Arts
The Springfield Regional Arts Council Inc. presented the Ozzie Awards during its Flights of Fancy event at the Springfield-Branson National Airport. Embodying the creative spirit of the area arts scene, recipients were Beth Domann, Individual Award; Dr. Carl Price, Philanthropy Award; Cindy Curtis, Volunteer Award; Lorianne Dunn, Arts Education Award; Mount Vernon Regional Arts, Regional Organization Award; and Mayor Bob Stephens, Leadership Award.
Banking Lindsey McLaughlin of Guaranty Bank completed the Bank Administration Institute’s Learning & Development Loan Review Certificate Program.
She has nearly 10 years of loan review experience and joined Guaranty Bank as a loan review officer in 2012. The certificate signifies expertise in loan review practices and procedures to meet financial services standards.
Education
Money Magazine Inc. ranked College of the Ozarks No. 3 in their list of 50 most affordable private colleges. The publication reviewed 2,000 four-year U.S. institutions with at least 500 students, a graduation rate at or above the median for its institutional category and a clean financial bill by the U.S. Department of Education or bond ratings agencies.
The Church Network inducted Randy Walls of the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary into the Church Management Hall of Fame for his work as an educator. An associate professor of pastoral leadership at AGTS, Walls earned a bachelor’s in biblical studies from Evangel University, as well as a master’s of divinity and a doctorate in ministry from AGTS.
He’s served on The Church Network’s professional training and standards committee.
Missouri State University Career Center Director Jill Wiggins received the 2016 Lead Award by the Missouri State Council of Society for Human Resource Management during a state conference at Tan-Tar-A Resort. She has 18 years of human resources experience, including leadership roles with the Springfield Area Human Resources Association and the SHRM.
Law
The Best Lawyers in America selected Strong, Garner & Bauer PC attorney Steve Garner as the 2017 Lawyer of the Year in the categories of product liability litigation-plaintiffs, personal injury litigation-plaintiffs and insurance law. He has been listed in the The Best Lawyers in America since 2001.
Nonprofit
Community Foundation of the Ozarks added board members Kathy Lasley, Abram McGull II and Morey Mechlin. Lasley worked as president of Cuba-based affiliate Crawford County Foundation Inc. since 2009 and will serve as a regional representative. McGull, a retired Navy commander, is an assistant U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri in Springfield, and he previously worked for the federal Justice and State departments. Mechlin retired last year as executive director of Care to Learn, and she previously served as executive director of the Foundation for Springfield Public Schools.
Senior Foundation of the Ozarks named Heather Johansen as executive director to oversee services to 17 southwest Missouri counties. She previously worked as a care coordinator for SeniorAge Area Agency on Aging.
Health Care Mercy Hospital Springfield received the Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association for earning 85 percent adherence to stroke achievement indicators for two or more years. Additionally, the health system qualified for the Stroke Honor Roll Elite Plus by achieving 75 percent compliance with the stroke quality measures.
Real Estate
Hogan Land Title Co. hired Chelsea Estebo as an escrow officer. The 2016 MSU graduate with a bachelor’s in finance and emphasis in real estate has her Missouri real estate license and two years of real estate experience. Previously, she worked as chief assistant at Kumon Math and Reading Center, where she received the 2012 Customer Service Employee of the Year Award.
