Business briefs and People on the Move
Business Briefs
CHAMBER, iHEART MEDIA PARTNER: The Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber and iHeartMedia recently announced a partnership that will allow for enhanced marketing and promotion of the region.
iHeartMedia will provide the chamber with ongoing marketing support through its six radio properties in the Valley, along with streaming, digital and podcasts solutions. In addition, local iHeartMedia on-air personalities will provide a voice to the chamber in reaching thousands of target audiences.
The partnership gives the chamber, its members and the region massive reach and scale in promoting initiatives, issues and events that are shaping our region now and for the future.
LOCAL COMPANIES MAKE AD FOR TOURNEY: Cinemanix, a full-service media production company, partnered with the creative team at Clever to create a national TV spot for the Werner Company and its sponsorship of the 2022 NCAA basketball tournament.
Werner serves as the official ladder sponsor of the tournament and famously is known for the winning team’s shining moment atop a Werner ladder as it cuts down the net.
The spot not only was developed by the Youngstown companies, but it also features all local talent, basketball players and locations. Filming took place at Hubbard High School and the soon-to-open Penguin City Beer.
AGENCY CERTIFIED: MARQUEE, a Girard-based boutique marketing firm, received federal Women Business Enterprise (WBE) certification last month.
Certification validates that a business is at least 51 percent owned and managed by a woman, but during the application and interview process, business owners need to defend their fiscal responsibility, present growth plans and up-to-date cash flows for consideration.
As a result, the government has deemed the business has the capacity to succeed. In addition, because each year the government has a goal to award 5 percent of all contracts to women-owned small businesses, this certification allows Marquee to expand its network through subcontracting on city, state and federal contracts.
Aundrea Cika Heschmeyer of Liberty is president of the company.
AGENTS RECOGNIZED: Century 21 Real Estate LLC recently recognized Sandy Dobransky and Stacie Cashbaugh of Century 21 Lakeside Realty in Youngstown with the CENTURY 21 2020 Quality Service Pinnacle Producer Award.
The annual award is based on results from the Century 21 Quality Service Survey which is e-mailed to consumers immediately after the purchase or sale of a home. To earn the award, an agent must receive completed customer surveys for at least 80 percent of their transactions surveyed for the year with an average survey score of at least 95 percent or better for two consecutive years.
VIRTUAL WORKSHOPS SCHEDULED: Those looking to buy their first home or update their current home can attend Credit Union of Ohio’s free virtual workshops this week.
At noon Wednesday will be a 30-minute workshop on how a cash-out refinance works and why it can be a valuable tool for larger home improvement projects.
At noon Thursday, the topic of the 45-minute workshop is building credit. The session will cover credit score basics and help attendees understand the impact of their credit score on future purchases.
Both sessions are open to the public, but advanced registration is required. View the full schedule and get registered at
cuofohio.org.
COMPANY MARKS MILESTONE: Biviano Carpet One Floor and Home in Girard will mark its 75th anniversary this year.
Jim and Jessie Popovich took over the business in 2018 from David and Lynne Biviano. The business plans to expand into kitchen and bath this year.
YBPW TO HOLD EVENT: The Youngstown Business and Professional Women invites area residents who care about the women in their life to join them at All Things Being Equal, the organization’s annual Equal Pay Day happy hour and networking night 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. April 7 at Coaches Burger Bar Poland, 3032 Center Road.
The event is hosted in partnership with YWCA Mahoning Valley and the League of Women Voters of Greater Youngstown. Admission is $10 per person and payable at the door and includes heavy appetizers. A cash bar will include a signature martini benefiting the YBPW Scholarship Fund.
The event will feature a brief presentation by the League of Women Voters’ Leah Sakacs and Deborah Cunningham.
AIM CELEBRATES MONTH: Aim Transportation Solutions is celebrating Women’s History Month by hosting an interactive panel discussion with some of the transportation industry’s leading women. This discussion will be hosted on Zoom, and anyone is invited to join and hear how these women forged career paths to the top despite women making up only 15 percent of the transportation industry.
It will be 2 p.m. Thursday.
The panelists are Leah Shaver, president / CEO of the National Transportation Institute (NTI); Jane Clark, vice president of member services, NationaLease; Wendy Pein, account executive, Cummins Inc.; Kim Beck, vice president, benefits consulting, Cottingham & Butler Employee Benefits Services; and Patty Durkin, chief human resource officer, Aim Transportation Solutions. Jessica Bochy Deane, director of marketing, Aim Transportation Solutions, will moderate.
People on the Move
STEWARD MEDICAL WELCOMES DOCTORS: Steward Medical Group has brought on Drs. Kenneth E. Jones and Thomas B. Jones Jr. to Steward Orthopedics & Sports Medicine Center, 1552 North Road SE, Suite 101, in Warren.
With more than 20 years of experience, both are board-certified in orthopedic surgery and have clinical interest in minimally invasive orthopedic surgery, general orthopedics, hip, knee and shoulder replacement, and sports medicine.
NEW PARTNER AT BROUSE McDOWELL: George P. Millich Jr. has joined Brouse McDowell in the Trusts & Estates Practice Group.
He is a new partner, working in the Youngstown office. His practice focuses on estate planning, probate, tax law and business succession planning.
Previously, Millich worked as chief fiduciary officer and senior vice president for Farmers Trust Co. and before that was a partner at a Northeast Ohio law firm.
AMP HIRES VP OF FINANCE: American Municipal Power, Inc. (AMP) recently brought on Dan Remlinger as vice president of finance.
Remlinger brings almost two decades of experience in the energy industry to the role. Prior to joining AMP, Remlinger served as divisional chief financial officer / vice president of finance for Nationwide Energy Partners and Armada Power, where he was in charge of recapitalizing the business and served as an adviser to the CEO and chief operating officer. Prior to that, he worked for Duke Energy Corp.
In the new role, he will manage all aspects of the operations of the finance department for AMP.
AGENT JOINS BURGAN: Isaiah Padilla recently joined Burgan Real Estate as an agent, the seventh added to the brokerage this quarter.
Padilla, 21, of Struthers, earned his associate degree in technical studies from Youngstown State University, where he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon.
Business briefs and People on the move
Business briefs
TEENS INVITED TO LEARN MONEY MANAGEMENT SKILLS: Credit Union of Ohio will host a free virtual workshop to help teens learn the basics of building good money habits at 6 p.m. Wednesday.
The 45-minute Teen Finance workshop will cover topics to help teens become financially successful, including how to manage a checking account, create a budget and protect their identity. Families are encouraged to attend.
The workshop is free and open to the public but advanced registration is required at
cuofohio.org.
ROAST OF MOLITERNO: The Youngstown / Warren Regional Chamber and Western Reserve Port Authority will honor and celebrate John Moliterno, who retired as CEO of the port authority and was the first president of the regional chamber, at a dinner March 24 at the Eastwood Event Centre in Niles.
The evening will include lots of roasts and maybe even a few toasts from those who know him most, including Mahoning County Commissioner Carol Rimedio-Righetti, Greg Strollo, Joey Naples and Pearlette Wigley.
The event, from 5 to 8 p.m., is $100 per person. A portion of the event’s proceeds will benefit a scholarship Moliterno is establishing at Youngstown State University.
TRAVCO OFFERS NEW TREATMENT: Travco Behavioral Health now offers NeuroStar Advanced Therapy for mental health, making it one of the few mental health centers in the area to provide NeuroStar to treat depression.
NeuroStar uses transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to activate areas of the brain that are underactive in depression. The addition of this treatment will provide people with access to a nondrug method of treating major depressive disorder in adult patients when antidepressant medications aren’t successful.
Travco Behavioral Health has locations in Boardman and Warren.
ARMSTRONG BREAKS BREAD: On Tuesday, Armstrong will celebrate Breaking Bread Day from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Armstrong local office, 9328 Woodworth Road, North Lima. Breaking Bread, a program created to help feed the hungry in communities Armstrong provides service in, is celebrating 12 years of supporting local feeding programs.
The community is invited to be a part of the event. Customers are encouraged to drop off nonperishable food donations or a cash donation. All donations will be routed to area feeding programs. Donors will receive some special treats and gifts as a thank you for their donation while supplies last.
In 2021, Armstrong customers and employees donated 42,292 pounds of food plus $26,838 and nearly 200 volunteer hours. These resources were provided to more than 200 community feeding programs to help supply food to families who are experiencing food insecurity.
BURGAN CREATES PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMPANY: Youngstown-based Burgan Real Estate has launched a new entity, Burgan Property Management, that is focused on helping property owners manage commercial and residential facilities.
Formed by Patrick Burgan, co-owner of Burgan Real Estate Group, and Sue Filipovich, the management company will offer a wide array of services, from marketing properties to code compliance, rent collection, accounting reports and evictions.
VEC AT CONFERENCE: VEC Inc., a local electrical and general contracting provider, recently attended the Great Service Forums (GSF) winter session in Pittsburgh to capitalize on new business opportunities and collaborate with industry professionals.
GSF is an organization that aims to improve the service and maintenance capabilities of electrical contractors with programs that focus on successful management, business development and sales networking for electrical contracting companies.
The VEC employees who attended included Dominic Spelich, executive vice president of client services; Mike Reiser, executive vice president of the industrial division; and Dave Jakovina, service department manager.
NEW LOGO AT BANK: Farmers National Bank recently launched a new modernized logo as part of a broad rebranding campaign. This is the first time Farmers has rebranded its logo in over two decades.
The launch of the new logo corresponds with the welcoming of Cortland Bank customers to Farmers National Bank, which acquired Cortland Bank last year.
The new logo soon will be seen throughout all of the Farmers locations on their branches, billboards, ads and website.
TRUCKERS PROTEST: A large group of truck drivers who object to COVID-19 mandates drove two loops around the beltway surrounding Washington on Sunday, deliberately moving slowly to impact traffic and make their feelings known to lawmakers in the nation’s capitol, the Associated Press reported.
People crowded onto overpasses, waving at the “People’s
Convoy”and holding signs and American flags. Within the convoy, there were tractor-trailers with horns blaring and some recreational vehicles and pickup trucks occasionally going by, mixed with the normal traffic on Interstate 495 in Silver Springs, Maryland.
The convoy was moving normally — albeit slowly — and while some congestion was noted, news outlets reported traffic was able to flow around the convoy. Many vehicles had American flags, while some flew Don’tTread on Me banners.
“We’re not even sure we can call it a convoy any more because itás so dispersed among routine traffic at this point,” Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller told The Washington Post.
People on the move
NEW BOARD MEMBERS AT BRITE: BRITE Energy Innovators recently announced the appointment of four new board members. Their three-year terms started Jan. 1.
The new members are Alexander Fitzsimmons, senior director, ClearPath; Jonathan Bridges, managing director, automotive, JobsOhio; Courtney Gerowitz, startup community lead, Amazon Web Services; and Heather Taylor-Miesle, senior vice president of advocacy and regional conservation at American Rivers.
BRITE is the only energy incubator in Ohio.
NEW LEADERSHIP POSITIONS AT MERIDIAN: Meridian HealthCare recently announced new leadership positions.
Darla Gallagher, who has been with the agency for over 30 years, will continue to oversee all administrative operations for the agency as senior vice president of business operations.
Katherine Komara, who has a background in business and behavioral health, will lead Meridian’s clinical programming, planning, compliance, and quality assurance as the vice president of clinical operations.
Chase Connors, Meridian’s director of information systems, will be promoted to chief financial officer and spearhead the agency’s financial operations, information technology and revenue cycle management.
Gina Pastella, who has over 25 years of experience in staff and leadership development, will become Meridian’s chief operating officer. She will be responsible for human resources, professional development and strategic planning.
AIM PROMOTES: Youngstown-based Aim Transportation Solutions, one of the largest privately held providers of commercial truck leasing, rentals and supply chain solutions in the country, has named Patty Durkin chief human resources officer.
Durkin started at Aim in 2006 as human resources manager and was made vice president of human resources in 2010.
In the role, part of her new responsibilities include elevating the customer experience through the rollout of a fresh, more uniform customer service program. Also, she will continue to be involved in Aim’s recruiting efforts while at the same time working with her team to maintain Aim’s employee programs and benefits.
PREMIER HIRES VP: Premier Bank recently announced that Bryan Ignazio has joined the bank as vice president, director of business banking.
Ignazio returns to Premier Bank with more than 20 years of banking experience. He most recently worked for a regional bank in Columbus as a business banking community lender. Prior to that, Ignazio served as retail area sales manager for Premier Bank for 12 years.
In his new role, he will be responsible for driving growth and helping small business clients in achieving financial success.
FOUNDATION HIRES FINANCE DIRECTOR: The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley has hired Devon Cleland as its finance director, marking the second time in the past year the foundation has created a new position as it works to grow its capacity in order to better support local nonprofits.
Cleland is responsible for processing all financial transactions for all of the foundation’s funds at trustee banks and financial institutions, reconciling monthly statements for the foundation and its affiliated foundations, responding to donor requests and processing gifts to the foundation’s more than 160 funds, supporting the annual audit alongside President Shari Harrell and managing all of the foundation’s accounting activity.
Cleland was initially hired in a part-time role as the foundation began using new accounting software. After working to develop the new accounting process and manual, she was hired in the newly-created position of finance director in mid-February.
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