In short from Oct. 31, 2011 | A roundup of new hires, promotions, accolades and appointments from Maine's business community

New Hires

Maine Fiber Co. Inc. in Portland, overseer of the Three Ring Binder broadband project, recently hired Jeff McCarthy as vice president of business development.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Southern Maine in Portland recently hired John Hastings as unit director of its Portland clubhouse.

Mercy Health System of Maine recently hired Greg Fanaras as a physician for its pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine department in Portland, and Karin Cole as a surgical oncologist to its team at Portland Surgical Associates in Portland.

Scarborough Family Chiropractic in Scarborough recently hired chiropractor Chris Maguire.

E.S. Boulos Co. Inc., an electrical engineering firm in Westbrook, recently hired Arthur Desjardins as electrical construction CAD designer/drafter/job coordinator.

Mercy Hospital’s All About Women in Portland recently hired Joyce Poirier as a certified nurse midwife.

People’s United Bank in Portland recently hired Patti Camelio as senior commercial loan officer, senior vice president in its commercial lending team.

The Maine Department of Environmental Protection recently hired Jim Dusch as director of the southern Maine regional office in Portland.

Pine Tree Legal Assistance in Portland recently hired Sean Norton, an American Bar Association section of taxation public service fellow, and Emily Yates, a Frank M. Coffin Family Law fellow.

Fluid Imaging Technologies Inc. in Yarmouth, manufacturer of the FlowCAM particle analysis instrument, hired Corie Drake as a project engineer. Previously, Drake worked as a planning engineer at General Dynamics, owner of Bath Iron Works in Bath.

TD Bank recently hired William Fuller as store manager of its branch at 299 Elm St. in Biddeford, and Elizabeth Sherman as store manager of its branch at 32 Goding Ave. in Lincoln.

Maine Energy Systems, an alternative energy company in Bethel, recently hired Matthew Hiebert as its director of marketing.

Saint Joseph’s College in Scarborough recently hired Kenneth Lemanski as interim president.

CreativeMind Search Marketing, an inbound marketing agency in South Berwick, recently hired Elisa Doucette as Internet marketing coordinator.

Winxnet, a Portland-based IT services provider, recently hired Chris Campbell as a project manager. Previously, Campbell was a project manager and client relations manager at iBec Creative in Portland.

Pierce Atwood, a law firm headquartered in Portland, recently hired Kate Ryan Isley as an associate in the firm’s litigation practice group.

PFBF, an accounting firm in Oakland, recently hired Jessica Marin as an intern with its audit and tax departments.

Thomas College in Waterville recently hired the following faculty members: Richard Biffle; Kelly Clark; Kristen Gilbert; Bill Green; Bruce Harrington; Hailey Kehrli; Heather Merrill; Andres Morales; Joyce Shelleman; Linda Varrell; and Richard Wilkins.

Maine Audubon in Falmouth recently hired Todd Nicholson as director of advancement.

Baker Newman Noyes, an accounting and consulting firm in Portland, recently hired Jennifer Harnish as director of human resources.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently hired Wendi Weber as regional director for the service’s Northeast region.

Promotions

Thomas College in Waterville recently promoted Wendy Martin to dean of undergraduate admissions and Meghan Reitchel to registrar.

Saco & Biddeford Savings Institution recently promoted Patricia Paquette to senior vice president/compliance manager.

Appointments

The Maine Cancer Foundation in Falmouth appointed Jane Amero, Patricia Deisler, Chip Harris, Andrew Hertler and Tom Polko to its board of directors.

Maine Senate President Kevin Raye recently appointed Wayne Wright to the Blue Ribbon Commission on Affordable Housing.

Pine Tree Legal Assistance in Portland recently appointed William Knowles, an attorney with Portland-based law firm Verrill Dana, as president of the board of directors.

Pine Tree Society, a statewide organization serving Maine children and adults with disabilities, recently appointed the following to its board of directors: Dean Paterson, sole proprietor of HealthCare Solutions; and Penny Plourde, president of Plourde & Associates.

Secretary of State Charlie Summers recently appointed Jay Martin of Stillwater as Maine’s first small business advocate.

Preti Flaherty, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that environmental attorney Nancy McBrady was appointed to the Nature Conservancy of Maine’s board of trustees.

The Frannie Peabody Center, an HIV/AIDS service organization, recently appointed the following officers for 2012: Mark Registe, president; Daniel D’Entremont, vice president; Fernando de Leon, treasurer; and Perry St. Louis, secretary. Chad Latham, a Realtor for the Teri Ouelette group of Keller Williams Realty, was also appointed to serve on its board of directors.

The Frances Perkins Center in Newcastle recently appointed Laura Fortman, former Maine commissioner of labor, as its executive director.

Spotlight

Gifford’s Ice Cream in Skowhegan recently won its second overall grand champion award at the 2011 World Dairy Expo, held annually in Madison, Wis.

Gifford’s World’s Best Chocolate ice cream was named Grade A & Ice Cream Grand Champion, an honor it also earned in 2010. Additionally, the company earned first place for French Vanilla ice cream, second place for Old Fashioned Vanilla and second place for Orange Sherbet.

Gifford’s World’s Best Chocolate is a four-time winner, earning the top spot in that flavor category in 2011, 2010, 2009 and 2007; Gifford’s Old Fashioned Vanilla earned first place in 2007; and Gifford’s Orange Sherbet earned top honors in 2008.  

Company News

Penny St. Louis, the city of Portland’s planning and urban development director, recently announced her plans to resign at the end of October.

Baker Newman Noyes, an accounting and consulting firm in Portland, recently announced that employees Pamela Cook, Alysia Field, Aimee Plowman and Dianne Rodrigue have been awarded the designation of Certified Professional Coder by the American Academy of Professional Coders.

Hall Internet Marketing, a technology Internet marketing firm in Portland, recently announced that its director of search marketing, Monica Wright, has been named as the community editor for Search Engine Land, an online news source for SEM research, events and advice.

The Tibor and Anna Doby Veteran Support Fund recently made $118,907 in grants to the following Maine agencies providing support to rural veterans and their families: Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Portland; Community Concepts Inc., Auburn; Piscataquis Regional YMCA, Dover-Foxcroft; NAMI Maine, Augusta; Washington Hancock Community Agency, Ellsworth; and Northern Maine Development Commission, Caribou.

Sebasticook Regional Land Trust in Unity recently transferred its endowment to the Maine Community Foundation.

Bath Savings Institution recently announced that each time a customer opens a new eChecking NOW Account, the bank contributes $25 to a local nonprofit.

WCSH 6 in Portland recently announced it launched DealChicken, a daily deals site, as part of a larger rollout by parent company Gannett Co. Inc., to more than 50 markets across the U.S. by the end of 2011.

Yarmouth Boat Yard recently attained the Marine Industry Certification.

The Finance Authority of Maine recently notified 15 Maine schools and nonprofit education organizations that they have been chosen to receive grants totaling $674,748 through the Maine College Access Challenge Grant administered by FAME.

The Acadia Hospital in Bangor recently announced that vice president and chief operating officer Jamie Morrill will be leaving his position, which will not be refilled. The hospital also announced that chief medical officer Allen Schaffer has been reassigned to full-time clinical duties.

Blue Marble Geographics, a developer and provider of software products and services for geospatial data conversion solutions in Gardiner, recently exhibited at the INTERGEO conference in Nuremberg, Germany.

Frannie Peabody Center in Portland has received notice of a $930,000 grant award from HUD to create a statewide housing plan that integrates mainstream housing services, medical care and case management services for people living with HIV/AIDS throughout Maine. A collaboration with the Portland, Sanford and Bangor housing authorities, MaineHousing and numerous service providers across the state, the grant will support a three-year demonstration project to provide housing subsidies and intensive case management services for Mainers living with HIV/AIDS.

KICTeam, a designer and manufacturer of cleaning cards headquartered in Auburn, recently announced the opening of KICTeam Brasil, which will supply disposables that reduce the maintenance cost of point-of-sale terminals and other equipment in all industries throughout the country.

Good Shepherd Food-Bank in Auburn recently accepted the resignation of President and CEO Rick Small.

Quantrix, a business modeling and analytics software company in Portland, recently announced it has released version 4.1 of its Quantrix Modeler business modeling and analytics software solution.

Jewett Metal Buildings & Steel Erectors, a division of Jewett Construction Co. Inc. in Raymond, N.H., under contract with Precision Welding and Fabrication of Westbrook, recently completed construction at the Cumberland County Municipal Parking Garage in Portland.

Revision Energy in Portland, an installer for solar hot water and power systems, and Gray Cat Marketing & Design in Portland have joined with the city of Portland, Go Maine Commuter Connection and the Bicycle Coalition of Maine as grassroots sponsors for the Portland Commuter Challenge.

Frontier restaurant in Brunswick recently announced it will reopen in November expanded as a full-service restaurant.

Gifford’s Ice Cream in Skowhegan recently announced it has expanded its presence in the New York City area with multiple new retail, restaurant and wholesale relationships, led by an agreement to sell its ice cream in King Kullen supermarkets, one of the area’s leading grocery chains.

Maine Maritime Academy in Castine and the college’s Loeb-Sullivan School of International Business and Logistics recently hosted a contingent of more than 20 students, faculty and administrators from Puerto Rico. The visit served to strengthen the college’s ongoing relationship with the Catholic Pontifical University of Puerto Rico, located in Ponce with campuses in Bayamón and Arecibo.

U.S. Cellular recently built a new cell site in Damascus and South Paris to improve its coverage in the towns of Damascus, Carmel, Levant, Hermon, South Paris and Norway, along Routes 26, 117 and 119.

Fryeburg Academy recently announced a new scholarship opportunity. Named for Bion R. Cram, class of 1933, the scholarship covers tuition, room and board in full for a student from Maine. In addition, a number of partial scholarships will be awarded to qualified applicants.

Green Energy Maine recently announced that its online directory of Maine’s providers of products and services in the clean energy sector is now available for the public to use on its website, www.greenenergymaine.com/directory.

accolades

Drummond Woodsum, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that the following attorneys have been selected by Best Lawyers in America as 2012 Lawyers of the Year for Portland: Amy Tchao, education lawyer of the year; Daniel Rose, labor law/management lawyer of the year; Melissa Hewey, employment law/management lawyer of the year; and Michael High, mergers and acquisitions lawyer of the year.

Pierce Atwood, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that the following attorneys have been named as lawyers of the year by Best Lawyers: Bruce Coggeshall, public finance law lawyer of the year; Catherine Connors, appellate practice lawyer of the year; Dixon Pike, environmental law lawyer of the year; Jeffrey White, antitrust law lawyer of the year; Mark Beliveau, environmental law lawyer of the year; Peter Culley, bet-the-company litigation lawyer of the year; and William Kayatta, litigation/banking and finance lawyer of the year.

Jonathan Shapiro, regional managing partner in at Fisher & Philips, a law firm in Portland, was recently named by Best Lawyers as a litigation/labor and employment lawyer of the year in Portland for 2012.

Verrill Dana, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that the following attorneys have been named as lawyers of the year in Portland by Best Lawyers: A. Robert Ruesch, litigation/construction lawyer of the year; Gregory Fryer, securities/capital markets law lawyer of the year; Keith Jones, securities regulation lawyer of the year; and Roger Clement, bankruptcy and creditor debtor rights/insolvency and reorganization law lawyer of the year.

Bernstein Shur, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that the following attorneys have been named as lawyers of the year in Portland by Best Lawyers: George Burns, construction law; Michael Fagone, bankruptcy law; Gordon Grimes, energy law; Leonard Nelson, corporate law; Patrick Scully, administrative/regulatory law; Christopher Vaniotis, Maine municipal law.

Nan Heald, the executive director of Pine Tree Legal Assistance, was recently honored at the White House as a Champion of Change in the field of access to justice. Pine Tree Legal Assistance also recently presented the Janet Milley Award for Board Leadership to Jonathan Reitman, a partner with Brunswick-based law firm Gosline & Reitman.

Franklin Community Health Network in Farmington recently presented Charles Murray with the Franklin Community Health Leadership Award for his service to the community.

The Natural Resources Council of Maine recently presented the following awards: Brownie Carson with a 2011 Environmental Award for Lifetime Achievement; Judy Kellogg Markowsky with a 2011 Environmental Award for Lifetime Achievement; and Sandra Wright with a 2011 Environmental Award. The Natural Resources Council of Maine also awarded Belfast Co-housing and Ecovillage with the People’s Choice Award, for their work to establish a model cohousing community.

Preti Flaherty, a law firm in Portland, recently announced that the following attorneys have been named as lawyers of the year by Best Lawyers: Charles Dingman, health care law lawyer of the year; Dennis Sbrega, banking and finance law lawyer of the year; John Sullivan, corporate law lawyer of the year; Peter Carlisle, sports law lawyer of the year; Severin Beliveau, government relations practice lawyer of the year; and Virginia Davis, land use and zoning law lawyer of the year.

The Maine Merchants Association recently chose retailer Cool As A Moose as its 2011 Merchant of the Year because of its commitment to Maine as a locally owned business; its statewide presence with locations in Bar Harbor, Brunswick, Freeport and Portland; its investment in downtowns with its relocation to Brunswick; its leadership of social media to expand its marketability beyond the Maine border; and for working to help other small businesses in need. The association also selected Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives Robert Nutting to receive the 2011 Jim McGregor Government Service Award.

Planet Botanicals, a skincare company that produces USDA-certified organic skincare in Westbrook, recently announced its Fair Trade Certified Coffee Scrub won best new beauty product at Expo East 2011, a natural products trade show.

Harriman, an architecture and engineering firm in Auburn, recently recognized the following employees: Darryl Johnson was presented an award for 40 years of service; Dan Robbins for 35 years; and Clifton Greim, Erik Greven, Richard Marchessault, Phil Morrissette and Mike Polley for 30 years of service. Ken Rand was recognized for 25 years of service and Sandra Chamberlain for 20 years.

The GO Home, built by architecture and construction firm G•O Logic in Belfast, received the U.S. Green Building Council 2011 LEED for Homes Project of the Year Award, presented at the 2011 Greenbuild International Conference & Expo in Toronto, Canada.

The Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery recently won the Secretary of the Navy Energy and Water Management Award in recognition of its energy-efficiency achievements.

Tanya Gosselin of Bragdon Insurance in York was recently named the 2011 Young Agent of the Year by the Maine Insurance Agents Association. MMG Insurance in Presque Isle was also voted 2010-2011 Company of the Year by the members of the association.

The Maine Public Relations Council recently honored Diane Atwood, a freelance health and wellness communicator, with a Golden Arrow award for her health and wellness blog, Catching Health.

Our calendar now lives online only. Go to mainebiz.biz/events.php to view listings.