Business briefs
LOTTERY DIRECTOR TO SPEAK: Pat McDonald, director of the Ohio Lottery, will speak Tuesday at the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber’s Lattes & Legislators event at Hollywood Gaming at Mahoning Valley Race Course in Austintown.
Entry to the event costs $10 per person. It is 7:30 to 9 a.m.
McDonald was named director by Gov. Mike DeWine in February 2019. Prior to his appointment, McDonald had served as a member of the Ohio Lottery Commission since 2007 and was chairman for the last eight years.
He oversees a $4 billion operation through the sale of traditional lottery games at nearly 10,000 licensed retailers and the regulation of the video lottery terminals at Ohio’s seven racetracks.
CEO TO KEYNOTE EVENT: Barry Zekelman, executive chairman and CEO of Zekelman Industries, which includes Sharon Tube and Wheatland Tube in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys, is scheduled to speak at the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber’s annual Salute to Business event Sept. 2.
Zekelman Industries is the largest independent steel tube manufacturer in North America, producing more than 2.5 million tons of steel products each year — primarily pipes, large structural steel elements and electrical conduits used in construction.
The cost to attend is $40 for members and $50 for prospective members. The event is 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at the Eastwood Event Centre, 5577 Youngstown Warren Road. Register at the chamber’s website. Advanced reservations must be received by Aug. 29.
People on the move
FARMERS EXECUTIVE TO RETIRE; STAFF CHANGES ANNOUNCED: Farmers National Banc Corp, the holding company of Farmers National Bank, has made changes in its accounting and finance executive group.
The changes are prompted by Carl D. Culp’s decision to retire Aug. 15 as the bank’s chief financial officer and senior executive vice president, a position he has held for 25 years. He leaves with 36 years in the accounting and the financial services industry, with 32 years at Farmers National Bank.
Farmers has named Troy Adair as executive vice president of finance. Adair, most recently with Premier Bank as senior vice president, treasurer and assistant secretary, has an MBA in finance and accounting and has 33 years of experience in banking.
Also, Farmers has promoted Joseph Sabat, CPA, to vice president, chief accounting officer. Sabat, who has been with Farmers since 2006, held the role of vice president and controller at Farmers. He has 25 years of experience in the accounting, finance and auditing fields.
COLEMAN ANNOUNCES NEW PRESIDENT / CEO: Coleman Professional Services’ board recently named Hattie Tracy new president and CEO.
Tracy, senior vice president of clinical operations for the agency, will succeed Nelson Burns, who is retiring after nearly 36 years in the role. Tracy’s start date will be Aug 7.
Tracy has nearly 20 years of behavioral health and human services experience, with more than 10 years in executive team roles. She has a master’s degree in public policy and administration from Kent State University and a master’s degree in social work from Ohio State University. She is a licensed social worker in Ohio.
She was selected from more than 100 applicants in a national search.
Founded in 1978, the organization provides behavioral health, residential, employment, and supportive services. It provides service in several counties, including Mahoning and Trumbull.
BRITE EXPANDS, REFOCUSES TEAM: Ohio’s energy tech business incubator, BRITE Energy Innovators in downtown Warren, is expanding its team.
To oversee day-to-day operations, business processes and manage staff, BRITE has brought on Crystal Tiggett as operations manager. Joe Paloski, who previously held the role since January, will now serve as BRITE’s first program manager.
Tiggett of Warren, will oversee staff and project management for the incubator, monitor performance indicators for business processes, managing tenant relationships and the co-working space. She will also bolster the organization’s community engagement efforts.
Paloski of Canfield, will help the incubator establish and maintain new programs, in addition to its services for entrepreneurs, as BRITE seeks to expand its presence in the Mahoning Valley. Paloski’s new role will include overseeing incoming grants and incubator programming for entrepreneurs, workforce development and educational outreach.
Submit items for Business briefs, New Businesses and People on the Move to business@tribtoday.com, fax to 330-841-1717 or online at www.tribtoday.com. The deadline is 4 p.m. Thursday.
Business briefs
PARTNERSHIP TO FIGHT SCAMS: Premier Bank has partnered with the American Bankers Association and more than 1,300 banks across the U.S. to educate customers about the threat of phishing scams with the launch of a consumer awareness campaign called #BanksNeverAskThat.
The campaign seeks to empower consumers to identify bogus bank communications asking for sensitive information like their passwords and Social Security numbers.
Premier Bank will share basic questions and consumer tips on social media designed to highlight the most common phishing schemes.
FUNDING WORKSHOP AVAILABLE: The Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Mahoning-Shengnago (MASH) will hold a federal and state funding workshop Thursday at the Jewish Community Center, 505 Gypsy Lane, Youngstown.
The workshop, “The American Rescue Plan: Navigating Federal and State Funding Opportunities for Nonprofits,” will begin 8:30 a.m. The speaker, Kristen Olmi, is the managing member of K.O. Consulting, LLC, which focuses on community and economic development. Formerly, she was the grants coordinator for the Mahoning County Sanitary Engineering Department.
Visit community.afpnet.org/afpoh mahoningshenangochapter for more information. Registration also is available through the education tab on the website or by emailing afpmash@gmail.com. The cost for AFP members is $10 dollars and $20 for nonmembers.
PAIN CENTER ADDS NEW EQUIPMENT: Ohio Pain & Rehabilitation, a chiropractic and physical therapy center in Warren, has added a new physical therapy machine called the Indiba Active CT9.
The machine utilizes an electromagnetic wave at a frequency of 448 kHz to reduce pain and swelling, improve mobility and enable faster healing.
It can treat the following musculoskeletal conditions: osteoarthritis, lower back pain, neck pain, bursitis, tendinopathy, hematoma, fractures, muscle tears, sprains and strains. The device also can enhance physio aesthetics including skin trophicity, scars, edemas and contouring of sagging skin, as well as lymphatic and venous drainage.
ECOMMERCE CONFERENCE: The Ohio Small Business Development Centers at Youngstown State University will host an eCommerce seminar online 11 a.m. to noon Wednesday.
Curt Anderson, eCommerce consultant, will lead the event. Registration is available at eventbrite.com.
U-HAUL EXPANDS: U-Haul Co. of Massachusetts and Ohio Inc. has signed Northend Supermarket, 1645 N. Park Ave., as a U-Haul neighborhood dealer to serve the Warren community.
The site will offer trucks, moving supplies and in-store pickup for boxes.
Normal business hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. Reserve U-Haul products at this dealer location by calling 330-367-5230 or visiting https://www.uhaul.com.
REALTOR OPENS TRAINING CENTER, GYM: More Options Realty, which has local offices in Hubbard and Boardman, has opened a gym and training center at the Boardman office, 5611 Market St.
Agents from all local brokerages are invited to use the spaces.
Also, director of operations Jason Neapolitan of Canfield, Hubbard native Tony Patone Jr. and Lowellville native Lara Mangiarelli recently came aboard the realty agency’s division in Florida.
People on the Move
BEVACQUA JOINS FIRM: Former television news anchor Vince Bevacqua recently joined Pecchia Communications as a senior consultant.
Bevacqua, who also has 13 years of public relations experience, serves Pecchia Communications’ clients across a variety of public relations and marketing activities.
He most recently was corporate communications director for Compco Industries in Columbiana. Previously, he was a vice president with Prodigal and operated his own boutique public relations firm.
Before his work in public relations, Bevacqua spent 14 years in the television news business, including eight as anchor at WYTV Channel 33 in Youngstown. There he won three Ohio Associated Press awards for excellence in reporting.
BRITE HIRES SPECIALIST: BRITE Energy Innovators recently hired John Galvin as technical specialist to oversee day-to-day operations in the BRITE Energy Labs and work with startups as they develop new technologies.
A resident of Howland, Galvin joined BRITE shortly after graduating from Youngstown State University with a bachelor’s degree in information technology and a minor in management information systems. He started working with BRITE in January 2020 as a lab intern.
In addition, he is the co-founder and co-owner of Chromaticity Technologies, a special effects, lighting and computer networking technology startup based in Howland.
717 NAMES MANAGER: Paul Soos recently joined 717 Credit Union as the internal audit manager.
Soos, who holds a degree in accounting, will oversee the financial institution’s internal auditing department. Auditing is the management function that independently examines and evaluates the adequacy and effectiveness of operational and accounting controls within the credit union.
Submit items for Business briefs, New Businesses and People on the Move to business@tribtoday.com, fax to 330-841-1717 or online at www.tribtoday.com. The deadline is 4 p.m. Thursday.