Huschka Moves to Mount Vernon Finance

Alicia Huschka has been named to a position, under City of Mount Vernon finance director Mark Knowles, similar to the finance management post she’s held with the county for four years.

Her new role, as the city’s assistant finance director will offer many of the same challenges she faced in the county job, but she says her new position should allow her more time for her family and promises to be less stressful.

In her old job, she was in charge of preparing and monitoring the county budget, as well as overseeing other monies that came into the coffers, such as that from taxes. Her replacement was expected to earn from $62,000 to $69,000, according to the job posting.

 

Nicholls Lands Post at Allstate Financial

Jim Nicholls has been named an exclusive financial specialist with Allstate Financial Services, LLC, working out of the offices of Steven Swedeen and Ron De Vries.

Nicholls, who handles retirement, estate and investment planning for Allstate customers, is one of a team of experts the insurance firm has hired to expand the services and products it offers clients, in addition to traditional home, life and auto insurance.

The Allstate office is located at 2114 Riverside Drive, Suite 101, Mount Vernon. Call 202-4230.

 

Elton Becomes Agent at Country Insurance

Roger Elton has been named an agent at Country Insurance and Financial Services of Mount Vernon.

A four-year veteran in the insurance industry, Elton received his financial-services training with Mutual of Omaha and recently graduated from Country Insurance’s new-agent school training program.

The program is designed to help agents expand their knowledge, enhance communication skills and guide them on setting and achieving goals.

Elton, a graduate of Utah State College, lives in Sedro-Woolley with his wife, Genevieve, and four children.

He works out of the Country Companies office at 723 S. First St., Suite AA, Mount Vernon. Call 848-9707.

 

Mason Heads Marketing For Horizon Bank

Michelle Mason recently was named manager of marketing and investor relations for Bellingham-based Horizon Bank.

Mason is responsible for overseeing the marketing and advertising director of the bank as well as working with its stockholders.

Mason has five years of experience in banking and most recently was marketing manager for First Mutual Bank, headquartered in Bellevue. She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Washington.

Horizon Bank operates 15 full-service offices throughout Whatcom, Skagit and Snohomish counties.

 

Wisbey Managing Bank’s Lynden Office

Darin Wisbey has been appointed manager of Pacific Northwest Bank’s financial center in Lynden.

Wisbey also was named manager of its Mt. Baker District, which includes the bank’s financial centers in Bellingham, Ferndale and Sedro-Woolley. He will direct and coordinate operations as well as consumer and commercial services for the full-service Lynden office and bear responsibility for the development of deposits, loans and business accounts.

Wisbey, a graduate of Western Washington University, has more than 10 years of experience in financial services and banking.

Pacific Northwest Bancorp is a bank holding company that operates 55 financial centers through its commercial bank subsidiary, Pacific Northwest Bank. The Lynden center is located at 1780 Front St. For more information, call 360-354-6822.

 

Welfringer Joins Barkley Golf Center

Ginger Welfringer has joined the staff at Barkley Golf Center in Bellingham.

She is the center’s assistant golf professional. She does some teaching and is involved in the management of the pro shop and driving range.

A graduate of Western Washington University with a degree in marketing, Ginger played golf for WWU and Skagit Valley College and was an assistant golf professional at Avalon Golf Links in Burlington. She also passed the Professional Golfers Association playing and rules tests in April and now is a PGA apprentice.

The Barkley Golf Center, located just north of Barkley Village at 2421 Rimland Drive, opened May 25. The driving range features 24 covered and heated stalls and the pro shop is filled with clubs, balls and accessories. The center offers private lessons and the ability to book private functions. Its hours are 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. For more information, call 360-527-8707.

 

Pulse Publications Names Account Managers

Pulse Publications, the Bellingham-based publisher of Whatcom County Business Pulse and Northwest Life and Times, has named account managers for the monthly magazines.

Kim Fisher has moved from Life and Times to Business Pulse. She joined the company in May 2000 after working 15 years in the insurance industry, including more than three years as sales and marketing manager for The Unity Group.

Betty Colacino, who has an extensive background in marketing and sales, returns to the company as an account manager for Life and Times. Colacino, who previously has sold advertising for Business Pulse and the Whatcom County Real Estate Guide, now will assist clients in the magazine’s circulation area of Whatcom, Skagit, Island, San Juan and north Snohomish counties. Life & Times, launched in October 1999, offers features and information for active adults over 50.

Pulse Publications also produces the Skagit County Business Monthly.

For more information, call Fisher and Colacino at 360-671-3933.

 

New Board Members for Skagit Hospital Foundation

The Skagit Valley Hospital Foundation has elected its new board officers for the 2001-2002 term. They are:

President Vicki Cooley, vice president Tony Pickering, secretary Cheryl Loeb, all of Mount Vernon; treasurer Madeleine Roozen-Cook of La Conner; and Myrene Moller of Burlington, Sharon Hayes of Mount Vernon and Astrid Aamot of Bow, each serving as a vice president respectively for cancer care, Sunrise Inn and planned giving.

New board members include Vicki Blade of Bow; Patty Gauksheim, principal of Centennial Elementary School; Wayne Harris, manager of the Costco store; Dr. Tim Marker, Mount Vernon dentist; and Mike Urban, owner of Consumer Rental.

The foundation was formed in 1988 to raise, manage and distribute funds to ensure quality health-care services and programs through Skagit Valley Hospital.

 

LeCocq Celebrates 50 Years at Bank

Irwin LeCocq, chairman of the board of Peoples Bank, recently surpassed 50 years of working for the bank.

LeCocq first joined the bank in 1951 when it had a single office in Lynden and approximately $1.5 million in assets. He started working as an assistant cashier and became president in 1968. A son, Charles LeCocq, was appointed president and chief executive officer in 1985.

Originally founded in December 1920 and opened for business in January 1921, Peoples Bank now has 14 offices in Whatcom, Skagit and King counties and more than $375 million in assets.

“The bank has been the focus of our family since 1938 when my father purchased a majority of the bank’s stock,” Irwin LeCocq says. “During the ensuing years, we have realized that the bank is only as successful as the people involved in it. In a large part, it is the feeling of real ownership and responsibility that drives all of us.”

 

Young Joins Screen Actors Guild

Brian Young, a local director and stage and screen actor, has been invited to join the Screen Actors Guild (SAG).

Young was recognized by the 68-year-old union representing all professional film actors in the United States for his lead role in “Counting Days,” a locally produced and filmed motion picture.

“Counting Days,” which included a number of local personalities and was also directed by Young, received its premiere showing at the Lincoln Theatre last year, becoming the highest-grossing film ever presented there. It was shown at Bellingham’s Pickford Theater for 21 screenings last month.

 

Olsen Certified in LaStone Massage

Tara Olsen has been certified in LaStone massage therapy, a process she now offers at Synergy Salon in Mount Vernon.

LaStone is the application of thermo-therapy using deep-penetrating heated basalt stones and cold marble stones to bring balance and healing, says Olsen, who has five years of experience in massage therapy. A treatment takes 90 minutes.

For an appointment or more information, call 428-5055.

 

Sundberg Joins Skagit Prudential

Tom Sundberg has joined the Prudential Skagit Realtors team.

Sundberg has extensive home construction experience and thorough knowledge of Skagit County, according to owner Robin Ross.

He says he looks forward to using his experience to ensure satisfaction for both the seller and buyer. He can be reached at 428-4111 or at Prudential’s office, 300 E. College Way.

 

Logan Attains CRMC Certification

Patricia Logan, sales executive for Oldies 1430 AM KBRC Radio, has earned the coveted designation of certified radio marketing consultant from the Radio Advertising Bureau.

Logan has more than 10 years of marketing and sales experience and as a CRMC recipient established herself as a radio marketing professional who understands the ever-changing needs of advertisers.

Logan is a member of Leads Club as well as the Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce, serving as an ambassador. She can be reached at 424-4278.

 

SVC Business Students Compete Internationally

Eleven Skagit Valley College business-management students recently returned from the Delta Epsilon Chi National Career Development Conference in California, featuring more than 2,000 students from two- and four-year colleges in the United States and Canada.

The students included Rich Riehl and Esmael Lopez in the Sports and Entertainment category; Julee Walsh, Restaurant and Food Service Marketing/Management; Tom Black and Louise Wipf, Business-to-Business; Jose Castro and Julia Dekiewiet, Management Decision Making; Cory Miracle and Elaina Mueller, Design; Ruth Orebaugh, Sales Representative; and Kate Finney, National Marketing Institute.

Riehl and Lopez placed in the top 10. Walsh finished as a finalist.

Accompanying the groups were business-management instructors Laura Cailloux and Marie Johnson.

 

Skagit State Bank Employees Attend School

Two employees of Skagit State Bank in Burlington recently graduated from the Western Agricultural Banking School (WABS) at Washington State University.

James Bishop II, assistant vice president and commercial loan officer, was one of the two who completed the two-year curriculum. He has nine years of experience at the bank.

Douglas Noblet, a Skagit native, also graduated. He is a vice president with the Burlington-based bank, with 14 years of experience there. He and his wife, Leslie, have one child and another on the way.

WABS, which focuses on agricultural banking problems and credit analysis, is considered the premier banker-driven agricultural banking school in the nation. Established in 1975, it serves the western region of the United States and Canada.

 

Mother, Daughter Graduate, Receive Scholarships

Chriscia Holden couldn’t take all the family bows when she graduated last month from Mount Vernon High School. Her mother, Cathryn, also received her sheepskin, only from Skagit Valley College.

The two also were honored with scholarships from Brown and Cole Stores, as part of an employee-benefit program. Cathryn’s husband, Len Holden, works at Brown and Cole’s Burlington Thrifty Foods store as assistant manager.

Chriscia plans to use her scholarship to start at the University of Washington and hopes to attend Law School there. Her mother will use her scholarship at Western Washington University, studying to be an elementary and special-education teacher.

 

Muralist Mitchell Honored in Anacortes

Bill Mitchell, who has created 85 murals around the city of Anacortes, was honored recently for his artwork and dedication to the city’s beautification program.

Mitchell, whose historical paintings of people and events in the century-old city are mounted on the sides of buildings throughout the downtown area, started the mural project 17 years ago. Although wheelchair bound from a motorcycle accident, he produces the life-sized murals in a garage at his home with limited help from others.

He was honored during the 90th birthday celebration June 2 of the Anacortes Depot.

 

Skagit Remembers Two Businessmen

Two men, one a former mayor of La Conner and the other a respected inventor, have died recently.

• Milo E. Moore, mayor of the Town of La Conner for 10 years and the father of another La Conner mayor, Bud Moore, passed away May 14. He was 96.

Moore dedicated his life to public service and served in a variety of roles, from commodore of the Swinomish Yacht Club to Washington State director of fisheries.

He was a fish farmer and commercial fisherman as well.

• Howard Rothenbuhler, founder of Rothenbuhler Engineering in Sedro-Woolley and developer of the “Talkie Tooter,” passed away June 2. He was 83.

A lifetime resident of Acme in Whatcom County north of Sedro-Woolley, Rothenbuhler was a logger who came up with the electronic signaling device to alert workers of safety hazards in the woods. He received a safety award from the state in 1986.

He continued to work at the engineering office until he suffered a stroke in 1999.

 

Express Personnel Services Makes Staff Changes

Express Personnel Services, a staffing agency that moved last month to its new north Mount Vernon location, has announced changes in its own personnel and the expansion into contract staffing and professional search.

Tara Panek-Bringle was named manager of the new contract service line, called Express Professional Staffing.

“Express Professional provides a variety of contract staffing and full-time opportunities for highly skilled professionals,” Panek-Bringle states. “We pride ourselves on our recruitment experience and expertise and promise to deliver professionals who meet our clients’ specific needs.”

In other position changes:

Nancy Breeden, an EPS employee since March 2000, has become lead office services personnel supervisor. She matches office services temporary associates to Express client companies throughout Skagit and Island counties.

Julia Kahn was named marketing representative, who will also recruit temporary employees for placement with EPS customers.

Lorena Cisneros and Vicki Smelley were appointed personnel supervisors in the new Mount Vernon office. Cisneros will match light-industrial temporary associates to clients, while Smelley pairs office services associates to customers, both operating in Skagit and Island counties.

Oklahoma City-based EPS supports franchises throughout this and other countries, employing more than 275,000 people annually. The Mount Vernon office is locally owned by Mark and Sandy Hagen, who also own a franchise in Bellingham.

For more information, call 336-1980.