PROMOTIONS

• Joan Blainey was promoted to president of INTERA’s federal, coastal and international line of business. She has over 20 years of experience as a hydrogeologist, including extensive work supporting programs at the Nevada National Security site and the Hanford site. Blainey also has played a substantial role in growing client relationships, guiding staff development and leading strategic planning. She will remain based in INTERA’s Richland office.

• Kennewick Fire Department’s battalion chief, Jake Van Horn, was promoted to deputy chief of operations. He officially began his new role on April 1, overseeing the department’s three rotating shifts of 90 firefighters. He’s been with the department for 25 years, advancing through the ranks. He was promoted to captain in 2015, began serving as a battalion chief in 2020, and has most recently served as the interim deputy chief of support services. Prior to joining the Kennewick department, he served with the Hanford Fire Department. He has a master’s degree in fire executive leadership and emergency services management, and recently was accepted into the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program, a leadership development program designed to transition chief officers into strategic executive leaders.

• Rachael Morgan was named principal of Carmichael Middle School in Richland, effective at the start of the 2026-27 school year. She has 12 years of classroom teaching experience, three years as an instructional coach, activities coordinator and administrative intern and more than four years as assistant principal at the middle school. Morgan will succeed Brian Stadelman, who is retiring after 15 years as principal.

• Jeff Christiansen is the new vice president of Indirect and Consumer Credit at STCU. He joined STCU in 2010 and has worked in a variety of consumer lending roles, most recently as indirect lending manager. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and marketing from Eastern Washington University.

APPOINTMENTS

• Three senior leaders at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been appointed to roles guiding research programs and operations.  

• Bill Pike is the new deputy director for science and technology. He has served as interim deputy director and previously held the positions of chief science and technology officer and division director.
• Angela Becker-Dippmann is the new associate laboratory director for the Energy and Environment Directorate. Her background includes work with the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and leading PNNL’s Energy and Environment Program Development Office.
• Amy Schmidt is the new executive director and chief human resources officer. She worked as interim chief human resources officer since 2025 and brings more than 25 years of leadership experience spanning HR and the public sector.

GRANTS

• The Wildhorse Foundation recently provided the Cavalcade of Authors with a $3,000 grant. The Cavalcade event provides high school and middle school students the opportunity to meet and learn from 10 award-winning authors from around the country. The Cavalcade of Authors was held April 25.

CERTIFICATION

• Marcus Valentine of Architects West has successfully completed the Design-Build Institute of America’s comprehensive education and certification testing program to achieve the design-build industry’s highest designation as a nationally certified design-build professional. During his 16 years with Architects West, Valentine has focused on serving municipal clients, leading projects ranging from city halls to fire station facilities. He also has partnered with several Native American tribes throughout the Northwest, contributing to a wide range of project types that support cultural, civic and community needs.

BOARDS

• Energy Northwest elected five inside directors and one outside director to the agency’s 11-member executive board. Each will serve a four-year term on the board, beginning in July.

Inside directors are: Jerry Asmussen, Okanogan County PUD; Arie Callaghan, Grays Harbor County PUD 1; Dave McKenzie, Skamania County PUD; Randy Smith, Chelan County PUD; and Clint Whitney, City of Richland Energy Services.

Outside director: Bill Pitesa, a former chief nuclear officer and a 43-year nuclear industry veteran.

AWARDS & HONORS

• First Interstate Bank earned recognition as a “Gold Employer” on the Where You Work Matters List. The list rates nearly 55,000 jobs across 1,750 U.S.-based employers, using the publicly available career progression data of more than 12 million American workers. First Interstate received this recognition because it offers competitive salaries, a comprehensive benefits program, a student debt repayment program and more.

• The Tri-Cities Hispanic Chamber of Commerce recently announced its yearly award recipients:

• Fiesta Foods, Big Business of the Year Award.
• CBHA, Non-Profit of the Year Award.
• Castillo Interiors LLC, Small Business of the Year Award.
• ICCU, Member of the Year Award.

• Andrew Chung, chief information officer at Gesa Credit Union, headquartered in Richland, has been named the 2026 ORBIE Award winner in the corporate category. The award recognizes the Pacific Northwest’s most impactful technology executives, who translate complex systems into measurable outcomes for the organizations and people they serve. Chung was selected from finalists representing healthcare systems, major corporations and financial institutions across the region. Chung leads nearly 90 people across IT, fraud prevention, physical security, robotic process automation, data engineering and software development. In 2025, the fraud tools his team deployed identified and prevented more than $1 million in member losses. Robotic process automation across eight departments freed an estimated $590,000 in staff capacity, redirected toward member service. During a year that included a major merger conversion, Gesa’s systems maintained 99% uptime. Chung also serves on the executive committee of America’s Credit Union Technology Council and holds advisory roles with the North American Fintech Coalition and Metal Blockchain’s Banking Innovation Program.

• Shelley Kennedy, a certified financial planner at Edward Jones in Richland, has been named to the 2026 Forbes Top Women Wealth Advisors Best-in-State. She was ranked No. 35 in the state. Criteria for selection included industry experience, best practices, compliance records and assets under management. Research analysts also conducted interviews with nominees.

• Richland School District is recognizing two of its FFA teams which captured state titles this spring. The Richland High FAA Ag Tools and Materials Team earned the state championship title at the Washington State Agricultural Tools and Materials Contest in Yakima. The contest tested students’ ability to identify agricultural tools and demonstrate knowledge of their functions across multiple industries. The Richland Veterinary Science Team earned the state title at the Washington State Veterinary Science Contest in Sumner. The competition included challenging case studies, hands-on clinical and animal handling practicums, veterinary math and a timed team presentation on the enrichment of rodents in a laboratory setting.

• Matt Riesenweber, an independent LPL advisor with Cornerstone Wealth Strategies in Kennewick, has been recognized in this year’s list of Forbes/SHOOK Best-in-State Wealth Advisors; ranked as the No. 2 advisor in Washington. Riesenweber has 22 years of experience in the financial services industry and provides a full range of financial services, including retirement and financial planning, and money management. Advisors are selected for this list based on quantitative and qualitative data and are assessed on a variety of criteria, including interviews, years of experience, compliance records and assets under management.

• Paul Read, publisher of the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business and Spokane Journal of Business, was named Distinguished Alumni of the Year by the Spokane Colleges Foundation on April 17. Read, who has had a 42-year career in the newspaper business, got his start in journalism working as the editor of The Communicator, Spokane Falls Community College’s student newspaper. He earned an associate degree in photography before earning a bachelor’s in journalism from Eastern Washington University. The award honors alumni who exemplify the legacy of learning at SFCC or Spokane Community College and who have made significant contributions to the community. Read helped to launch the Spokane Journal of Business in 1986. He oversaw the acquisition of the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business in 2022.

• Several local employees at Banner Bank have received the Banner’s Best award, representing the highest level of recognition within the company. These employees received the award for exceeding their individual professional goals, demonstrating excellence within their professions and consistently delivering outstanding service to the bank’s clients, communities and their peers:

• Shaun Gordon, senior vice president and senior commercial relationship manager.
• Nikki Geiszler, vice president, sales manager and treasury management sales.
• Jess Hamlin, vice president, operations group manager and central deposit operations.
• Michele Denman, vice president, process documentation manager and payment operations.
• Jennifer Krug, executive vice president, enterprise operations executive (awarded in previous role as senior vice president and operations director).

• Brookdale Torbett, located at 221 Torbett St. in Richland, has been recognized by the U.S. News and World Report for high performance in food and dining among senior living communities across the nation. The ratings are based on a national survey of 550,000 residents and family members at independent living, assisted living, memory care and continuing care retirement communities. These ratings provide families and prospective residents further insight into the community’s care, food and dining, engagement opportunities, management and homelike feel.

• Sarah Saslow, a chemist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, was one of nine recipients of the Women Chemists Committee’s Rising Star Award at the ACS Spring 2026 Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia. This award honors mid-career women scientists for their significant contributions to chemistry. Saslow was recognized for her leadership and research in linking foundational science with field-scale environmental cleanup.

• Gabriela Whitemarsh, a bilingual math teacher at Pasco High School and the 2026 Washington State Teacher of the Year, has been selected as the grand marshal of the Pasco Cinco de Mayo Parade. When the Pasco High School alum was a senior, she was selected as Cinco de Mayo Queen, recognized for her academic excellence, graduating near the top of her class with a 3.975 grade-point average, earning numerous honors and scholarships, and being named the top Hispanic Academic Achievers Program, or HAAP, scholar that year. She was named a 2025 Crystal Apple Award recipient and has spent more than eight years transforming opportunities for multilingual learners in Pasco. She founded the Advanced Multilingual Mathematics Program, helping students – many new to the country – access college-level coursework. Her work has led to dozens of students earning college credits and building pathways to higher education. 

• Columbia Bank has been recognized by Crisil Coalition Greenwich with two regional Best Bank Awards for excellence in middle market banking. More than 500 banks worldwide were evaluated across small business and middle market categories, with 47 banks receiving honors. Columbia Bank earned two awards: Best Bank – Satisfaction in Cash Management for Middle Market Banking in the U.S. and Best Bank – Satisfaction with Relationship Manager for Middle Market Banking in the U.S.

• Nayeli Berenice Aranda Hernández, a migrant graduation specialist at Stevens Middle School in Pasco, received the 2026 Violet Lumley Rau Outstanding Alumnus Award at Heritage University’s commencement ceremony on May 9 at the Yakima Valley SunDome. She earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from Heritage and went on to complete both a master’s degree and a doctorate in education. She was also a recipient of the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business’ 2025 Young Professionals award.

• Visit Tri-Cities earned the 2026 Fired Up! Culture Achievement Award, a national recognition honoring organizations that demonstrate excellence in workplace culture and employee engagement. The award places Visit Tri-Cities among the top 10% of Fired Up! culture clients recognized for building a healthy, thriving workplace culture that supports organizational performance and employee retention.

• Michelle Clary and Aaron Ells, wealth advisors with Piton Wealth of the Thrivent Advisor Network, have received the 2025 Voices in Philanthropy award from Thrivent Charitable. This recognition celebrates their service in helping clients prioritize generosity as a part of their financial plans. Selection for the award is based on total outright and deferred charitable gifts made by their clients separately through Thrivent Charitable in 2025.

NEW HIRES

• Laurel Palmblad has been appointed as the market director of education at Lourdes Health and Trios Health. She has more than a decade of leadership experience across acute care, ambulatory services, education and business development. Palmblad most recently worked as a regional practice manager at Kinwell Health, where she supported 17 primary care clinics across Washington state.

• Nick Clark has joined Kennewick’s First Interstate Bank as a community branch manager. He is responsible for developing and maintaining client relationships using the full spectrum of banking services. He has nine years of experience in the financial industry, previously serving as a teller, personal banker and manager at HomeStreet Bank, as well as branch manager at Bank of the West (now BMO). Clark serves as treasurer on the board of directors of the Richland Players and is a volunteer mentor with SCORE, specializing in mentoring business owners on starting a business and financial management.

• Steve Bews has joined Lourdes Health and Trios Health as market director of emergency services, supporting the continued advancement of emergency and trauma care across both hospitals. He stepped into the role in March and most recently worked at Astria Toppenish Hospital as director of nursing for the behavioral health unit and education coordinator. He began his career providing bedside care as an emergency department and float pool nurse at Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital. He earned his Bachelor of Science in nursing from Western Governors University and is currently pursuing his Master of Science in nursing in leadership.

• Dr. Nazanin Kaatz is a new double board-certified dermatologist and Mohs surgeon at Good Shepherd Dermatology in Hermiston. She earned her Doctor of Medicine from the State University of New York Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York, and completed her dermatology residency at the University of Colorado in Denver, Colorado. Her training also includes a general surgery residency at the University of Arizona, a post-doctoral research fellowship in dermatology at Stanford University School of Medicine, and a visiting scholar and clinical trials co-investigator role at the University of Southern California.  

• Dr. Garrett Pool is a new robotic-trained general surgeon at Good Shepherd General Surgery in Hermiston. The board-certified surgeon has 25 years of medical experience, beginning his career in family medicine before pursuing advanced training in general surgery. He earned his Doctor of Medicine from Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine in Portland and a Bachelor of Science in physician assistant studies from Rocky Mountain College in Billings, Montana.

• Karen Moreno is a new real estate broker at Distinctive Properties Inc. Moreno has local roots and is a graduate of Pasco High School. She can also speak Spanish.

• Dr. Hector Arredondo is the new family medicine prover at Lourdes Family Medicine in Pasco. Arredondo recently completed his family medicine residency at Loma Linda University Medical Center Murrieta in Murrieta, California. He earned his medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean. He focuses on joint injections, lifestyle medicine, obesity, diabetes, hypertension and more. He also fluently speaks both Spanish and English.

• Bankcda hired two new members to its Tri-Cities team:

• Brenda Bravo has joined as a branch manager for the Richland office. She brings more than 25 years of experience in community banking and leadership. 
• Walt Smith has joined as a commercial banker. He has a background in financial leadership and business development, with expertise in helping businesses grow through customized lending, cash management and treasury solutions.