IN SHORT

New hires

Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor hired Richard Batstone as an urologist at EMMC Urologic Surgery of Maine. Batstone earned his medical degree and completed his residency at Cambridge University and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

Central Maine Growth Council and Mid-Maine Chamber of Commerce in Waterville hired Elaine Theriault as a development coordinator. Theriault was previously an AmeriCorps member for the Lewiston Housing Authority serving as the organization's aspirations coordinator.

WMTW Channel 8 in Portland hired Steve Bottari as weeknight co-anchor of its 5 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts. Bottari was previously with KOCO in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Thermoformed Plastics of New England, a custom plastic thermoforming manufacturer in Biddeford, hired Don Langenheim as sales manager. Langenheim was most recently vice president of sales at Key Packaging in Sarasota, Fla.

Diversified Communications, an international media company in Portland, hired Erik Laramee as a salesforce administrator and Josh Logan as technical support specialist. Laramee was previously with Borrego Solar Inc. while Logan was employed by MEMIC.

NEWS CENTER / WCSH6 hired Lindsey Mills as co-anchor on “News Center Now” at 5 p.m. and Clay Gordon as co-anchor of the “News Center” weekend-morning report.

Troubh Heisler PA, a law firm in Portland, hired Kevin Libby. Libby's practice focuses on civil litigation, with an emphasis on insurance law, personal injury, professional negligence, construction law and product liability.

Bear Mountain Inn in Waterford hired Cassandra Daley as wedding coordinator.

PDT Architects in Portland hired Dylan Lawton and Cristian Koenigs as architectural designers.

United Farmer Veterans of Maine hired Donovan Todd as executive director. Todd was previously state executive director for the Farm Service Agency.

Maine College of Art in Portland hired Brigid Lawler as director of admissions, Jennifer Doebler as director of student life and Julie D'Andrea as vice president of development. Lawler was most recently dean of admissions at Marlboro College in Vermont, Doebler was previously orientation program coordinator, freshman seminar instructor, leadership seminar instructor and associate director of first year experience and students in transition at the University of Minnesota and D'Andrea was executive director of campaign advancement at Barnard College at Columbia University.

MaineGeneral Rheumatology in Augusta hired Richard Raskin. A fellowship-trained rheumatologist and clinical immunologist, Raskin was previously chief of rheumatology at University of Nevada School of Medicine in Las Vegas.

Legacy Properties Sotheby's International Realty hired Tammy Ruda as a senior vice president at its greater Portland office. Ruda has practiced real estate in Maine for more than 16 years, specializing in residential properties and new construction and development.

Belfast Creative Coalition hired Larraine Brown as director. Brown was most recently executive director of the Restorative Justice Project Maine.

The Portland Chamber Music Festival hired Melissa Reardon as artistic director. Reardon is a Grammy-nominated violist and an internationally renowned performer.

Geiger, a promotional products distributor in Lewiston, hired Peggy Leonard as digital marketing manager in the company's Farmers' Almanac division. Leonard was previously with FHC Inc.

Promotions

Maine Primary Care Association, a membership organization in Augusta representing the collective voices of Maine's Federally Qualified Health Centers, promoted Darcy Shargo to CEO. Shargo previously served as COO.

The Forest Society of Maine, a land trust with a focus on conserving forestland throughout Maine's North Woods, promoted Karin Tilberg to executive director. Tilberg was deputy executive director, overseeing and implementing the organization's expanded presence in the Moosehead Lake region and working with forestland owners on conservation projects.

MaineHousing promoted Peter Merrill to serve as interim director upon the retirement of Director John Gallagher on Jan. 5. The board will be conducting a search process to recommend a permanent director for consideration by Gov. Paul LePage. Merrill has served as deputy director for five years and has been with the agency for 20 years.

Clark Insurance in Portland promoted Mona Freeman Wilkinson to vice president of personal insurance and officer of the firm. In addition, Adele Nichols and Shelby Hamilton were promoted to team leads for personal insurance on the personal lines team.

First National Bank in Damariscotta promoted Sarah Cowan to vice president, project manager in the operations division and Michelle Curtis to vice president, regional manager for Lincoln and Knox counties. Cowan most recently served as vice president, regional manager for Lincoln and Knox counties while Curtis was assistant vice president, business relationship officer in Camden.

Kennebec Savings Bank in Augusta promoted Nicolas Patenaude to assistant treasurer and finance officer. Patenaude was previously financial analyst and finance officer.

Bernstein Shur, a law firm in Portland, elected Peter Herzog, Lindsay Zahradka Milne and David Schneider as shareholders. Herzog is a member of the firm's labor and employment practice group, Zahradka Milne is a member of the business, restructuring and insolvency practice group and Schneider is a member of the business practice group.

Spinnaker Trust, a wealth management firm in Portland, promoted Sara Lewis to executive vice president, director of client service, Jessamyn Norton to chief investment officer and executive vice president, Jeannine Pendergast and Drew Oestreicher to senior vice presidents and Caitlin DiMillo to vice president and chief trust officer.

Geiger, a promotional products distributor in Lewiston, promoted Gloria Arita to help desk specialist I in the company's information technology department. Arita was previously a mail/sample room clerk in distribution services.

Appointments

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in East Boothbay announced that Wendy Wolf joined its board of trustees. Wolf was the first president and CEO of the Maine Health Access Foundation as well as a professor and division director of pediatric cardiology at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. The organization also announced its slate of officers including Louise Bowditch, chair, and Brigitta Tadmor, vice-chair. Jack Fulmer, Jon Bigelow, Peter Handy and Warren Muir will serve on the advisory board. Bowditch is a lawyer, educator and activist; Tadmor is a molecular biologist and geneticist; Fulmer is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a member of the American College of Physician Executives; Bigelow is a board member and consultant to businesses and private equity firms on medical communications; Handy is president and CEO of Bristol Seafood; and Muir held leadership roles during the Nixon, Ford and Carter administrations, and served as executive director of the Division of Earth and Life Studies at the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the National Research Council.

University of Maine at Farmington President Kathryn Foster and Eleanor Baker, a founding member of Baker Newman Noyes, were elected for three-year terms to serve on the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

The Maine Technology Institute in Brunswick added Richard Ganong, Stacey Huth and Meredith Mendelson to its board of directors. Ganong was most recently the senior vice president of development and alumni relations at Bowdoin College; Huth is the director of molecular program management at EnviroLogix Inc.; and Mendelson is deputy commissioner for the Maine Department of Marine Resources.

The Maine Real Estate Commission elected David Kitchen as chairman and Adam Shub as vice chairman for 2018. Kitchen is with The Maine Real Estate Network while Shub is an attorney at Preti Flaherty in Portland.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced a slate of Farm Service Agency State Committee Appointees. Maine appointees include committee Chair Sue McCrum, Belfast; Gregg Garrison, Blaine; Heath Miller, Newburgh; Nancy Ricker, Turner; and David Tuttle, North Berwick.

Achievements

Systems Engineering, an IT strategy and managed services provider in Portland, said it achieved Microsoft Gold Competency for Cloud Solutions, specifically for small and midmarket sized businesses. The certification demonstrates the company's expertise in deploying innovative, cloud-based solutions using the Microsoft Azure platform and Microsoft Office 365.

The American Hospital Association Certification Center announced that Wallace Pooler, vice president of The Penobscot Co. in Rockport, earned the designation of Certified Healthcare Constructor.

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced the top SBA Lenders in Maine for Fiscal Year 2017 including Bangor Savings Bank, “Leading 7(a) Lender;” Norway Savings Bank, “Leading 504 3rd Party Dollar Lender;” Seaboard Federal Credit Union, “Leading Credit Union;” Granite State Economic Development Corp., “Leading CDC;” Community Concepts Finance Corp., “Leading Microlender;” TD Bank, “District Director Award;” and Katahdin Trust Co., “Outstanding Partner Award.”

Acadia Healthcare in Bangor announced it earned The Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval for Behavioral Health Care Accreditation by demonstrating continuous compliance with its performance standards.

Day One, an agency in South Portland dedicated to addressing substance use and mental health needs among kids and young adults, named Imad Khalidi as its “2017 Community Leadership Award” winner and Margo Walsh its “2017 Community Vision Award” winner.

The Maine Center for Entrepreneurial Development named Bob Feldman, Chris MacKenzie and Adam Nyhan its “2017 Top Gun Mentors.” Feldman is president of Virtual VP, MacKenzie is executive vice president of sales and marketing for STARC Systems and Nyhan is an attorney at Opticliff Law.

Girl Scouts of Maine selected Laura Thompson, director of sustainable development and policy initiatives at Sappi North America, as its “2018 Woman of Distinction Award” winner.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins was honored as a “Champion of Rural America” by the National Grange for her leadership on issues related to agriculture and rural America as well as for her bipartisan approach to policymaking.

Woodlands Memory Care of Farmington, a specialized assisted living community providing personal care, services, and programming for individuals with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, was presented the “Business Attraction” award by the Greater Franklin Development Council.

Matthew Cardente, founder of Cardente Real Estate in Portland, was accepted into the Forbes Real Estate Council, an invitation-only community for executives in the real estate industry.

The U.S. Department of Labor notified Cianbro, a construction and construction services company in Pittsfield, that it was approved for participation in OSHA's Star Mobile Workforce Voluntary Protection Program, a safety recognition program. The company is the only Star Mobile Workforce firm in OSHA's Region 1, which encompasses all of New England except Vermont.

Verrill Dana, a law firm in Portland, was recognized as a client service leader in the brand new “BTI Client Service A-Team 2018,” which assesses how law firms compare in client service delivery based on direct, unprompted feedback from corporate counsel.

Cheney Financial Group in Damariscotta recently held its annual awards and recognition dinner. Winners included Broker Lorrie Zeiner, highest current sales volume at Newcastle Realty; and at Cheney Insurance, Holly Harris was recognized for outstanding performance in the category of e-mail collection, Brittany Carter for exceptional team building efforts and Holly Lemar received the “President's Award” for outstanding leadership and enthusiasm.

Drummond Woodsum, a law firm in Portland, said attorneys Daniel Rose and Mark Broth were inducted as American Bar Foundation Fellows, which represent 1% of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction. Rose is the firm's practice group leader for labor and employment law while Broth is a member of the firm's labor and employment group.

Eucalypt Media, a content marketing and public relations agency in Scarborough, said it was named to Clutch Research's Global Leaders 2017 list in the content marketing agency category for a third straight year.

The U.S. Small Business Administration announced that Katahdin Trust received the “2017 Outstanding Partner Award.” In addition, Craig Staples, vice president, commercial services officer, received this year's “SBA STAR Award.”