To submit a promotion, new hire, award or donation, go to: tcjournal.biz/customer-service/submit-news.

GRANTS

• The Wildhorse Foundation, a community fund established by the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, recently announced grant awards for fourth quarter 2022. The quarter marked a record for the total amount awarded in a single quarter by the foundation: $390,992. Organizations received grants ranging from $2,500 to $20,000 for projects in the areas of public health, public safety, arts, education, and cultural activities. In addition, two rapid response grants were approved for $1,000 each. Established in 2001, the foundation has, in total, awarded more than $18 million in grant funding to eligible government, tribal and charitable organizations.

AWARDS & HONORS

Three Tri-Cities businesses and one nonprofit received kudos March 22 for being on a roll.

The Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Business on a Roll awards recognize businesses that achieved success and growth in 2022 while positively impacting the community.

Here’s the roll call of winners:

• 1-10 employees: IT Haven of Richland.
• 1-50 employees: Meier Architecture of Kennewick.
• Over 50 employees: Prime Dental of Pasco.
• Nonprofit: Heartlinks of Richland.

Business on a Roll Award recipients are businesses that demonstrate growth in revenue/income or employees, actively seek involvement in the Tri-City community, and receive recognition as a model business for others through national or industry awards.

New this year was the award for a nonprofit achieving financial success and growth during 2022 while positively impacting the community. 

All award nominees must be members of the Tri-City Regional Chamber; self-nominations are allowed.

The S.T.A.R. Award was presented to Ryan Weld of Tire Factory. This award is given to a volunteer who goes above and beyond for the chamber. S.T.A.R. is an acronym for Service, Time, Attitude, Reliability.

The Community Impact Award was presented to Benton County. This award goes to a nonprofit or government entity that provided the chamber with the most financial support over the previous year.

The Corporate Impact Award was presented to Washington River Protection Solutions. The award goes to for-profit organization that provided the chamber with the most financial support over the previous year.

The awards were presented during the Regional Chamber’s Annual Meeting & Awards Luncheon at the Three Rivers Convention Center.

• Jason E. Johnson, a chartered retirement planning counselor and a private wealth advisor with Ameriprise Financial Services LLC in Kennewick, has qualified for the company’s Circle of Success annual recognition program and will be honored for this achievement in 2023. To earn this achievement, Johnson established himself as one of the company’s top advisors. Only a select number of high-performing advisors earn this distinction. He has 25 years of experience with Ameriprise Financial and in the financial services industry.
• Cynthia Garcia, the youth programs manager and equal opportunity officer at the Benton-Franklin Workforce Development Council, has earned the workforce development professional credential. Garcia has been with the BFWDC for eight years, and in that time has expanded opportunities offered through the council’s youth programs, providing monitoring oversight, and representing workforce systems at regional and state forums. This nationally recognized credential is awarded by the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals.
• On March 14, the Kennewick Kiwanis Club honored law enforcement officers and firefighters from Kennewick police and fire departments, Benton County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Patrol. Leaders in each of these agencies recommended individuals to be honored by the club. Those honored were: Officer Jesus Contreras of the Kennewick Police Department; Capt. Garhett Dotta and firefighters River Perea and Jeremy Fenno from the Kennewick Fire Department; Deputy Tiffany Brink from the sheriff’s office; and Trooper Cory Litchfield from the Washington State Patrol. Each are leaders in their respective departments and many of their squads attended the luncheon to honor their fellow public servants. Honoring the first responders is an annual program of the club, organized by club member Rick Corson, a former Franklin County deputy sheriff.

PROMOTIONS

• Chaplaincy Health Care has announced two promotions. Shannon Novakovich has been promoted to chief strategy officer. She was the director of human resources before her promotion. Meiske Millward, RN, CHPN, was promoted to chief clinical officer. She was the director of clinical services before her promotion. Richland-based Chaplaincy Health Care provides physical, emotional and spiritual care to those experiencing serious illness, crisis, loss and grief.
• Incyte Diagnostics, which has a laboratory in Richland, promoted three members of its executive team. Dr. Mari Patel, previously chief operations officer, is now chief executive officer. She has been with Incyte Diagnostics since the beginning of 2022 and is an industry expert in pathology services and leadership and has extensive experience in all aspects of pathology. Dr. Patel is ASCP certified in cytotechnology and histotechnology, and she has a master’s degree in health administration and a doctorate of management degree in organizational leadership.
  Kristina Johnson, previously interim chief financial officer, is now chief financial officer. She has been with Incyte Diagnostics since 2017 and has previously served as Incyte’s chief information officer. She has an accounting degree from Eastern Washington University, and an IT degree from Western Governors University of Washington. She has implemented new systems to streamline financial analyses and improve efficiencies throughout the organization.
  Chief human resources officer, Heather Major, has taken on a new expanded role as chief people officer. She has been with Incyte since 2008. In addition to managing human resources and support for our pathologists, she will now be overseeing our quality programs and organizational communication.
• Joel W. Duling has been named associate laboratory director for operational systems at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. He joined PNNL last August as chief projects officer for the laboratory’s Operational Systems Directorate and was named acting associate laboratory director in January. In his new role, Duling will be responsible for managing PNNL’s facilities and infrastructure; environment, health, safety, and security programs; project management; and nuclear operations. He also will steward PNNL’s 10-year, $1.2 billion campus development plan and guide the laboratory’s efforts to achieve net-zero emissions. Duling earned a bachelor’s degree in biophysical systems/chemistry from Northern Michigan University in Marquette, and a Master of Business Administration degree from Auburn University in Alabama.

DONATIONS

• The Kadlec Foundation donated AEDs (automatic electronic defibrillators) to Tri-City area sports complexes.
• Corwin Ford Tri-Cities has committed to a three-year donation totaling $10,800 to help fight food insecurity at Captain Gray STEM Elementary in Pasco. The donation will support the school’s Bite2Go program run by Second Harvest, which provides children who experience food insecurity with a mix of easy-to-open, single-serving, nutritious, nonperishable food items for meals and snacks over the weekend during the school year. This school year alone, Captain Gray has been providing weekend meals for an average of 20 students weekly. These students receive four meals per weekend over 36 weekends in the school calendar year, totaling 2,800 meals per school year. Corwin Ford Tri-Cities supported the Bite2Go program throughout the community, making several other donations, including $2,000 to Orchard Elementary in Richland and a $5,000 donation to Second Harvest for its general Bite2Go fund.

NEW HIRES

• Deanann Jones is Benton City’s new postmaster. She joined the U.S. Postal Service in 2013 in a postmaster relief position in Moore, Montana. Throughout her career she has served in various cities throughout Oregon and Washington – as an officer in charge, part-time flexible employee, postal support employee and substitute supervisor. As postmaster, she oversees 13 employees, five rural routes, and the retail office, which also handles passport renewals.
• Meier Architecture Engineering hired Arill Bartrand as a civil engineer. He comes to Meier with eight years experience in the civil engineering field. He has worked in various industries, including commercial, oil refineries, schools and public works. His strengths are project management, earthwork, design of stormwater systems, erosion control and site development. He also has experience with client relations, scheduling, cost/feasibility studies, structural design and property zoning changes. He earned two Bachelor of Science degrees from Washington State University, in civil engineering and another in applied mathematics.
• Miramar Health Center hired Cori Tardif, an advanced registered nurse practitioner, to the Kennewick clinic. She received her master of nursing, family nurse practitioner degree from Walden University in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
• Franklin PUD hired Shyanne Palmus as a community relations coordinator. She joins the PUD with over six years of public sector communications experience and supports all internal and external communication for the PUD. She grew up in Goldendale and is a graduate of Whitworth University (Spokane), earning a bachelor of arts degree in communication studies and minors in visual communications, psychology, and music.
• SCJ Alliance, based in Spokane, hired Mike Manning as a planner. He honed his planning skills in Spokane, Pasco and Grant County. He has extensive knowledge of land use permits, zoning and development codes and SEPA determinations. His experience also includes reviewing land use applications and complex building permits, and providing technical assistance related to the private development process.
  SCJ Alliance also hired Victor Refugio Ramos as a planner. He most recently worked with the city of Coeur d’Alene. He is experienced in the review of residential, commercial and industrial development. He has a background in municipal planning and working with cities on matters related to annexations, zone changes, special use permits and subdivision requests. Ramos has a strong interest in community engagement projects and is bilingual. SCJ has more than 140 employees in 10 offices across Washington, Montana and Colorado.
• Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, the largest winery in the Pacific Northwest and among the largest premium wineries in the U.S., has hired Ashleigh Sabold Lettiere as the new vice president, independent region. In this role, she will lead the Ste. Michelle sales team across 13 states that make up the region including: New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, Michigan, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island. These states account for almost a quarter of Ste. Michelle’s national volume. Sabold Lettiere joins Ste. Michelle after a decade-long career with Treasury Wine Estates, most recently as division vice president for the Northeast. Prior to that she served in a leadership role for J. Lohr Vineyards and Wines, as well as in sales at the Breakthru Beverage Group (formerly Reliable Churchill). Sabold Lettiere graduated from Radford University in Virginia and holds an master in business administration from Johns Hopkins University. She will be headquartered out of Stamford, Connecticut.
• Sheryl McGrath is the new state director of the Washington Small Business Development Center. McGrath, who has been the associate state director since 2019, began her new position April 3. Duane Fladland, who has been state director since 2014, retires April 30. As state director, McGrath will lead the Washington center in its mission to help small businesses start, grow and thrive. She will oversee a network of more than 40 business advisors working in 30 communities across the state.
• Petersen Hastings hired J.T. Lieuallen as a senior wealth advisor for the firm, joining the team in Walla Walla. He brings more than 15 years of trust and financial advisory experience, focusing on fiduciary asset management and succession planning in Walla Walla and the surrounding area. He began as an attorney in Pendleton, Oregon, where he helped clients establish estate and legacy plans, organize business entities and successfully navigate complex trust and probate responsibilities. He earned a Bachelor of Science in finance from Linfield College, and Juris Doctor degree while attending the University of Oregon School of Law. Additionally, he maintains the professional accreditation of certified trust and financial advisor (CTFA) through the Institute of Certified Bankers.
• The Tri-City Regional Chamber of Commerce hired Maria Alleman as the organization’s in-house Washington procurement technical assistance center (PTAC) counselor. PTAC provides businesses with no-cost, confidential, one-on-one technical assistance in all aspects of selling to federal, state and local governments. She is the lead contact for PTAC clients in seven counties: Benton, Franklin, Columbia, Grant, Klickitat, Walla Walla and Yakima. Alleman was previously employed at Visit Tri-Cities as the convention sales manager, a position she held for nearly 10 years.

RETIREMENT

• Cindy Reisenauer retired from the Home Builders Association after nearly 20 years of service. She was an accountant and administrative assistant for the company. Her last day was April 14.