Newsmakers

Empire Bank named three new banking center managers. John Baxter was hired to manage the Ozark banking center, where he also serves as loan officer. Sherry Downen was promoted to manager of the Chesterfield Village banking center, where she also is a loan officer. Tamara N. Wilfong was hired to manage the South National banking center, where she also is a retail officer.

Charles Hachtel was promoted to assistant vice president for The Signature Bank. Hachtel has several years of experience in banking and has received bachelor’s degrees in business administration and in economics from Drury University.

Community

Court Appointed Special Advocates of Southwest Missouri received a $7,500 grant from Community Foundation of the Ozarks, made possible in part by the Carol Blackburn Charitable Fund No. 2. The grant will fund an online training course for CASA volunteers, allowing them to earn in-service credit from their homes or offices.

Construction

Johnston Industrial Supply appointed Kent Ayers branch manager in the company’s Springfield location while Dave Moots moved to materials manager in the Springfield corporate office. Ayers has 15 years of experience in advertising, marketing, sales and management, including stints with Whiteco Advertising and Lamar Advertising. Moots has been with Johnston Industrial Supply since 1970, managing the Springfield office for the last three years.

Education

Pleasant View Middle School teacher Stephanie Long was named a finalist for the national 2006 Cable’s Leaders in Learning awards. The initiative rewards the most inventive classroom educators, administrators, community leaders or policymakers who are transforming education in and out of the classroom. Winners will receive a $3,000 award and be recognized during a June ceremony at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.

Three teams of Drury University students received awards at the Mathematical Contest in Modeling. The competition asks teams to choose one of two real-world situations and develop algorithms or equations to find an optimal solution. Anna Madras, Matt Ruth and Adam Scott received a meritorious winner designation; Elizabeth Higgins, Amanda Johnson and Cody Pace received honorable mention; and Natalie James and Jenny Parsons received a successful participant designation.

Government

Missouri Department of Natural Resources hired Cindy Davies as director of the department’s Southwest Regional Office. Davies has served the department since 1984, including five years as the environmental manager in the regional office, which serves 25 southwest Missouri counties.

Health Care

Several employees of Skaggs Community Health Center in Branson were honored for years of service. Among those honored: Beatrice Bynum, Paula Fortson and Carol Morgan, 30 years of service; Sheila Fitzpatrick, Bob Fritz and Barbara Rabuck, 25 years; and Brenda Dayhoff, Sherry Gore and Karen Richardson, 20 years.

Insurance

Pat Connell of Connell Insurance attended a meeting of top AIDCO insurance agencies in San Diego, Calif., as well as a luncheon in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the top profitable agencies associated with United Fire and Casualty Co. United Fire and Casualty has 950 independent representative agencies in 41 states.

Connell Insurance employees Bryan Linton, Tiffany Stevens and Toka Griffitt attended the annual Agency Management Systems Users’ Group National Conference. AMS Users’ Group is a not-for-profit trade association that represents more than 9,000 independent insurance agencies throughout the country.