Oct 05, 2021

Hensel Phelps

May

General contractor Hensel Phelps promoted Kristi May to director of safety and health of its Pacific Northwest Region. Over the course of May's 15-year career with Hensel Phelps, she has managed the company's safety and health accident prevention program on health care, aviation, ground transportation, higher education, K-12 and civic projects in California and Washington. She oversees all projects within the Pacific Northwest region, including the recently completed $480 million North Satellite modernization at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Sound Transit's $235 million Operations and Maintenance Facility East. Hensel Phelps says May fosters an empowered safety culture through education, encouragement and proactive safety oversight.

UBS Private Wealth Management

UBS Private Wealth Management announced that Michael Matthews, a managing director, private wealth advisor and senior portfolio manager in the firm's Bellevue office, has been named to the Forbes/SHOOK Research Top 250 Wealth Advisors list for 2021. Matthews has over 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, serving the needs of families and institutional clients. Matthews holds a B.S. in Business Administration, with a major in Accounting from Ohio State University. The sixth annual Forbes/SHOOK Research Top 250 Wealth Advisors list recognizes the country's top financial advisors who represent the future of the wealth management industry. UBS Global Wealth Management provides advice, solutions and services to wealthy families and individuals around the world.

Whitworth Water District

The Washington Association of Sewer & Water Districts (WASWD) announced that one of its members, Whitworth Water District, has been recognized with a State Auditor's Stewardship Award for public resources accountability. Pat McCarthy, Washington State's Auditor, praised the district's dedication to ensuring the health and safety of everyone involved during one of the first remotely conducted audits during the COVID-19 pandemic. Whitworth Water District Treasurer Ron Gillies formally accepted the award during WASWD's 2021 Fall Conference and Trade Show. “It is an honor to be recognized for our district's dedication to accountability and transparency,” said Timothy Murrell, general manager of Whitworth. Gillies is the second WASWD member to be recognized with this award- Shane Young, WASWD's current board vice president and general manager of King County Water District 125, was the first water district to receive the award in 2018. The State Auditor's Office independently serves Washington residents by promoting accountability, fiscal integrity, and openness in state and local government to ensure the proper use of public resources. Its annual Stewardship Award represents the highest level of financial achievement in state government. Out of more than 2,400 cities, counties, colleges, and special purpose districts audited each year, a maximum of ten awards are given out to organizations that show exemplary dedication to the audit process, which helps make government more transparent and effective.

Ellensburg Downtown Association

The Ellensburg Downtown Association hired Brenda DeVore as its new executive director. DeVore has extension experience in the Main Street America program. Her involvement in the Ellensburg community goes back over 15 years when she was the Aveda sales representative for Salon Fenix. DeVore most recently served as the community engagement and events manager at the Greater Issaquah Chamber of Commerce and event director for the Salmon Days Festival. She served on the Issaquah History Museums' board of directors. The Ellensburg Downtown District board of directors began the hiring search in late in July before making its final decision.

Ritchie Bros.

Vancouver, B.C.-based equipment auctioneer Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers is buying SmartEquip for $175 million. SmartEquip provides real-time service and diagnostic support for companies' equipment fleets, as well as electronic procurement of parts from original equipment manufacturers and dealers. SmartEquip supports fleets across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. It has 60 employees and will continue to operate as a standalone business based in Norwalk, Connecticut, for the foreseeable future, according to Ritchie.

Charter Construction

In Seattle, Charter Construction will be the presenting partner at Saturday's Big Gala online fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound. The event is a major source of funding for Big Brothers Big Sisters, drawing hundreds of community and business leaders to celebrate and invest in the impact of youth mentoring. Big Brothers Big Sisters connects kids with positive adult mentors and life-changing programs, inspiring them to achieve their potential. Tickets to the gala are available at InspireBIG.org/gala. Charter Construction Chairman Peter Saladino is a board member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Puget Sound.

Oct 01, 2021

Pujats Wellness

Pujats

Latvian native and 2016 Summer Olympics finalist Pauls Pujats founded the Pujats brand in 2020 to provide wellness services, backed by Pujats' professional experience and the multiple years dedicated to achieving physical and mental wellness via his multidisciplinary upbringing, which include meditation, yoga, goal setting, traditional Chinese medicine, and other relevant practices that helped him become an accomplished athlete. Today, Pujats has provided its services to an array of companies, including Nike, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, and LinkedIn.

Cloudentity

Needham

Seattle-based Cloudentity, a provider of modern application authorization and consent solutions, announced the appointment of Jason Needham as chief executive officer and member of its board of directors. Needham brings over 25 years of leadership experience across application networking, IT automation, cloud security and SaaS solutions to his role at Cloudentity, where he will lead the company during its accelerated growth period. Most recently, Needham served as senior director of multi-cloud security at VMware, where he oversaw engineering, product and marketing of emerging cross-cloud security and management services after the company acquired CloudCoreo, a startup he co-founded two years prior. He also founded Union Bay Networks, a software-defined networking startup acquired by Apple in 2014. Additionally, Needham served as vice president of product management and marketing at F5.

Forward Greens

Vancouver-based indoor farm, Forward Greens, announced a new 11-product lineup of microgreens, salad greens and baby greens, now available in Safeway and Albertsons stores across Oregon and SW Washington. New Forward Greens blends include Kraveable Kale Blend (baby kale and red mustard microgreens), Fantastic Frill Blend (baby red and green frilled leaves, red mustard, mizuna and kale microgreens) and Micro Kale (kale microgreens). Grown indoors, Forward Greens uses 95 percent less water and 97 percent less land than outdoor agriculture, and no pesticides ever. With 11 products now available, each is grown on-site at Forward Greens from non-GMO seeds. Forward Greens has been operating since 2018, and is also available at local stores, such as New Seasons Market, Whole Foods Market, Metropolitan Market, Chuck's Produce & Street Market, and Roth's Fresh Market.

Community Service Awards

The city of Tacoma's Events & Recognitions Committee (CERC) is accepting nominations for the Lifetime Service Award and the Emerging Leader Award for individuals or groups to be honored for their community service at the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration on Monday, Jan. 17, 2022. The deadline for nominations is Monday, Nov. 8, 2021. Honorees include individuals, groups, or organizations that have demonstrated a meaningful contribution to serving the community through human rights efforts, commitment to education or sharing of their skills, and embody the legacy of Dr. King's teachings and actions, to represent people of all color in the pursuit of hope, healing and sustainable peace. The CERC selects the honorees to receive awards and oversees the annual production of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration. The event will be held virtually in 2022, airing on TV Tacoma and live on Facebook on Monday, Jan. 17. For more information about the 33rd Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday Celebration including eligibility requirements and the nominating process visit cityoftacoma.org/mlk, email MLK@cityoftacoma.org or call (253) 573-2523.