People In Business

Main Street Insurance Group recently joined Valley Insurance Agency Alliance, a group of nearly 150 independent insurance agencies in Missouri and Illinois. Founded in 2006, Main Street Insurance Group was acquired in 2018 by Josh Hawn, who began working for the company in 2015. The full-service agency is located at 1011 E. Richardson St. in…

S.M. Wilson has promoted Jeremy Hutfles to assistant superintendent. In his new role, Hutfles coordinates and manages all day-to-day onsite operations, coordinates with subcontractors and suppliers, and communicates with owners and architects. Hutfles currently is working on the University of Missouri St. Louis College of Nursing project. He will be onsite during the entire construction…

Brian Ripperda, RN, has been honored with The DAISY Award For Extraordinary Nurses. The award is part of the DAISY Foundation’s program to recognize the super-human efforts nurses perform every day. Ripperda is a nurse in the post-anesthesia care unit (PACU) at Memorial Belleville. Brian has worked at Memorial since 2001 beginning his career in…

Centerstone, a national provider of behavioral health and addiction services, has announced that Debbie Cagle, chief marketing officer, will retire from her post effective June 30. Cagle joined Centerstone in 2004 and has held multiple key executive leadership roles at the organization in payer contracting and relations, marketing and business development, affiliations and mergers, branding,…

Bickle Electric Contracting Co. Inc., of Edwardsville, has been chosen as the May 2022 RiverBend Growth Association Small Business of the Month award recipient. Located at 4795 Section Line Road, the electrical contracting firm is owned by Rob and Erin Bickle. Open since 2012, it has been operating for the past 10 years, providing both…

This spring’s opening of The Loading Bar in Edwardsville was a big one for owner Ryan Wilson, who got a little help from some friends. The Illinois Small Business Development Center for the Metro East at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville supported the efforts of Wilson, who used his education and experience and practiced patience and…

Flock Food Truck Park will officially open for business at 11 a.m. Thursday, May 12, in Downtown Alton built to bring friends and family together for delicious, unique food, outdoor fun and lasting memories. A large group attended a soft opening of the facility on Wednesday. Flock is the brainchild of Jayne Simmons, president of…

Three Alton Memorial Hospital departments were recognized this week with top awards from national health care research leader Professional Research Consultants Inc. The Digestive Health Center earned a Top Performer award for the third consecutive year. PRC’s highest honor recognizes health care facilities, service lines and hospital units who score at the 100th percentile for…

Scooter’s Coffee, LLC, the Midwest-based drive-thru coffee franchise, has opened locations in Mascoutah and Troy, Ill. Scooter’s Coffee, based in Omaha, Neb., specializes in artisan espresso drinks, fruit smoothies, baked-from-scratch pastries and features its signature drink, the Caramelicious. The company also recently added a line of organic hot and iced teas, single-origin coffee and Cold…

West Star Aviation in East Alton announced Chad Farischon as its new vice president of strategic development. Farischon will drive strategic growth opportunities through merger and acquisitions, integration and business optimization. Farischon’s background includes more than 30 years of expertise in operations and management skills. He is coming from Lynx FBO Network, which he cofounded…