Awards & Honors

Four scientists, Dick Kouzes, Ljiljana Paša-Tolić, Jon Schwantes and Katrina Waters, from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been selected to join the Washington State Academy of Sciences.

They will join other scientists and engineers from across the state being recognized for outstanding scientific achievement and leadership. Academy members provide expert scientific and engineering analysis to inform public policymaking and work to increase the role and visibility of science in Washington State.

Kouzes is a PNNL laboratory fellow working in neutrino science, homeland security, nonproliferation and computational applications.

Paša-Tolić is a PNNL laboratory fellow and lead scientist for visual proteomics with the Functional and Systems Biology group in PNNL’s Environmental Molecular Sciences Division and the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory.

Schwantes is a PNNL senior research scientist and nuclear and radiochemistry team lead with over 20 years of experience as a radiochemist working in areas related to the environment, super-heavy element chemistry and physics, astrophysical nucleosynthesis, science-based stockpile stewardship and nuclear forensics.

Waters is PNNL’s Biological Sciences Division director. Her research is focused on the intersection of environmental exposures and infectious disease on human health.

• Debra Mains, a Registered Nurse on the PACT Team at Lourdes Counseling Center and interim substance use disorder professional, has been named as a recent recipient for The Daisy Award for extraordinary nurses. Mains works with severely mentally ill patients in her role. The anonymous nomination for Mains relayed examples of how she has sat with patients in the emergency room and intensive care unit, even on her days off, as well as how she advocates for her patients to see primary care providers and specialists for their ongoing needs. The award is an international program started in memory of J. Patrick Barnes, whose family experienced firsthand the difference his nurses made in his care through clinical excellence and compassionate care. The family created the award to express gratitude to nurses and to enable other patients, families and staff to thank and honor their special nurses.
• Dura-Shine Clean’s CEO Carlos Martinez recently graduated from the Stanford Latino Entrepreneurship Initiative Education-Scaling Program. The eight-week immersive program provides business owners with education, enhanced networks, personal mentorship and a better understanding of how to access and manage capital to scale their businesses. The program is a collaboration between Stanford GSB Executive Education and Latino Business Action Network. It is designed for U.S. Latino business owners who generate more than $1 million in annual gross revenues or have raised at least $500,000 of external funding.
• The state Department of Ecology recognized 126 wastewater treatment plants, nearly 40% of the state’s treatment systems, for earning top-performing status this year. That means they met all state pollution limits, did all of their monitoring, turned in reports on time, planned for spill prevention, pretreated waste and fulfilled all operation demands outlined in their permits. Awards in Benton and Franklin counties went to: Benton City Wastewater Treatment Facility, West Richland Wastewater Treatment Facility and Pasco Wastewater Treatment Plant.

New Hires

• Lourdes Health hired Dr. Marshall Keith Brown as a family medicine provider at the Lourdes Internal Medicine & Primary Care Clinic at 507 N. Fifth Ave. in Pasco. He is board certified by the American Academy of Family Physicians and National Board of Physicians & Surgeons. He has practiced as a family physician, medical director, chief medical officer, emergency department physician, urgent care provider and hospitalist. He attended medical school at Nova-Southeastern University and then completed a residency with the University of Kansas School of Medicine - Wichita Family Medicine. He was the chief resident in his final year of the program, and he also later attended Royal College of Medicine. He most recently worked at Lourdes Urgent Care on Road 68.
• Dr. Mandeep Kaur has joined Miramar Health Center in Kennewick. She earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery at University of Washington School of Dentistry and a Bachelor of Science in public health at University of Washington.
• Movement Mortgage has hired loan officer Jessica Moyers and assistant Mariela Sanchez at its new Kennewick branch at 8378 West Grandridge Blvd.
• Wenaha Group, a construction management consultant, hired Jake Hartwig to join the firm as a project manager in the Kennewick office. His extensive experience provides him with an acute understanding of industry standards on projects ranging from schools, retail and commercial to residential. He has a bachelor’s in industrial design and over three decades of experience in project management and architecture across various market sectors and building types. He most recently supported the design and construction of Harrah K-8 School for Mt. Adam’s School District in the Yakima Valley. He will be working with the team on the Walla Walla High School modernization project.
• The Tri-City Americans has hired Americans alum and co-owner Stu Barnes as the team’s new head coach. Barnes, 50, began his hockey career with the St. Albert Saints of the Alberta Junior Hockey League in 1986 before jumping to the WHL the following season. After one year with the New Westminster Bruins, Barnes relocated with the franchise to Tri-City for the 1988-89 season. Barnes was awarded the Four Broncos Memorial Trophy that year, given to the WHL’s Player of the Year. He was selected fourth overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Winnipeg Jets.

He finished his junior career by collecting 144 points in 63 games in 1989-90, a total which sits second all-time in Americans franchise history for points in a single season.

Barnes went on to enjoy a 16-year professional career which saw him play 1,136 games in the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Buffalo Sabres, and Dallas Stars. During his NHL career, he totaled 575 points (261 goals, 336 assists) and reached the Stanley Cup Final twice (Buffalo, 1999; Florida, 1996).

Barnes served as captain of the Buffalo Sabres during the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons. He then joined the Dallas Stars where he would again hold a leadership role and wear an ‘A’ during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons.

Since retiring from his playing career in 2008, Barnes has spent five years as an assistant coach with the Dallas Stars. He also has coached at the youth level as an assistant coach with the Dallas Stars Elite 14U AAA and a head coach at the Okanagan Hockey Academy in Penticton, British Columbia. Most recently, he worked as a pro scout for the Seattle Kraken.

Barnes will be the 15th Head Coach in Americans franchise history.

Donations

• Benton REA has donated $15,000 to local food banks. Benton REA received a $7,500 matching grant from the CoBank Sharing Success program. Together, the $15,000 donation will help families through three organizations within the Benton REA member service are: $9,000, Tri-City Food Bank serving West Richland and Benton City; $3,000 to Jubilee Ministries’ Food Bank in Prosser; and $3,000 to Sunrise Outreach Center Food Banks serving Mabton and Sunnyside.
• The number of people receiving $50 Visa gift cards for rolling up their sleeves to receive a Covid-19 vaccine totaled 1,012. The “Give Business a Shot in the Arm” program, courtesy of the Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Washington Business and the Washington State Department of Commerce, was designed to increase the immunized population to reduce the risk of Covid-19 infection and help local economies begin the economic recovery process.

The program ran from June 11-30 at the Columbia Basin College vaccination site. Everyone who received their first or second shot was eligible to get a gift card. The Benton-Franklin Health Department handled gift card distribution.

• UScellular donated 100 wireless hotspots and at least 12 months of service to Boys & Girls Club of Benton and Franklin Counties to ensure internet access throughout this summer and the full 2021-22 school year. The hotspots help the nonprofit boost its connectivity when area youth are at the clubs and also are loaned out to families to support access at home. UScellular has donated more than $1 million in hot spots and wireless service to 16 Boys & Girls Clubs across eight states in 2021.

Additionally, since 2015, UScellular has donated $115,000 to Boys & Girls Club of Benton and Franklin Counties to support Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, or STEM, educational experiences and other initiatives, including $30,000 in 2021.