Business Notes for April 2, 2023

The Gazette’s Business Notes is a compendium of the week’s promotions, new hires, certifications, added business lines and business events, among other items, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa City and the rest of the Corridor.

Information and photos can be submitted to Business Notes by email to businessnotes@thegazette.com, or on our site at thegazette.com/businessnotes.

New hires

Joshua Larreau has joined Skogman Realty as a Realtor.

GreatAmerica has announced the following new team members: Abbie Dalton, legal analyst; Angela Cheatham, account support adviser; Amanda McCreedy, documentation specialist; Justine Bundy, documentation specialist; Brenda West, documentation specialist; Riley Mihm, account manager; Chad Wisehart, account support adviser; Dani Stromert, sales support specialist; Stephen Meyer, third-party risk analyst; Max Adkisson, sales professional intern; Clare Spain, senior domain business data analyst; Lance Wilson, account support adviser; Liz Engebretson, documentation leader; Jacqueline Baker, sales and ops support specialist; Cameron Guerra, sales and ops support specialist; and Colton Hadden, funding specialist.

Appointments

The Community Health Free Clinic in Cedar Rapids has appointed Amy Johnson as its director of donor and community relations, and Emma Sheka as its marketing and development associate.

UFG Insurance appointed Chief Financial Officer Eric Martin as an executive vice president within administration.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Cedar Rapids has announced new members of the board of directors: Ben Frazier, Northwestern Mutual; Lorrie Erusha, Mercy Foundation; and Pankit Kotecha, Collins Aerospace.

Kudos

PINC AI has named Mercy Cedar Rapids one of the nation’s 50 top cardiovascular hospitals, as reported by Fortune. Mercy and MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center were the only Iowa hospitals to receive the recognition.

Stacey Simon, dental coordinator at His Hands Free Clinic, has completed coursework and community projects to obtain the certification of community dental health coordinator.

Programs

VERIDIAN BOARD TRAINING: Veridian Credit Union is seeking candidates interested in becoming an associate director on its board. The new program will provide training for people interested in eventually joining Veridian’s board as a director. Details and the candidate application, due by April 19, are at veridiancu.org/election. Veridian members will vote on three associate directors June 14 through July 13, with results announced at the credit union’s virtual annual meeting at 5 p.m. July 18

COMMERCIAL REALTOR CERTIFICATION: Skogman has launched the area’s first, 12-month commercial real estate agent certification program. The inaugural program has accepted 10 prequalified agents — five in Cedar Rapids and five in Coralville. Skogman plans to select and train a new class of agents annually. People interested in the program can contact Todd Bergen, vice president of Skogman Commercial Group, at ToddBergen@skogman.com. Skogman Commercial exceeded $500 million in closed transactions in 2022.

Events

BUSINESS BREAKFAST: Registration is now open for the next Gazette Business Breakfast on May 9, with a panel discussion planned on “Regional Collaboration Strategies.”

Johnson County entities collaborated to address quality-of-life issues and work on economic development during the pandemic. The north end of the Corridor also has evolving collaboration. How are we poised to work as a region toward economic growth, while still addressing individual needs?

Panelists will be Cady Gerlach, executive director of Better Together 2030; Tiffany O'Donnell, mayor of Cedar Rapids; Doug Neumann, executive director of the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance; and Ryan Waller, city manager of Marion. Gazette Executive Editor Zack Kucharski will serve as panel moderator.

The breakfast and networking opportunity will run 7:30 to 9 a.m. May 9 at Geonetric, 415 12th Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids. To register and buy a $5 ticket, go to thegazette.com/special-events.

The Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance is the presenting sponsor of The Gazette breakfast series, with community partner NewBoCo.