The St. Mary’s Health System board of directors recently announced that Lee Myles has been named CEO of St. Mary’s Health System and St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston.

Kaia Vayenas has been promoted to web content manager in eCommerce at TD Banknorth in Falmouth.

Sheree Beaudette has been promoted to a web developer III in the eCommerce department at TD Banknorth in Falmouth. A vice president, Beaudette will continue to be responsible for web development on the TD Banknorth website.

Darrell Gill has been promoted to business development and sales manager at the TD Banknorth branch in Portland. Previously, Gill was a customer sales and service manager.

KeyBank announced that P. Benjamin Flood has been promoted to manager of the Commercial Street branch in Portland. Previously, Flood was a relationship manager at the Millcreek branch.

U.S. Cellular recently promoted Curtis Smith to sales manager at the company’s Farmington location. Previously, Smith was U.S. Cellular’s retail wireless consultant in South Paris.

Gail Wilkerson has been named vice president of operations at Spring Harbor Community Services in Westbrook. SHCS is the sister organization of the nonprofit Spring Harbor Hospital, which provides psychiatric services.

Julie Pochepan has been promoted to a human resources manager at TD Banknorth in Portland. Previously, Pochepan was an HR business partner and an HR representative at TD Banknorth.

H&R Block recently promoted Kerry Robinson to office leader and tax advisor for its new Portland location. Previously, Robinson worked as a tax associate for H&R Block in Portland.

Appointments

James Schwellenbach has been elected as a shareholder at Drummond Woodsum, a law firm based in Portland. Schwellenbach is a member of the public sector practice group, focusing on special education and general school law. 

Bangor Savings Bank, its parent company, Bangor Bancorp, and The Bangor Savings Bank Foundation recently announced leadership appointments on their respective boards:  James Goff has been elected vice chairman of both the bank and its parent company, and Gary Smith has been elected chairman of The Bangor Savings Bank Foundation.

Ad Club of Maine, a professional organization for advertising executives, recently appointed the following people to its board of directors: Stephanie Deveau of Shads Advertising in Auburn, Mike Mayo of WCSH6 in Portland, and Adam McNally of KG Partners in Portland.

Spotlight

CES Inc., a consulting firm specializing in engineering, surveying, planning and sciences, recently pledged $100,000 to maintain and upgrade the research laboratory at the University of Maine, the alma mater of all five of the company’s shareholders.

CES was founded in Brewer in 1978 by Jim Parker and Shawn Small, and its donation will support a UMaine lab where environmental engineering students learn how to preserve healthy water, air and land, according to a press release from the company.

The company’s principals joined UMaine President Robert Kennedy and College of Engineering Dean Dana Humphrey, among other faculty and staff, to dedicate the CES Inc. Environmental Chemistry Laboratory. In addition to the shareholders, eight of the company’s nine board of directors members are graduates of the school and at least half of the company’s more than 60 employees. “We felt it was important to say thank you for the quality education we received,” said Small.

Company News

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Maine recently announced that in 2008 it awarded $103,800 in funding to 12 Maine nonprofit organizations. Since its founding in 1989, RMHC of Maine has awarded more than $1.5 million in charitable grants to programs that positively impact families and children across Maine.

Medical Source Inc., a health care search firm based in Portland, purchased Executive Search of New England, an employment firm based in South Portland.

The Acadia Hospital recently celebrated the completion of its first capital campaign with more than $1.1 million raised, including a $15,000 check from Bangor law firm Rudman & Winchell, to support strategic improvements in the hospital’s psychiatric illness and chemical dependency units.

Kepware Technologies, a Portland-based firm developing communication software for automation, has partnered with ConneXSoft GmbH to develop communications drivers for use in the building automation system and energy management markets.

Consigli Construction Co. Inc.’s Portland operations recently partnered with the United Way of Kennebec Valley to help outfit a new workshop that had recently been built on Rural Community Action Ministry campus in Leeds.

Video Creations celebrated the grand opening of its new studio in Shoppers Village, Kennebunk. The larger space will better accommodate the company’s recent growth and addition of new services.

Schiavi Homes of Oxford and Bethel recently announced that Northeast Bank has been chosen as Schiavi’s preferred lender, meaning the company’s borrowers will receive preferred rates at the bank.

St. Mary’s Health System in Lewiston has been awarded a $500,000 challenge grant from the Kresge Foundation for its With All Our Hearts Capital Campaign. The campaign is raising money for an expansion and renovation of the emergency department and construction of a medical campus in Auburn.

The Ogunquit Museum of American Art recently announced the resignation of Michael Culver, executive director and curator.

L.L.Bean customer contact centers in Waterville and Bangor recently joined the retailer’s Freeport manufacturing plant in the Voluntary Protection Programs of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Gov. John Baldacci recently said the U.S. Small Business Administration has accepted Maine’s request for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan Declaration for a fire in Northeast Harbor in July. The five affected businesses may borrow up to $2 million with a maximum interest rate of 4% percent to help them cover normal operating expenses through the disaster recovery period. 

Gov. John Baldacci announced that Maine has received two grants from the Department of Defense’s Office of Economic Adjustment.  Funding will support consultant studies as the region prepares for the closure of the Brunswick Naval Air Station between 2009 and 2011. An $85,000 grant will support a regional economic development marketing plan and a $1.025 million grant will be used for long-range transportation planning in support of the reuse of BNAS.

Irving Oil recently donated $50,000 to Maine’s Children’s Miracle Network. For the past seven years, Irving Oil’s Fuel the Care Program has helped thousands of families make the trip between home and hospital when a child is in need of treatment for a serious illness.

Maine Energy Systems recently hosted a press conference and open house at its new facility in Bethel. The new facility houses all aspects of the wood pellet energy systems, including a community pellet storage depot and specially designed delivery trucks.

Most Maine loggers are using best logging practices to protect the state’s water quality, according to a Maine Forest Service report issued in November. A survey of 250 randomly chosen timber harvest sites shows that in 2006 and 2007, more than three-quarters of Maine loggers use appropriate logging methods to protect water quality at their harvest sites.

Amy Lent, executive director of Maine Maritime Museum in Bath, recently said the museum will receive a $250,000 unrestricted gift from the trust of James Thurston, who died on May 12, 1999.

Portland-based HMG Search Marketing is managing the Google AdWords campaigns pro bono for two California-based nonprofits through the Google Grants program, an in-kind donation program awarding free AdWords advertising to select charitable organizations.

Maine Coastal Flight Center Inc. recently announced that it is now a “Cirrus Standardized Training Center” as awarded by the Cirrus Design Corp. of Duluth, Minn. Maine Coastal Flight Center is a flight training facility located at the Hancock County-Bar Harbor Airport in Trenton.

The Maine Health Access Foundation, the state’s largest health foundation, announced the award of nearly $3 million in grants to 17 nonprofits and collaboratives across Maine to improve the integration and delivery of mental and behavioral health services with primary health care services. Individual grants range from $28,500 to $300,000.

Students at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor are the subject of a new video released by the U.S. State Department on its America.gov website. The video provides “a close-up look at the people, places and events behind the news,” in the hopes of “engaging international audiences on issues of American life, society, culture and values,” according to a press release from the State Department.

KICTeam, a cleaning card manufacturer headquartered in Auburn, and TransAct Technologies, a manufacturer of cashless ticket printers for the gaming and lottery-based industries based in Hamden, Conn., recently announced the release of the TransAct Technologies Cashless Ticket Printer Cleaning System using Waffletechnology to clean the Epic 950 and Epic 850 ticket printers. The new cleaning card system will enable gaming properties and retail outlets to increase efficiency and lower maintenance costs.

U.S. Cellular recently completed construction of an additional cell site in Harrison. The project increases U.S. Cellular’s coverage and network capacity in the towns of Harrison and North Bridgton and provide service along Route 35 between Harrison and Naples and Route 117 between Harrison and Bridgton. The company also recently completed construction of cell sites in Bristol, Cornish, Unity and Dixmont.

Maine craft brewer Gritty McDuff’s Brewing Co. launched its 21st year of brewing beers by introducing an anniversary beer: Gritty’s “21 IPA.” 

Camden National Bank’s President and CEO Greg Dufour recently presented a check for $50,000 to Maine Huts & Trails to support its mission to create a 180-mile hut-to-hut trail system and promote eco-tourism as a sustainable model for economic growth in western Maine.

As part of an ongoing international initiative to bring more jobs to the people of Afghanistan, coaches from the Maine Manufacturing Extension Partnership recently provided training to Afghan businesswomen specializing in food processing. The women were among a group of 12 Afghan entrepreneurs who visited more than 40 host companies in their industry sectors this past October.

Saunders Manufacturing Co. Inc. of Readfield — a manufacturer of clipboards, aluminum form holders and storage boxes — recently entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with Ticket Board Inc., the maker of a device designed to increase police officer safety. Under the agreement, Saunders gained the exclusive right to distribute these products and accessories to dealerships in North America. 

The University of Maine at Presque Isle recently said the campus will open a Prometric Testing Center. The center, which is expected to officially open in January, will allow students to take computer-based exams such as the Graduate Record Examination at UMPI, rather than at Bangor or Portland.

Accolades

Barkwheats Dog Biscuits of Stockton Springs, a producer of all-natural, hand-crafted buckwheat dog biscuits, has been recognized by Co-op America for its commitment to the environment and social justice.

Avesta Housing, Maine’s largest nonprofit developer and manager of affordable housing, recently awarded John Gallagher, executive director of the Westbrook Housing Authority, the Mike Yandell Award. The Mike Yandell Award is named in honor of Mike Yandell, the former Avesta board president and Gorham Savings Bank president. The award recognizes an individual or company for their service and dedication to the affordable housing industry.

Jim Conlon, president and CEO of Bangor Savings Bank, recently received Spurwink’s 2008 Humanitarian of the Year Award. Presented annually since 1987, the Humanitarian of the Year Award recognizes individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to enrich the lives of others.

Martyn Vickers, a member of the Pen Bay Urology team, has received the Distinguished Service Award from the Sexual Medicine Society of North America. Vickers was cited for his work in development of medical devices and techniques to identify, preserve and reconstruct the nerves that control erectile function.

The New England Society for Healthcare Communications, the regional association for health care marketing, recently announced that Kathleen Duris Tarbox principle of KDT Communications in Sanford, has been awarded the Evans Houghton Memorial Award. The Evans Houghton Award is the highest honor the society bestows on a marketing professional and honors an individual for performance and contributions in the field of health care public relations and marketing.

Susan Goran, operations director of the MaineHealth VitalNetwork, recently received the first Cindy Gregory eXcellence in Leadership Award from VISICU, a national health care company, at its annual meeting. The award is given to an operations director or manager who consistently demonstrates leadership skills in the management and development of the elctronic intensive care unit program.

Travelers, a property casualty insurer based in Hartford, Conn., recently recognized the top client representatives at its independent agencies in Maine by presenting them with the High Achiever Award. This year’s honorees were: Dottie Chalmers of Chalmers Insurance Agency in Bridgton, Lorraine Michals of Clark Associates in Portland, Debbie Pelkey of the Cross Agency in Bangor, Linda Spear of the Cross Agency in Lewiston and Gail Turner of HRH of Northern New England in Auburn.

Recently the Portland Water District was presented with New England Water Works Association’s 2008 Utility Service Award and the Maine Economic Growth Council’s Gold Star Award. The Utility Service Award recognizes outstanding leadership and support of the water industry and association. The Maine Economic Growth Council’s Gold Star Award recognizes achievement in land conservation.

Sherry French, office manager for WDME Radio in Dover-Foxcroft, was the recipient of the sixth annual Warren “Pete” Myrick Community Service Award. The Myrick Award recognizes a Piscataquis County citizen, business or organization who exemplifies Myrick’s concern for and commitment to education, economic development and civic leadership in the region.

Vreeland Marketing & Design was recognized for outstanding work in the public relations field at an awards ceremony hosted by the Maine Public Relations Council in Portland. Vreeland earned a Gold Award in the Newsletters category for the Cliff House Resort & Spa’s Seasonal Newsletters that were developed as part of a multi channel marketing tool enabling the resort to communicate more actively with guests.

At the Maine Public Relations Board Golden Arrow Award Ceremony, Lapchick Creative of Portland won a silver award for four humorous videos they created for their client 32North, the maker of Stabilicer Ice Cleats. Portland public relations firm gBritt PR earned three awards from the Maine Public Relations Council. This is the fourth consecutive year that gBritt PR has earned Golden Arrow Awards. Rinck Advertising in Auburn was the recipient of three Golden Arrow Awards.

Custom Museum Publishing located in Rockland produced two award-winning books, “If These Houses Could Talk” and “If These Cottages Could Talk” that won “best local history” from the Maine Historic Preservation Commission in 2008.

The Greater Bangor Convention and Visitors Bureau recently congratulated Windswept Gardens of Bangor and its owner, Bob Bangs, for being nominated as the 2009 Landscaper of the Year. GBCVB also congratulated Tom Palmer, general manager of the Best Western Black Bear Inn in Orono, for being honored with the Heroic Hospitality Stars Award at Best Western’s North American Conference. The Heroic Hospitality Stars Award recognizes the hotel chain’s top general manager from its properties in the United States and Canada.