Business FYI

Published 8:05 pm Friday, October 3, 2008

People

Dr. Cynthia Markus was elected president of the state Medical Association at the association’s annual meeting Sept. 29 in Spokane. Markus is an emergency physician with North Sound Emergency Medicine, serving Providence Everett Medical Center in Everett and Valley General Hospital in Monroe. She received her medical degree cum laude from the University of Michigan. She also received her juris doctorate from the University of Washington School of Law and is a member of the state Bar Association.

Lynn Eerkes has been promoted to senior vice president and team leader for Cascade Bank’s Snohomish County business banking team. Eerkes has worked in the financial services industry for more than 20 years, mostly in the commercial lending and branch banking sectors. He joined Cascade in 2006 as vice president and business banker. Eerkes works out of Cascade Bank’s corporate office in downtown Everett.

Special events

Food drives to help the hungry in Snohomish County communities will be conducted Oct. 13-19 at TOP Food &Drug and Haggen Food &Pharmacy stores in Snohomish County. Food banks are seeking canned beans and meat, canned fruit and any other nonperishable food items. Donors also may purchase bags of groceries that include rice, pasta and soup for $5 apiece at TOP Food and Haggen stores. All of the donated food will be distributed by a food bank in each store’s community.

State Farm invites entrepreneurial women seeking a unique business opportunity to an exclusive Ladies Night Out event from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Seattle Design Center, 5701 Sixth Ave. S. In addition to refreshments, entertainment and door prizes, the event offers guests the chance to explore the benefits and rewards of being a self-employed small-business owner exclusively affiliated with State Farm. The company also provides a full line of financial service products. Space is limited. For more information or to register, e-mail pacn.agcy-recruiting. 952n15@statefarm.com.

Job fair

Employers from more than 50 companies will seek new employees at the fall Snohomish County Job Fair, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday in Parks Student Union Building and Jackson Center at Everett Community College, 2000 Tower St. The job fair is the largest general employee recruiting event north of Seattle. More than 4,000 job seekers attended one of the three job fairs in 2007. The job fair is free and open to the public. Free parking is available at the parking lot at 10th Street and Broadway, with a shuttle to campus. Job fair parking is not allowed on EvCC’s main campus. For more information, contact EvCC Student Employment Center at 425-388-9278 or go to www.snocojobfair.com.

Classes, seminars

How to build and sustain a positive work environment is the topic of “Employee Recognition: Putting the zing back in Recognizing,” an Everett Area Chamber of Commerce workshop from 7:30 to 9 a.m. Oct. 14 at Staples in Everett, 4920 Evergreen Way S. Theresa Chambers, chief motivation officer of Recognition Works, will provide a framework, ideas and tools that will forever change the way employers think about employee recognition. The Small Business Administration recently named Recognition Works as the home-based Business champion of 2008 for Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska. Cost: $15 for Chamber members and $45 for nonmembers if registered by Friday. For more information, call 425-257-3222.

Business news

Willie and Rishi Brown, new owners of Prohibition Grille in Everett, offer a gourmet Southern bill of fare as well as live blues and jazz at 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturdays, and belly dancing at 9 p.m. Thursdays. The restaurant is located at 1414 Hewitt Ave. For more information, call 425-258-6100.

The Everett Clinic Medical Center is participating in a new venture aimed at adding value and transparency for patients, as it launches a partnership with online organization Carol.com, a health-care marketplace that offers patients an opportunity to purchase health care on the Internet. Consumers can compare prices and quality of competing providers, including The Everett Clinic Medical Center. Patients can choose between dozens of different health-care packages, determine estimated costs, enter insurance information to verify eligibility and to schedule appointments, all in one place. The clinic will offer services to meet many specific health care needs at different locations throughout Snohomish County. At the Mill Creek location, it offers a women’s wellness 3-in-1 exam, including a mammogram, an osteoporosis screening and an annual pelvic exam. At the Lake Stevens location, the Clinic will offer family exams which allow parents and children to schedule appointments in the same visit.

A Step Ahead, a company that bring educational dance and movement to K-12 schools and the community, has been founded by Pam Shinsato. To further promote the form of dance as physical exercise and music training, she and her associates teach dance for approximately a week, offering five units that align to the state’s educational requirements. Shinsato also founded Dance Pulse, a unique class to bring dance stretches, dance movement, relaxation and body awareness to the community in a unique exercise format. For inquiries, call 425-319-8627.

Stevens Hospital recently earned the coronary artery disease gold performance achievement award from the American Heart Association’s Get with the Guidelines program. The award recognizes the hospital’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of cardiac care that effectively improves treatment of patients hospitalized with coronary artery disease. As the first hospital in the state to receive the award, Stevens Hospital demonstrated for 24 consecutive months that at least 85 percent of its eligible coronary patients are discharged following the American Heart Association’s recommended treatment guidelines. Under the association’s program, patients are started on aggressive risk-reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers in the hospital and receive smoking cessation-weight management counseling as well as referrals for cardiac rehabilitation before they are discharged.

Workforce Development Council Snohomish County has launched www.bizinfo24x7.com, a free resource for prospective and current small-business owners, providing information, services, and support regarding the creation, development and management of a business in Snohomish County.

Good deeds

Local Haggen Food &Pharmacy stores are supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October by utilizing pink plastic bags to increase awareness about breast cancer and the need for regular self-breast exams and annual mammograms.

Send news and color photos to Mike Benbow, Business editor, The Herald, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206, fax to 425-339-3435 or e-mail to ­economy@heraldnet.com.