🔒Newsworthy people and performances for May 29, 2023

New hires

MaineGeneral Health in Augusta hired Nathan Howell as president and CEO. Howell, who is scheduled to start in his new role on July 1, currently serves as president of MaineHealth’s Southern Maine Health Care in Biddeford.

Sargent Electric Co. in Lewiston hired Belinda Lapointe as office and purchasing manager, Erik Bjorkdahl as a project manager, Michael Colantoni as in-house 3D BIM modeler and prefabrication and kitting specialist and Jason Queen as a senior project manager. Lapointe was with International Paper, Bjorkdahl with B.H. Milliken Electrical Contractors, Colantoni with Final Draft Cad and Queen with E.S. Boulos.

Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce in Waterville hired Bridget Campbell as marketing and membership director and Deborah Hellman as customer service specialist.

Woodlands Senior Living in Waterville hired Leann Sebrey as COO. Sebrey, who has three decades of industry experience, was most recently chief clinical officer at Androscoggin Home Healthcare + Hospice in Lewiston.

Ellsworth Area Chamber of Commerce hired Patricia Keenan as executive director.

Rinck Advertising in Lewiston hired Yany Avelar as UX/UI designer.

MaineHealth in Portland hired Chris Thomson as chief medical and transformation officer. Thomson was vice president and physician executive with Centura Health in Denver.

Brann & Isaacson, a law firm in Lewiston, hired Matt Pick and Adam Mooney as associate attorneys. Pick’s practice focuses on state and local taxes while Mooney will focus primarily on corporate law, commercial transactions, trademark and copyright matters and consumer privacy.

The city of Portland hired Nancy Martin as business programs manager, Rowen McAllister as housing and community development program manager and Melissa Hue as director of the Office of Economic Opportunity.

Pine State Trading Co., a wholesale beverage distributor in Gardiner, hired Sarah Stanley as executive director of finance. Stanley previously served as a division controller at Precision Cutting Technologies, a division of Alleghany Capital in Saco.

Marcus Clegg, a law firm in Portland, hired Blair Johnson as an associate. Johnson, who will practice in the areas of litigation and land use upon passage of the Maine bar exam, previously practiced with Christovich & Kearney in New Orleans.

Promotions

Sargent Electric Co. in Lewiston promoted DJ Perry to operations manager for its Northeast C&I operating group. Perry was previously a senior project manager.

Geiger, a promotional products distributor in Lewiston, promoted David Geiger to vice president and general counsel. Geiger, a fifth-generation member of the Geiger family, previously served as general counsel.

Hussey Seating Co. in North Berwick promoted Brian Deveaux to CEO in addition to his current position as president, effective July 1.

Pine State Trading Co., a wholesale beverage distributor in Gardiner, promoted Garrett Grunewald to president. Grunewald previously served as the company’s CFO.

Marcus Clegg, a law firm in Portland, promoted John Doyle to partner. Doyle represents businesses and businesspersons in a variety of practice areas including corporate governance, finance, restructuring, mergers & acquisitions and general corporate and commercial matters.

Mascoma Bank in Portland promoted Andrew Cook to senior vice president and Maine market lead.

Maine Savings Federal Credit Union in Hampden promoted Rick Moore to chief loan officer and Janine Tremble to vice president of community engagement and impact.

Rinck Advertising in Lewiston promoted Cathy Brezinski to senior creative resources manager. Brezinski was previously senior traffic coordinator.

Appointments

Carolyn Gilbert was appointed by Gov. Janet Mills to serve a six-year term on the Maine Public Utilities Commission. Gilbert, an expert on energy policy and economics, has worked at Daymark Energy Advisors, a leading national energy consulting firm in Worcester, Mass., for 16 years.

The U.S. Climate Alliance, a bipartisan coalition of 25 governors committed to fighting climate change, elected Gov. Janet Mills to serve as its co-chair.

Gorham Savings Bank added Katie Fullam Harris to its board of directors. Harris is chief government affairs officer for MaineHealth.

Achievements

The LA Metro Chamber named its 2023 award winners including “Ray Geiger Chamber Champion,” Cyndi Robbins of Cyndi’s Dockside and Poland Spring Resort; “Ken Additon Economic Development Champion,” Lost Valley; “Theresa Samson Women’s Business Leadership,” Michelle Gosselin-Ervin of Hearth & Key Realty; “Leading Through Change,” Allison Beane of Hampton Inn by Hilton; “Heart of the Community,” Abby Guilmette of Edward Little; and “President’s Award,” Small Business Development Center at Androscoggin Valley Council Of Governments.

Tyler Technologies Inc. in Yarmouth announced the winners of its “2023 Tyler Technologies Maine App Challenge,” a contest that challenges students to show off their skills and creativity by building a mobile application. Matthew Fagerlund, Scarborough High School, finished first for GiRAPHER, an app that helps middle and high school students learn how to graph mathematical equations; Abigail Hews, Scarborough High School, was second for Resume Roulette, an app that produces custom resumes and tracks user information; and Sebastien Martinez, Yarmouth High School, placed third for ColoPrep, which enables users to successfully prepare for a colonoscopy procedure.

Dirigo Strategies LLC, a marine consulting company in Thomaston, said it was named “Service Provider of the Year” by the Maine International Trade Center.

The Maine Downtown Center, a program of the Maine Development Foundation, announced that the Heart of Ellsworth was selected as the “2022 Downtown Project Award” winner for its Manifesting Main Asset Mapping Project.

The Maine Public Relations Council announced that Maine State Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Julia Munsey as the 2023 recipient of the “Midge Vreeland Public Service Award.”

Golden Pond Wealth Management in Waterville said that Katherine Higgins, relationship manager, completed the requirements for her Series 7 investment securities license.

Husson University in Bangor announced that its School of Pharmacy was listed in the top-20 pharmacy schools in America by Becker’s Hospital Review. The ranking is based on students’ passage rates of the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination as well as data compiled by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy.

Croft, a Rockland company that makes carbon-negative prefab buildings for residential and commercial use, won the Dirigo Labs accelerator’s pitch competition. The company plans to use the $250,000 prize money to launch an apprentice program.

First Bancorp, parent company of First National Bank in Damariscotta, elected Bruce Tindal as board chair. Tindal has served as a director of the company since 1999.

Greater Portland Landmarks named its 2023 Preservation Awards recipients. Winners included “Individual Homeowner Contributions,” Vana Carmona, 99 Capisic St., Portland; “Rehabilitation Project,” Bucknam Tavern, 278 Middle Road, Falmouth; “Rehabilitation Program,” Developers Collaborative; “Individual Contributions to Preservation,” Deborah Andrews, former historic preservation program manager, city of Portland; “New Construction,” First Parish Church, Church for Everybody campaign, Portland; “Storytelling,” Lee Humiston, founder, Maine Military Museum & Learning Center; “Outstanding Tradesperson,” Peter Lord Plaster & Paint.

Murray Plumb & Murray, a law firm in Portland, will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2023.