People In Business

West Star Aviation has promoted Sean Ertz to Technical Sales Manager-Textron at their Chattanooga, Tenn. (CHA) facility. Ertz has over 18 years of aviation experience, previously working at various Part 91 and Part 145 operations as a DOM before joining West Star. His most recent role was as project manager for the Textron Program. “Sean…

First Bankers Trustshares, Inc. (“The Company”) announced that Steve Hassell and Kurt Hofmeister have been appointed as members of the board of directors of The Company and First Bankers Trust Company, N.A. (“First Bankers”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Company. Their appointments come on Oct. 1, 2023. Hassell is a distinguished leader known for his…

The law firm of Mathis, Marifian & Richter, Ltd. (MM&R) has announced that Daniel M. Renner joined the firm as an associate effective Sept. 18, 2023. The official announcement noted Renner has always been intrigued by the intersection of personal finance, business, and the law. He earned his undergraduate degree in business administration with a…

  Two OSF HealthCare nurses have been honored with the Illinois 40 Under 40 Emerging Nurse Leaders Award. The pair were honored along with other nurses from across the state at a reception on Sept. 21, 2023, in Naperville, Ill. Shana Freehill, DNP, RN, NPD-BC, is a clinical education specialist at OSF HealthCare. During the…

Chris Manson, OSF HealthCare vice president of Government Relations and founder of US Ambulances for Ukraine, was recognized by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy during remarks made at the National Archives on Sept. 21, 2023. President Zelenskyy was in Washington D.C. for meetings with President Joe Biden and leaders of Congress. He presented Manson…

Sheila Burcham, market president of Bradford National Bank in Irvington, was elected as chair of the Community Bankers Association of Illinois (CBAI) at the association’s annual convention held recently in Indianapolis, Ind.  Burcham serves on the CBAI Board of Directors and its Strategic Planning Committee. She also assists CBAI’s first vice chairman and the second…

  Top Dawgs. That’s where not one but two teams of Southern Illinois University Carbondale business students have been for weeks now in the long-term, ongoing Capsim simulation business competition. Teams from around the globe participate during intense, eight-week sessions that result in a final score determining their placement on an overall leaderboard. Amazingly, for…

  The inaugural SIU System Faculty Collaboration Award presented during the Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023 Southern Illinois University Board of Trustees meeting featured two professors with a long-standing partnership.   John Matta, Ph.D., associate professor and department chair of the SIUE Department of Computer Science and Koushik Sinha, Ph.D., associate professor of the SIUC School of…

  As a part of the annual LeadHership Seminar presented by the RiverBend Growth Association on Sept. 15, 2023, at Enjoy Church, three of the area’s leading women were honored for “doing remarkable things” in the Riverbend. The seminar and accompanying award presentations are hosted yearly by the Growth Association. The 2023 LeadHership “Empowerment” Award, the…

BAM Marketing Agency has promoted Jordan Longhi, executive director of Digital Marketing, to Vice President, Director of Digital Marketing and Finance. Longhi has been with BAM for more than eight years. “Jordan Longhi has been the driving force behind the growth and success of our digital department, starting as a part-time freelancer at BAM nearly…