• Jamie Lowe recently relocated his family-owned business, Prairie Land Insurance, to the Standard Life Building at Eighth and Vermont streets. “We are extremely pleased to be downtown in the heart of the business district,” Lowe said. “Downtown has a lot of new activity, and we are excited to be a part of it.” Prairie Land Insurance is an independent, full-service agency with locations in Lawrence, Manhattan, Selden and Winona.

• Robert Heidrick, Lawrence, recently received a national achievement award as the Honda/ASE Master Automobile Technician of the Year. Forty-four automotive professionals were recognized at the November meeting of the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) board of governors in San Antonio. Heidrick is employed by Frank Ancona Honda in Olathe and has been a technician for 21 years.

The ASE annual awards spotlight top scorers on the ASE certification tests. ASE was founded in 1972 as a nonprofit, independent organization dedicated to improving the quality of automotive service and repair through voluntary testing and certification of automotive professionals.

• Kristyn Maloney, The Oread restaurant manager and Bird Dog and Five 21 bar manager, has recently received her certification for BarSmarts, a “masters-type” course, which includes training in spirits, cocktails, mixology and service. The course study was created by renowned mixologists of the Beverage Alcohol Resource association. The course material Maloney completed is the same as BarSmarts Advanced, an invitation-only bartending class, which usually takes place twice a year in New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Los Angeles.