MOVERS & SHAKERS
HIRINGS & PROMOTIONS | NEWS & ANNOUCEMENTS | AWARDS & RECOGNITION | CORPORATE GIFTS & PHILANTHROPY | BIZ BITES
MAY 8, 2008

Bill Perez
A hospitality industry veteran, Perez has been appointed director of food and beverage at The Island Hotel in Newport Beach. He will oversee approximately 300 employees and the hotel’s dining venues.

Erin Rogers
Rogers has been named assistant general manager of transit for the Orange County Transportation Authority. She will manage the transit division’s operating budget of approximately $200 million.

Mitch Bridge
Bridge, a world-ranked tennis player who has won more than 100 men’s open titles, has joined Advantage Tennis Academy in Irvine. He will serve as head coach.


Cynthia Kunkel
Kunkel has been named director of McDermott & Bull Executive Network. Based in the Irvine office, she will be responsible for daily program implementation, business development and strategic planning.


Todd Wright
Wright has joined Rutan & Tucker LLP in Costa Mesa as a partner in the intellectual property section. He has extensive experience drafting freedom of operation, infringement and validity opinions.


Tracie Blankenship
Blankenship was recently appointed to serve as secretary on the Community Association Institute’s 2008-2009 Orange County Board of Directors.

Ken Kruis
Kruis has been named CFO at RiverRock Real Estate Group, a commercial real estate management and leasing firm. He will be responsible for financial management.

Devon Fleischmann
Fleischmann has joined Mindshare Creative as print production manager. She will be responsible for direct-mail production and commercial printing, as well as other duties.

Gary Curtis
Curtis has joined Haskell & White LLP as a partner in the firm’s mergers and acquisition practice. He brings more than 20 years of experience at Big 4 accounting firms.


Melissa Olivadoti
Olivadoti has joined the National Fibromyalgia Association, headquartered in Anaheim, as continuing medical education and research director. Olivadoti holds a doctorate in neuroscience.


Hirings & Promotions
Steve Core has been named chief operating officer at RiverRock Real Estate Group …

Opus West Corp., developer of The Shoppes at Chino Hills, has hired Glenn Miller as property manager and director of marketing for the center. He will work from the Southern California regional headquarters in Irvine …

Salman Alam and David Beser have joined Newmeyer & Dillion LLP in Newport Beach. Alam will work in the transactional practice; Beser will serve in the litigation group …

Jack Maurer has been named vice chairman, partner and founding member at Thompson National Properties LLC …

William Allen has been named director of acquisitions at Turner Development Corp. His responsibilities include identification, evaluation and execution of new investments …

Christine Hayama, advertising account manager, and Denise Bjorn, public relations director, have joined Santa Ana-based Mindshare Creative …
Karen Morales has been appointed vice president of real estate and TIC programs at Nelson Brothers Professional Real Estate LLC …

Steve Koerner has been promoted to accounts payable supervisor, and Shana Aaberg has been promoted to community associationmanager for the Shady Canyon neighborhood at Keystone Pacific Property Management Inc.


News & Announcements
Aliso Viejo Country Club recently celebrated the grand opening of its Nicklaus-designed golf course. The country club is being transformed from a 27-hole, daily-fee golf club to an exclusive, 18-hole private country club, and will remain open throughout the transformation process …

Newport Beach-based McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. has completed construction of the steel structure for the Roy and Patricia Disney Cancer Center. At Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, the $21.8 million facility will be the San Fernando Valley’s most comprehensive, free-standing cancer center when it opens in summer 2009 …

Villa Park resident Brett Bittel, vice president and general manager of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, has been appointed to the United Way of Greater Los Angeles Board of Directors …

Beth Thompson, Cristina Walters and Leslie Bonifay of C&M Communiqué have co-founded Women Who Win in the Sport of Business, a networking group designed to foster women’s professional relationships and memorable fun. The group’s inaugural event is May 15 at Angel Stadium. Participants will enjoy a casual, pre-game networking dinner at 5:30 p.m., followed by a game between the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Chicago White Sox. Information: meetwomenwhowin.com


Awards & Recognition
St. Joseph Hospital of Orange has been named one of America’s Top Ten Healing Hospitals for 2007 for the second consecutive year by the Baptist Healing Trust in Nashville, Tenn. … Three legendary Pageant of the Masters directors, Don Williamson, Glen Eytchison and Diane Challis Davy, were recently honored for their roles in the annual theatrical program showcasing the art of living pictures. Together, they are responsible for directing the pageant for a cumulative 45 years …

Two sales team members of the Westin South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa recently took top honors at a Starwood properties meeting. Michele Mustafa, director of sales and marketing, received the Sales Leader of the Year award. Deborah Lew, convention services manager, received the Catering/Convention Services Manager of the Year award ...

CHOC at Mission has been honored by ADVANCE for Nurses magazine for having one of the nation’s five best nursing teams for 2008. The team of nurses was recognized for the implementation of online clinical documentation, which features best practice guidelines, decision support tools and other safety checks for caregivers.


Corporate Gifts & Philanthropy
Goodwill of Orange County’s annual Working for Independence Fundraising Luncheon, recently held at the Hilton Irvine/Orange County Airport, raised $175,000. The funds will be used to support Goodwill’s mission: to provide people with disabilities and other barriers the opportunity to achieve their highest levels of personal and economic independence …

Orange County United Way has received $64,000 from Macy’s West employees and customers …

Allied Schools in Laguna Hills has donated tape recorders and software to the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana. The contribution is valued at approximately $32,000 …

Downey Savings in Newport Beach has awarded Danny Kim the first-place prize for his submission in its Banking Basics Program. Kim received a $2,500 five-year certificate of deposit, and his school, Don Juan Avila Elementary School, received $7,500. Other donations totaling $13,500 were awarded …

Cal State Fullerton communication majors Carla Franco, Sabrina Johnson, Peter Martinez and Robert Moran won Fox News Channel’s College Challenge, earning them $10,000 for their news video. Also, $10,000 was donated to the university’s Communications Department.




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