Faces and places

Matt Daigh has completed training and examinations through the Cremation Association of North America. He is certified as a crematory operator. Daigh is an assistant funeral director and the pre-arrangement counselor for the Rumsey-Yost Funeral Home and Crematory.

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Bill Kennedy, owner of the Topeka Driving School and the Drive-Right School of Wichita, has opened the Drive-Right School of Lawrence. It is a private driving school that is licensed by the State of Kansas. The school teaches driver education to students 14 years and older and provides individual driving instruction for obtaining a Kansas driver’s license.

Kennedy, a state certified driver education instructor, has taught in the Topeka and Wichita areas for more than 20 years. He graduated from Kansas State University with a bachelor’s degree in education. He earned a master’s degree from Washburn University.

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Joy Hunter, physical therapist assistant, recently attended “Beyond Kegels and Advanced Beyond Kegels.” The conference included training on the treatment of urinary and fecal incontinence as well as the assessment of pelvic pain and muscle imbalance. Hunter has been a physical therapist assistant for two years at TherapyWorks, Lawrence. She specializes in women’s health and aquatic therapy.

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Larry Growney attended “Functional Relationships of the Lower Half.” The course highlighted the examination of how the joints of the lower half of the body form a chain that can affect low back pain. Growney has been a physical therapist for three years at TherapyWorks, Lawrence. He specializes in orthopedic and sports medicine. He received a doctorate in sports psychology and a physical therapy degree from Kansas University.

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The Commerce Trust Company, a division of Commerce Bank, announces the opening of a full-service trust office in the Commerce Bank building at 1500 Wakarusa Drive. The new office will provide trust and asset management services.

Jon King has been elected vice president and is responsible for managing the delivery of The Commerce Trust Company’s full line of investment management and trust services for individual and institutional clients in the Lawrence market. King has 10 years of experience in the personal trust and investment management areas in Lawrence. King has a juris doctorate from the Kansas University’s Law School. He is a president of the Douglas County Estate Planning Council and chairman of the Leadership Lawrence Board.

Erika Kroetch will serve as senior client associate. She will oversee client service and personal account administration.

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Lawrence businessmen Tom Jennings, Bud Jennings Carpet One, and Larry McElwain, Warren-McElwain Mortuary, recently were elected to serve on the board of directors of The Better Business Bureau of Northeast Kansas. David Reynolds, of Apple Tree Homes, Lawrence, and Jo Buzzard, of Jo M. Buzzard Agency, Lawrence, also serve on the board.

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Patrick Cary, St. Louis, has joined Accident Fund Insurance Company of America as business development consultant for Missouri and Kansas. Cary develops and manages independent agency relationships. Cary previously was production underwriter with Tarheel Management Group.

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Housing and Credit Counseling Inc. announces that its tenant/landlord publications are available for purchase online at www.hcci-ks.org.

Some of the publications that are available include: Kansas Tenants Handbook, Kansas Landlords Handbook, Screening and Fair Housing Booklet, Model Lease and Move-In Inventory, Kansas Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, and Mobile Home Parks Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. The Web site also features a calendar of events.

Housing and Credit Counseling is a statewide, nonprofit agency with offices in Lawrence, Topeka, Manhattan and Emporia.

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The Kansas La Leche League state parenting and breast-feeding conference was March 7-8 in Wichita. Three Lawrence La Leche League leaders were invited to speak at the conference.

Julie Loats discussed “Employment and Breast-feeding.” Tess Foster and Loats served on a panel about “Tandem Nursing.” Jane Tuttle presented “Children and Their Parent’s Marriage.” More than 200 people attended the conference.

Sue Reiske, a Lawrence La Leche League leader, also attended the conference, participating in the continuing education portion of the event, along with Tuttle.

Honors and awards

University National Bank, Lawrence, has earned a 5-star superior rating from the nation’s leading independent bank research firm, BauerFinancial Inc., for the 14th consecutive year, Todd Sutherland, bank president announced.

Coming events

The monthly meeting of the Twilight Chapter of the American Business Women’s Assn. will be at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the American Legion Building, 3408 W. Sixth St. Networking will be from 6 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The cost of the dinner buffet is $10.

Shannon Abrahamson, Twilight Chapter member, will give the program “Tax Implication.”

For more information or to make a reservation, contact Val Kampfer, chapter president, at 842-0301 or Paula Commons, membership chairwoman, at 749-8102.

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The Kansas University Small Business Development Center will present small business financing seminar “Loan Basics: Understanding the Loan Process,” from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday at the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce office, 734 Vt.

The seminar will be led by Tony Augusto, of Go Connection. He will discuss various issues to consider when applying for a small business loan as well as the options available to small business owners. He will use his experience in the banking industry to paint a clear picture of the “dos” and “don’ts” when approaching commercial lenders.

Go Connection administers the SBA micro-loan program for Douglas County.

The cost is $20 per participant. Persons can pre-register at 843-8844 or stop by the KU-SBDC office to register. Seating is limited.

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The National Federation of Independent Business announced that the deadline for the 2003 Free Enterprise Scholars Award has been extended to March 31. The awards are offered to high school seniors who have demonstrated entrepreneurial spirit and initiative.

The federation will award a minimum of 100 nonrenewable scholarships for $1,000 each. Eligibility is limited to those entering their freshman year of an accredited two- or four-year college. Each applicant must obtain the nomination of an NFIB member.

Applications are available online at www.nfibeducationfoundation.org. For more information, contact Laura Martin at (800) 634-2669.

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Mitch Holthaus, voice of the Kansas City Chiefs, will give a program at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in Building 21 of the Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds, 2120 Harper St.

The public is invited to the free program, which is sponsored by Frontier Farm Credit and K-State Research and Extension of Douglas County. Pancakes will be served at the event. To make reservations, call 843-2395.