American Bank

Bryan Zbacnik joined American Bank in Mountain Iron as a residential mortgage loan originator. His experience includes 10 years at Wells Fargo Bank in Virginia and 11 years at United Mortgage in Burnsville.

Architectural Resources, Inc.

The engineering firm with offices in Duluth and Hibbing announced the following hires:

• Dawn Loraas, IIDA, certified interior designer. She has more than 10 years of experience, most recently as a principal owner of Duluth design firm Interiors 3.

• Tiffany Bourassa, interior designer. She has more than four years of experience, most recently as a team member of Interiors 3.

Ayres Associates

The Eau Claire-based engineering firm promoted Scott Wilson, PSS, to vice president for Wisconsin environmental services. He has managed the Madison environmental services group since 1996 and the Eau Claire group since 2008.

Citon Computer Corp.

Global computer company Intel recognized the Duluth firm as a Channel Partner premier member. Citon is one of only four companies to participate in Intel’s pilot program testing and evaluating emerging technologies.

Community Action Duluth

Working with AccountAbility Minnesota, a free tax counseling program, the Duluth nonprofit served 1,385 taxpayers in 2008 and this year received the Community Partnership Award from the statewide organization.

CW Technology

ShoreTel, a national information technology provider, awarded the Duluth company a Certified Champion Partnership. ShoreTel provides Pure IP unified communications solutions.

Duluth Area Family YMCA

True North Americorps, sponsored by the Duluth nonprofit, will receive $692,999 in federal stimulus funds through the national Americorps. The grant will support 78 members in Northeastern Minnesota for tutoring, mentoring, after-school, and volunteer mobilization activities.

Duluth-Superior Area Community Foundation

David A. Nasby joined the Board of Trustees of the Duluth-based nonprofit. He was director of Community Action at General Mills and vice president of General Mills Foundation.

Gerlach Beaumier

The Duluth-based Volunteer Attorney Program named the Duluth law firm as Firm of the Year. The program provides free legal services for eligible clients in St. Louis, Lake, Cook, Itasca, Carlton, Pine, Kanabec, Aitkin, Cass and Crow Wing counties.

Grandma’s Marathon

The Duluth organization granted the 2009 Rudy Perpich Public Service Award to the following people for their service to the annual event:

• James Miles, assistant traffic engineer for the Minnesota Department of Transportation;

• Sharon Montgomery, Duluth police officer;

• Doug Nelson, city of Duluth maintenance operations supervisor.

Lakehead Sign Co.

The Superior-based company hired a new management team:

• John Matalamaki has more than 16 years of management experience, including as general manager of Lindemann Engineering in California.

• John Sorci has more than 35 years of experience in sales and management. He was part owner of Duluth Glass and Mirror.

Legend Architecture

The five-year old Hayward-based full-service architectural firm opened a new office in Ashland, to be staffed by Tom Westlund, AIA.

Duluth Local Initiatives

Support Corp.

The nonprofit announced its new Local Advisory Board officers:

• Scott Bradt, Wells Fargo Bank-Duluth, chairman.

• Jennifer Ryan, US Bank-Duluth, vice chairwoman.

The board expressed appreciation to Joe Johnson of North Shore Bank of Commerce for his leadership as chairman the past three years. The board also welcomed new member Jon Buller, director of finance, Duluth News Tribune.

Mesabi Range Community and Technical College

Biology and chemistry teacher Kimberlee Giermann received the Board of Trustees Educator of the Year Award. She has taught at the Virginia college since 1992.

National Bank of Commerce

The Superior-based bank donated $1,000 to the Northland Foundation’s KIDS PLUS Twin Ports Youth Leadership Academy program.

Northern Fitness Solutions

Brian Carl launched the fitness company in Duluth, specializing in commercial sales, installation, floor plan layout, service and refurbished residential and commercial exercise equipment. For the past 14 years he was general manager of MGL Fitness before it moved its stores out of Minnesota.

Northland College

The Ashland college named Rajat Panwar, PhD, as Chapple Family Chair in business ethics and social responsibility. He has worked with the United Nations Development Program, the World Bank, and the United Nations Global Compact. Much of his research has concerned forest products industries, tourism, and agriculture.

Reasor Products, Inc.

Duluth entrepreneur Lance Reasor received the Bronze Medal at the Minnesota Inventors Congress 52nd annual conference. His winning creation is the “heat wrap,” a patented warming device for construction products in one-gallon cans and five-gallon buckets.

Second Harvest Northern Lakes Food Bank

The Duluth-based charity granted the Honorary Gene Boysen Volunteer of the Year Award to Marty Mehling, a retired Duluth firefighter who donated 270 hours in 2008.

Board chairwoman Robyn Cadigan received the Michael E. Miner Board Leadership Award. She has been on the Food Bank board since 2004. She is an account executive for the WDIO/WIRT-TV.

SJA Architects

The Duluth firm made Tari Rayala a principal. A licensed architect in three states, she has 15 years experience and is the president-elect of the American Institute of Architects, Northern Minnesota Chapter.

SMDC Health System

The Duluth-based health system honored the following employees:

• Employee of the Year: Certified medical assistant Barbara Haslerud, weight management program.

• Nurse of the Year: Registered nurse Jean Runquist, care manager at St. Mary’s Medical Center.

• Physician of the Year: Steven Eyer, MD, trauma surgeon and critical care physician.

• Pharmacists with St. Mary’s Medical Center won this year’s Science Award for their work to ensure older patients aren’t suffering side effects from overmedication.

• The Soul Award went to SMDC Organizational Learning & Development for creating a DVD and discussion guide on diversity.

The Cancer Center received an Outstanding Achievement Award from the Commission on Cancer, one of only 95 accredited cancer programs nationwide to receive this distinction for 2008.

Stewart-Taylor Printing

The Duluth printer acquired Image Tech of Duluth, a digital printing company with a focus on architectural plans and specifications, duplication and direct mailing services. Image Tech has relocated to Stewart-Taylor’s building in downtown Duluth at 114 West Superior St.

SwimCreative

Iron Range graphic artist Cody Paulson joined the Duluth advertising and marketing cooperative as an art director. He specializes in area from interactive and guerilla marketing to traditional media.

University of Minnesota Duluth

Professor Jay Austin will lead a comprehensive Lake Superior study funded by a $1 million grant from the National Science Foundation. The project will collect data to help understand year-to-year variability in the lake.

Weichert Realtors

Newly licensed Realtor Theresa Roberts joined the Superior office of the Twin Ports realty company. She received an associate degree in hotel and restaurant management and held a sales and marketing career in the hotel and wholesale food industries.

WITC-Superior

Jim Ronding received the 2009 Wisconsin Indianhead Technical College-Superior Distinguished Alumni award. The broker/owner of ReMax One in Superior earned a data entry operator certificate from the college in 1982 and took continuing education courses. He delivered the commencement speech May 15.

Welding students Seth Mowers and Cody Popovich received $2,500 scholarships from the Grainger foundation.

www.wisys.org.

• July NewsMakers -6/30/2009
• June NewsMakers -6/3/2009
• Nelson & Company -5/15/2009
• May newsmakers -5/5/2009
• Ayres Associates -4/20/2009