Bellingham museum director Livesay steps down
Bellingham Mayor Tim Douglas announced that Whatcom Museum of History and Art Director Tom Livesay has submitted his resignation, effective Jan. 7.
In a letter of resignation, Livesay said “a small population explosion of grandchildren” is luring him back to the South. Livesay, 61, was appointed director of the Museum in June 2000, after serving as director for the Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe, N.M., for 15 years.
Livesay has led the Museum to a higher profile as a regional arts, education and cultural centerpiece during his six-and-a-half-years in Bellingham. Museum, city and public facilities district officials are in the design phase of a new art and children’s museum complex, collections have increased, and nationally known artists and historians have displayed their work in Bellingham during Livesay’s tenure.
Douglas said the city will conduct a nationwide search beginning in January and work closely with the Museum Society board to choose a new director. The current salary for the position is $101,472 per year.

Rovito joins Western States Mortgage
Lynanne Rovito, a loan officer/banker specializing in residential mortgages for self-employed applicants and small business owners, has opened the Blaine office of Western States Mortgage Corp.
Rovito, who has 10 years of experience in real estate sales, assists first-time homebuyers and clients seeking fixed and adjustable-rate mortgages, refinancing, new construction loans and 100-percent loans.

Fairhaven Realty welcomes three new realtors
Fairhaven Realty welcomes Eugene McGuinness, Dave Pros and Gary Brisky as a realtors.
A native of California, McGuinness attended boarding school in Northern Ireland and received a business degree there. He was certified for carpentry and joinery by the City and Guilds Institute of London, England, and worked as a shop fitter in London’s prestigious Knightsbridge area. Returning to California, he owned and operated his own construction company and is licensed as a home inspector.
Pros joined Fairhaven Realty with more than 20 years experience in real estate. He was a marketing consultant for a major real estate franchisor and taught “How to Market Homes for Sale.” He also writes a column, “Quality Growth by Pros,” in the Whatcom Independent. In 2003 and 2004, Pros was Whatcom County Planning Commissioner Chair and is now the Vice Chairman. He was Public Skating Manager and Marketing Director for the Whatcom County Sports Arena and Sports Plex. He received his degrees in education and political science from the Northern Illinois University.
Born and raised in Whatcom County, Brisky fulfills his 25-year dream of moving home. He joins Fairhaven Realty having retired from 25 years in telecommunications. Many of those years spent in the labor management field. He has owned his own consulting firm, teaching effective communication, negotiation and customer relation skills.

Water resource and fisheries expert joins GeoEngineers
GeoEngineers is pleased to announce that John Monahan has joined the water and natural resources team in the company’s Bellingham office.
Monahan has more than 15 years of experience in watershed management, salmon recovery planning, habitat restoration and water resource planning throughout Washington. Prior to joining GeoEngineers, Monahan was a fisheries scientist with EES Consultants in Bellingham and a watershed lead with the Washington Department of Ecology. In both roles, he provided technical, policy and administrative support to multiple watershed planning and salmon recovery projects throughout Washington state.
Ferndale RE/MAX office gains new branch manager
Jack Mulhern, a lifelong Whatcom County resident with 28 years of real-estate experience, has been appointed branch manager at the Ferndale office of RE/MAX Whatcom County, Inc.
Mulhern is a past president of the Whatcom County Association of Realtors (WCAR) and has earned the designations of Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), Graduate Realtors Institute (GRI) and E-Pro. Previously based in RE/MAX’s Lakeway (Bellingham) and Sudden Valley offices, Mulhern now leads a team of 12 real estate agents in the Ferndale office.
Cyndy Berry, previously manager of the Ferndale office, has returned to sales on a full-time basis in the Lakeway office. Berry also has 28 years of real-estate experience and served as WCAR president. She now is specializing in residential sales and homebuilder developments. Berry has earned a broker’s license as well as the Accredited Staging Professional (ASP) and GRI designations.
Jennifer Coggan, a four-year real estate agent at the Ferndale office, recently earned the ASP designation. Coggan completed a detailed course and passed an examination on preparing homes for sale.

Attorney joins at Chmelik Sitkin & Davis P.S.
Chmelik Sitkin & Davis P.S. is pleased to announce the addition of a new attorney to the law firm, Seth A. Woolson. He joined the firm in September and will work primarily in the firm’s land use practice. Woolson is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and the University of Washington School of Law.

Varner Sytsma & Herndon, CPAs adds new accountants
Lydia Steele and Christopher Landry have joined the accounting team at Varner Sytsma & Herndon, CPAs as staff accountants.
Steele graduated from Western Washington University in 2005 and has been practicing public accounting since graduation. Landry graduated from Western Washington University in 2006. Both Steele and Landry are working towards completion of the Certified Public Accountant exams.

Blue Sea Systems promotes Kelsoe
Blue Sea Systems announced the promotion of Wayne Kelsoe. In addition to retaining his present responsibilities as vice president of electrical engineering, Kelsoe will have the additional title of chief technology officer, reflecting the responsibilities he has assumed since beginning at Blue Sea Systems in 2003.
As chief technology officer, Kelso is responsible for providing input on the marine safety standards as a member of ABYC technical committees.

Mathewson named loan officer at First Horizon
The Bellingham office of First Horizon Home Loans continues to expand with the appointment of loan officer Tom Mathewson.
Mathewson, a long-time Bellingham resident, has more than 15 years of banking experience in assisting homeowners and contractors with loans. He is qualified to help clients select the most appropriate loan from a wide range of options, including jumbo, interest-only and adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) loans.

Shannon named Snelson Companies president
Snelson Companies, Inc. (SCI) recently named Edwin J. Shannon as president and COO. Shannon has been a partner at SCI for 16 years and was most recently senior vice president and manager of marketing, corporate services and gas distribution. He is a professional engineer, Certified Safety Professional and holds a bachelor’s degree. Shannon will oversee and run day-to-day operations for the company.
John R. Norton, formerly president, will assume the role of CEO.

Vickery joins Fairhaven Realty
Charles Vickery joins his wife, Sylvia, as a sales associate at Fairhaven Realty. Charles was educated at Bowdoin College in Maine and the University of Washington where he earned a degree in English. He has been employed as a commercial fisherman in Alaska for more than 30 years. In 2005, Charles was named Northwest Washington “Big Brother of the Year.”

Stylist, massage therapist join Synergy Salon & Day Spa
Synergy Salon & Day Spa in Mount Vernon welcomes the newest members, Ashley Hernandez-Santeford and Danniell Naumann to their professional team.
Hernandez-Santeford is a creative stylist always excited for each new experience, treasuring the classic glamorous looks as the as the ability to be artistic with new techniques. Fashion and designs, along with education, are important to her, as she continues to train in the latest advanced color and cutting classes.
Naumann is a licensed massage therapist who has been practicing in the Skagit area for more than two years. She also has one year of clinical and academic experience as a therapist working with the elderly, AIDS population, pregnant women, professional athletes, post surgery clients, and children as young as age 8. She has enjoyed working in the healthcare industry for the last 11 years in different settings, and finds massage therapy to be an important alternative healthcare option.

All-Weather Mini-Storage promotes Rowlson, hires Rudesill
All-Weather Mini-Storage of Lynden, a local leader in the sales and rentals of mobile storage containers, has promoted Patti Rowlson to administrator and appointed Russ Rudesill as yard manager.
Rowlson, an employee at All-Weather Mini-Storage for two years, now oversees customer service and financial matters for the company. Rudesill coordinates deliveries of storage containers and provides maintenance for the company’s containers, buildings and vehicles.
The changes are necessary to handle a 50 percent increase in sales over the past year, according to co-owner Dave Black.

Miller, Farr join Whatcom Land Title Company
Whatcom Land Title Company is pleased to announce that Kelli Miller has accepted a position as marketing representative. She is a native of Whatcom County and is well known and highly respected in the real estate industry, with more than eight years experience in title and escrow.
Larry Farr has joined the company as marketing manager, where he will continue to develop and direct marketing strategies. His duties include managing a marketing department team of four experienced representatives, and promoting and maintaining positive customer relationships with past and future clients. Farr has been a Bellingham resident for more than 15 years and is a Western Washington University graduate. He has prior management and sales/marketing experience in the social services field. His background also includes serving as an adjunct professor at Western Washington University’s Woodring College of Education Human Services program. Farr founded and has overseen the Downtown Renaissance Network for the city of Bellingham. He serves as the local director for the Bellingham Royal Family Kids’ camp.

Beebe, Scott join Northwest Computer
Northwest Computer has announced the addition of two new network systems engineers to the company’s staff.
Patrick Beebe joins the company after three years with Ascentium Corporation in Bellevue, where he was a network security specialist. A Microsoft Certified Engineer, Beebe also supported the network infrastructure for Excell Data Corporation. In addition to graduating from Western Washington University, Beebe also attended the University of Oregon.
Peter Scott comes to Northwest Computer from Infocus Commerce Solutions of Richmond, B.C. His background includes Microsoft server solutions, point-of-sale systems, CRM solutions as well as software implementation and training.
The additions were mandated by explosive growth in the professional services division of the company, which designs, installs and manages computer networks as well as VoIP telephone systems, according to Director of Business Development Ethan D’Onofrio.

Armstrong receives Affiliate of the Year Award
Peoples Bank announced that the Washington State Association of Realtors named Jan Armstrong, vice president and branch manager of the bank’s Cornwall office in Bellingham, 2006 Affiliate of the Year.
The State Affiliate honor is presented to a member of the Realtor Association who is highly involved in volunteer services with the association and their community. Armstrong has served on the board of directors of the Whatcom County Association for the past four and a half years. During that time, she has contributed her financial expertise to the association, effectively helping it make better financial decisions and has assisted with strategic planning. She has been treasurer of the Whatcom County Association of Realtors for more than two years and is active in the local community with a variety of organizations including Kiwanis and 4-H.
Sue Stremler, executive officer for the Whatcom County Association stated, “Jan’s outstanding contributions, advice, leadership and professionalism are great assets to our membership and it was an honor to nominate her. We were ecstatic when the Washington State Association of Realtors panel recognized her at our Washington state conference.”

Engels joins Windermere’s Bellingham office
Windermere Real Estate/Whatcom, Inc. is pleased to announce the addition of sales associate Sharon Engels to its Bellingham-Bakerview office.
Engels was born and raised in Whatcom County and has been involved with real estate investing, development and construction for the last 25 years. She met her husband, Terry, in Whatcom County, and they have three children. Engels loves the challenge of real estate and looks forward to providing quality customer service to her clients.

Axthelm executives attend training
April Axthelm, vice president of Axthelm Construction, and Joshua Axthelm, design manager, recently traveled to Turlock, Calif., to received specialized training in the design and engineering of VP Pre-Engineered Steel Buildings. Axthelm Construction has been associated with VP Building Manufacturers for more than 16 years. VP is one of the nation’s largest manufacturers of metal buildings and has affiliations in Europe, Asia and South America. The specialized training included seismic loading and deflection details, as well as building geometry design details.

Booth joins Peoples Bank’s Lynden office
Greg Booth has been hired as vice president and senior commercial loan officer at the Peoples Bank’s Lynden Financial Center.
Booth joins Peoples Bank with more than 28 years of banking experience, including nine of those as a commercial lender. In his new position, he will be responsible for originating, analyzing, and closing commercial loans in Whatcom County as well as help expand the Peoples Bank brand throughout Whatcom County. He earned an MBA at the University of Santa Clara and bachelor’s degree in business administration and interamerican relations from the University of the Pacific in California. He is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and holds NASD Series 7 and 63 licenses.

SVMC adds two internal medicine physicians
Two internal medicine physicians have recently joined Skagit Valley Medical Center and will be providing primary care to patients at the Sedro-Woolley and Stanwood clinics.
Dr. Rico Romano joined the medical center team of physicians in the new, state-of-the-art Sedro-Woolley office at the Pavilion this fall after completing his internal medicine residency training at the University of Cincinnati’s University Hospital earlier this year.
Dr. Glenn Garo comes to the medical center following his internal medicine residency training at St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Ore. He is a graduate of John A. Burns School of Medicine in Honolulu, Hawaii. He will be a full time internal medicine provider at the Skagit Valley Medical Center office in Stanwood/Camano.

Hirst joins Nationwide Insurance
Nationwide Insurance Company and Tercero Insurance Agency, Inc. are proud to announce the addition of their newest agent, Susan Hirst. Hirst holds her LUTCF designation and was originally licensed in 1992. After a few years’ hiatus Hirst has returned to the insurance field.

Nicolay to lead adult education programs at WWU
Carol Nicolay has been named director of professional studies for Extended Education and Summer Programs at Western Washington University.
Nicolay, who most recently served as assistant director of Academic Programs for the University of Washington Educational Outreach program, started at Western on Nov. 1. She is responsible for development and implementation of both credit and noncredit courses for a wide range of audiences.
Nicolay, who has a doctorate in educational leadership from Northern Arizona University, has more than 20 years of adult education and training experience, including employee development in business and health care settings. She has experience at several universities, including the UW, where she was responsible for developing and implementing academic certificate programs.