Faces and places

Aquila announced that Brent Webb recently joined the company in Lawrence as a natural gas service technician. He will be responsible for gas service connections, disconnections, emergency response, and appliance repair and installation. He received his journeyman mechanical license from the city of Lawrence. Webb worked at a Lawrence heating and cooling company as an installer and technician.

• Lawrence-based Stevens & Brand announces three new partners: Matthew Hoy, Leslie Miller and Todd Crenshaw.

Hoy received a juris doctorate and master’s degree in business administration from Kansas University in 1997. He is licensed to practice in Kansas and Missouri. He will continue to focus his practice in the business planning, estate planning, estate administration and real estate areas.

Miller received a juris doctorate from Washburn University school of law in 1997. She will continue to concentrate her legal practice on domestic relations, including divorce, adoption, guardianship and conservatorships as well as support Stevens & Brand’s business and personal litigation practice.

Crenshaw received a juris doctorate from Kansas University in 1993. He had a general practice in Eudora for 10 years before joining Stevens & Brand. Crenshaw will continue offering clients assistance with a variety of legal issues, including divorce, adoption, custody and support.

• Tammy Willits and Debbie Gilley, pharmacists at QualiCare Inc. in Lawrence, attended a four-day pharmacy compounding training course in October in Houston. The course was sponsored by Professional Compounding Centers of America.
• Topeka-based Mize, Houser & Co. announces the promotion of Leta Collie to manager in the accounting services and tax department. She has been with the company since 1995. The firm has a Lawrence office.
• Denise Bergin, Lawrence, completed the certified internal auditor examination. She is a certified public accountant and is employed by Westar Energy in Topeka as an internal auditor.
• Eric Guenther, farm loan manager of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency for Douglas County, announces the availability of farm operating and farm ownership loans for women and members of minority groups who want to purchase or operate a family-size farm. For more information, contact the agency at 843-4260.
• Thirty Lawrence employers will join the staff of the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center Feb. 27 to celebrate a special program that helps people with mental illness find and keep jobs in Douglas County.

Supported Employment Services is modeled after a highly successful, nationally recognized approach developed and tested at Dartmouth University.

Dan Hughes, of Sunflower Outdoor & Bike Shop, will be recognized as employer of the year. Joel Reavis will receive the employee of the year award.

AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals is funding the event as part of its Brighter Beginnings in Mental Health program.

• James and Dawn Hill, owners of Sleepy Sheep Mattress Co. and Oak Classics, visited the San Francisco Furniture Market Jan. 28-31. They viewed new designs in home furnishings and bedding.
• Graham Bailey, Lawrence, has been promoted to vice president of corporate communications and public relations for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas.

Bailey is guiding a newly created division that will assure consistency in communicating company information to all internal and external audiences. He will continue to serve as the company’s official spokesperson.

Bailey has served the company for nearly 30 years, including the past 15 as director of communications and public relations. He also has had positions in professional provider relations and was previously executive director of The Caring Program for Children. He is a 1971 graduate of Kansas University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

• Morley Builders, Lawrence, has promoted Scott Trettel, a 1999 Kansas University graduate, to head of the design department at the company offices. He will be overseeing the SIP/CAD design work and training staff designers.

The company has been selected to represent the products and services of Harmony Exchange, of Boone, N.C. Harmony’s Timber Frame Systems, roof timber trusses and pre-engineered home packages, will be sold and installed in Kansas.

• Dr. Les Miller and his team at Lawrence Dental Solutions recently attended a seminar on CEREC technology in Kansas City, Mo., which allows dentists to restore a tooth with a solid porcelain crown.

• Wendi Kelemen-Braden, a nationally certified therapist in therapeutic massage and bodywork for Lawrence Memorial Hospital’s Kreider Rehabilitation Services, recently attended a continuing education program, “Massage for People Living with Cancer,” at Pacific Medical Hospital in San Francisco. The program was taught by Gayle MacDonald, of Portland, Ore., author of “Medicine Hands,” and is part of a 300-hour certification program in oncology massage.

• Cindy Johnson, owner of TherapyWorks, along with Sean Shire, clinic director, and Nancy Centlivre, program director, attended the National Body Balance for Performance conference Jan. 23-27 in Clear Water, Fla. Body Balance for Performance is a golf program designed to enhance body mechanics.
• Berthel Fisher & Co. Financial Services announces Steve Strom has joined the firm as a financial consultant and registered investment adviser. He will focus on retirement planning. Strom previously worked as a high school instructor at Bonner Springs High School.
• Jeff Peterson is a new Edward Jones Investment representative with an office in Lawrence at 1800 E. 23rd St. He served in the Kansas Legislature for six years representing Manhattan’s 66th District. Peterson worked for Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger before joining Edward Jones.

Honors and awards

Golf Course Management, the monthly magazine of the Lawrence-based Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, received two design awards from Folio magazine.

Folio presented GCM with its highest design award, a Gold “Ozzie,” for best redesign in the association/nonprofit category. The magazine also received an honorable mention award in the best use of color photography in a feature category. GCM received the honor for Roger Billings’ design of the article “Shadowland” in the November 2002 publication.

The magazine’s redesign, which debuted in September 2002, was a collaborative effort of the entire staff, according to GCM editor in chief Ed Hiscock. Billings and Becky Drager did the graphic work for the redesign with support from Kelly Neis. Their work also was recognized earlier this year with a best redesign award from the Turf and Ornamental Communicators Assn.

Also on the magazine’s redesign team were GCM staffers Scott Hollister, Bunny Smith, Angela Nitz, Teresa Carson, Seth Jones, Scott Wogomon, Shelly Howard, Amy Bird and Terry Ostmeyer.

• Jones Seel Huyett, one of the area’s leading marketing communications firms, recently received 21 awards for 11 different clients at the Topeka Advertising Federation’s 2004 ADDY Awards Competition, an event that recognizes creative excellence in advertising. The awards ceremony was Jan. 24 at Washburn University in Topeka.

JSH received nine Gold Addy Awards, the competition’s most prestigious honor. The work for the following clients received Addys: Arts Council of Topeka, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, Commerce Bank & Trust, Jones Seel Huyett, Menninger, Stormont-Vail Foundation and Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

Citations of Excellence were given for work produced for the Arts Council of Topeka, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, Jones Seel Huyett, Meals on Wheels, Menninger, Murphy’s Liquor, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, Stormont-Vail Foundation and Topeka Civic Theater.

Coming events

The Kansas Sustainable Agriculture Roundup will be Friday and Saturday in Manhattan. Speakers will be Mark Ritchie, of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, and Barry Dunn, extension range livestock production specialist from South Dakota State University. The event will focus on how to make a profit while conserving general resources. Registration is required. To register, contact Jerry Jost at (785) 865-2555 or e-mail jjost@myvine.com.

• Capital Title is sponsoring homebuyer seminars at the Lawrence Realty office at 4921 W. Sixth St. The seminars will be from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 24 and from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 28. Attendees will receive a free copy of their credit report and coupons for discounts on their home inspection and appraisal costs. Reservations can be made online at www.lawrence-realty.com or by calling (785) 760-3703.
• U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts has been invited to kick off the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce’s annual National Delegation Luncheon Series for 2004. The luncheon will be at noon Thursday at the Dole Institute of Politics on Kansas University’s west campus.

The series gives area residents an opportunity to interact with the state’s national legislators.

To make reservations, contact Bobbie Clark, of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, by Tuesday at 865-4483 or online at www.lawrencechamber.com.

The event is open to the public and the fee for the program is $15 in advance and $17 at the door. Lunch is included with the program fee.

• Microsoft will play host to a Lawrence seminar for small and medium businesses. The seminar will be from 8 a.m. to noon Feb. 24 at the Ramada Inn, 2222 W. Sixth St. Microsoft’s TouchPoint Series seminar provides companies with information on how to enhance employee productivity, better service customers and manage their operations through the use of technology. The seminar features product demonstrations designed for small businesses.
• The Lawrence Chamber of Commerce and the Kansas University Small Business Development Center will sponsor Mentoring Program Luncheons from noon to 1 p.m. on Friday and Feb. 27 at the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce, 734 Vt.

The Mentoring Program Luncheons will kick off the Lawrence Business Mentoring Program, which helps Lawrence entrepreneurs receive insight and assistance through mentoring. Those who are interested in becoming more involved with the program can contact Kansas University’s Small Business Development Center at 843-8844.

• Kansas International will sponsor a breakfast meeting at 7:30 a.m. Friday at the Alvamar Country Club, 1809 Crossgate Drive. Kathleen Hodge, co-founder of FTI Inc., will be the guest speaker. The event is open to the public. There is a $15 registration fee, which includes a meal. Reservations can be made by calling 865-4426 or by e-mail at kabram @lawrencechamber.com.