Banking & Finance Monica Balbo has joined Ciera Bank as vice president of business development. Previously, Balbo was vice president of business development at Pinnacle Bank and an account executive at the Fort Worth Business Press. She is a member of the Make-A-Wish Regional Council, Downtown Fort Worth Inc. Marketing Committee and the Rotary Club of Fort Worth.
Boards & Organizations Joseph DeLeon, -president of Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth and chairman of the Fort Worth Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, has been named to a newly established national March of Dimes Hispanic Advisory Council. DeLeon is a board member of the March of Dimes Fort Worth Division and served as co-chair of the 2014 Fort Worth March for Babies. Shannon Greene, -chief financial officer and treasurer of Tandy Leather Factory Inc., is the new president of the Fort Worth chapter of Financial Executives International for 2014-2015. She is a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Corporate Leadership Advisory Council, the SEC’s Advisory Committee on Small and Emerging Companies, and the Texas Society of CPAs’ Professional Standards Committee. Members of the 2015 class of Leadership Fort Worth are: Lisa Albert, Texas Christian University; Tom Armstrong, Armstrong Foundation; Elizabeth Butler, Goodwill Industries of Fort Worth; Carrie Cappel, Harris, Finley & Bogle PC; Michelle Clark, Global Prairie Marketing LLC; Wayne Corum, city of Fort Worth; Grace Daniels, Oncor Electric Delivery; Lauren Doeren, VLK Architects Inc.; Charles Erwin, Freese and Nichols Inc.; Pia Foster, MHMR of Tarrant County; Scott Fredricks, Cantey Hanger LLP; Ashley Freer, Balcom Agency; Sandra Garcia, city of Fort Worth; Tre Garrett, Jubilee Theater; Darien George, Mackenzie, Eason & Associates LLC; Cristina Gomez-Jimenez, Texans Can Academies; J. Clinton Grant, Tarrant County College-Northwest Campus; Jaye Helm, YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth; Dallisa Hocking, TCU; Lee Howell, Thos. S. Byrne Ltd.; Lynda Johnson, city of Fort Worth; Laura Kender, MHMR of Tarrant County; Brandi Lowe, Community Hospice of Texas; Don Marable, Edward Jones; Gloria Martinez, Hispanic Wellness Coalition; Randal Mays, Junior Achievement of the Chisolm Trail; Sandi McDermott, Tarleton State University; Melanie McGee, University of Texas at Arlington; Kathryn McGlinchey, Broude, Smith & Jennings PC; Emily McKnight, Bell Helicopter Textron Inc.; Derek Montgomery, Kelly, Hart & Hallman LLP; Carlos Morales, Tarrant County College District; Todd Neander, Wells Fargo Bank; Kristin Odom, Junior League of Fort Worth; Jhonnie Ortiz, city of Fort Worth; Ray Pfang, Tarrant County College-South Campus; Jennifer Potts, Bell Helicopter Textron; Ashley Purgasonm, UTA; Patrice Randle, city of Fort Worth; Merianne Roth, RadioShack Corp.; John Sands, Frost Bank; Jayna Shepherd, A Lost Treasure; Patricia Steelman, Fort Worth Chamber of Commerce; Caroline Thomas, Community Trust Bank; Dustin Van Orne, The Modern Art Museum; John Veilleux, Texas Wesleyan University; Brian Villegas, MHMR of Tarrant County; Jeffrey Whitacre, Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc.; Douglas Widger, St. Paul Lutheran Church; and David Wilcox, OmniAmerican Bank.
Honors & Awards Winners of the 2014 Southlake Community MVP Awards from the Southlake Chamber of Commerce are: Citizen of the Year, Joe King, Kids Matter International; Chairman’s Award, the city of Southlake; President’s Award, the University of North Texas; Civic Group of the Year, SASO (Scholars and Athletes Serving Others); Director of the Year, Ian MacLean, Highland Landscaping LLC; Corporate Business of the Year, Variosystems; Small Business of the Year, Advantage Air Services; Volunteer of the Year, Terrell Tipton, Legacy Branded Media; Ambassador of the Year, Fred Dezendorf, Charter Business; and Youth of the Year, Julia and Maria Myers. American Airlines Group recognized four employees with the 2014 Earl G. Graves Award for Leadership in Diversity: Fleet Captain Kathi Durst, American’s first female pilot in a management leadership role; Vice President of Airport Integration Bob Ciminelli, who has served as an executive sponsor for the African American Diversity Network; Senior Analyst Sales Strategy Anila Jivanji, a member of the Family Matters Employee Business Resource Group where she advocated for the Mothers Room built at American Airlines headquarters; and Staff Assistant Linda Kozma, who collaborated with American’s Veteran’s Initiatives Department to present the first Marine Week at Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Two Methodist Health System nurses have been named 2014 Texas Nurse.com Nursing Excellence regional award winners. Methodist Mansfield Medical Center labor and delivery Nurse Manager Amanda Truelove won in the Clinical Nursing, Inpatient category. Lisa Murphy, director of education at Methodist Charlton Medical Center, won in the Education and Mentorship category. They are among six nurses (one in each category) from the Texas region who will advance to the national award program. Winners will be announced in late summer. Hospitality Omni Hotels & Resorts appointed Kris Singleton as the new chief information officer. A 24-year veteran of the technology industry, Singleton has more than a decade of experience in the hospitality industry. Most recently she was CIO for The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Previously, she was CIO and vice president of technology for Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants and IT vice president of business solutions for MGM Mirage. Singleton also has served as CIO for Chasm Industries Inc., and spent 15 years at Hallmark Cards Inc. She is a member of the CIO Council, Hotel Technology Next Generation, Hotel Financial and Technology Professionals, and serves on Newmarket and Guest-Tek Customer Advisory Boards.
Law Phillip C. Vaden, a 2014 graduate of Texas Tech University School of Law, has joined Harris, Finley & Bogle PC as an associate.
Radio & Television Mike Garber has been named vice president and news director for KTVT (CBS 11) and KTXA (TXA 21). Garber joins from WPTV/WFLX in West Palm Beach, Fla., where served as news director since 2012. During his tenure, WPTV was honored with a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for Overall Excellence and a regional EMMY Award for News Excellence. Garber was news director at WTLV/WJXX in Jacksonville, Fla., from 2008 to 2012. Under his leadership, WTLV received the 2011 regional EMMY for News Excellence. Prior to that, he was news director at WLTX in Columbia, S.C., and assistant news director at KGUN in Tucson. Garber began his career as a sports producer at WTVT in Tampa, Fla. He later had the same position at WFTS in Tampa and KPIX in San Francisco.
Real Estate Seth Fowler has joined HGC Residential Development as the director of sales. Fowler has more than 10 years of experience in sales and marketing in the home building industry, and was most recently the director of sales and marketing for HD Homes and Village Homes in Fort Worth.
Staffing Tusk Enterprises hired Thomas “T.R.” Griffith II as the medical staffing company’s first chief technology officer.
Send newsmakers to Betty Dillard at bdillard@bizpress.net
Kent Hance named to Carlile Bancshares board Longtime former politician and attorney Kent R. Hance, current and retiring chancellor of the Texas Tech University System, has been elected to the board of Fort Worth-based Carlile Bancshares Inc. Hance, 71, became Texas Tech’s third chancellor in December 2006. During his tenure, he has elevated the university’s system to its highest historic enrollment, and led a capital campaign that raised more than $1 billion for the university. Hance, who will become chancellor emeritus after his retirement at the end of July, plans to return to his Austin law firm of Hance Scarborough LLP. In addition to his administration law practice, he provides an extensive background in oil and gas and energy-related law. Hance’s public service includes serving as a state senator, and later as a U.S. Congressman for the 19th District, where he passed President Ronald Reagan’s tax cut in 1981, the largest in the history of the nation. He also served on the Texas Railroad Commission from 1987 to 1991, serving as its chairman in 1989-1990. A native of Dimmitt, Texas, Hance earned a business degree from Texas Tech University and a law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. He and his wife, Susie, who is also an attorney, will reside in Austin. They have five children and seven grandchildren.