Published April 2002

People Watching

Cascade CEO McCord to retire;
Nelson to succeed him
Cascade Financial Corp. chief executive Frank McCord will step down May 1 after 12 years at the head of the Everett banking company.

He will be replaced by Carol Nelson, who joined Cascade as President and Chief Operating Officer a year ago. The transition plan was announced in March.

Finding a successor is “probably the most important thing you do as a CEO,” McCord said. He said that Nelson — who was his personal banker 20 years ago when she was at Seattle First National Bank — was the best possible choice.

“She will move this bank to the next level,” McCord said.

McCord will continue as Chairman of both Cascade Bank and its parent company, Cascade Financial.

During his tenure as CEO, McCord oversaw the transition of Cascade from a mutual thrift institution to a publicly traded commercial bank. Assets grew from $150 million to $760 million during that time, and annual earnings grew tenfold, from $500,000 to $5.6 million.

This is actually the second retirement for the 72-year-old McCord, who was managing partner of KPMG Peat Marwick LLP in Seattle before retiring in 1986.

He said he plans to continue his involvement in community organizations, including Rotary, the Snohomish County Housing Alliance and the group supporting the new Everett event center.

Nelson joined Cascade in February 2001 after 23 years with Bank of America and its predecessor, Seafirst. She was Senior Vice President and Northern Regional Consumer Executive for Bank of America before taking the new job.

— Bryan Corliss

More People Watching
Kaarena Foster has been appointed Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager for Cascade Bank’s North Marysville office. Foster has more than 30 years of banking experience as a branch manager, loan officer and securities investment representative. Ruthie Smith has been appointed Assistant Vice President and Branch Manager for Cascade’s Everett office on Evergreen Way. Smith has more than 15 years of banking experience. Matt Abtahi has been appointed Vice President and business banker for Cascade’s main office in Everett. He has more than eight years of banking experience as a business banker, commercial loan officer and personal banker.

Robert Kaiser, Chief Technology Officer at Bothell’s Prolinx Inc., took part recently in an invitation-only symposium convened by the U.S. National Committee for the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. At the event in Washington, D.C., participants helped define the scope and logistics of the Human Proteome Project. Proteomics, a recently coined term that is derived from combining “protein” and “genomics,” is considered the next promising biomedical research frontier.

Dennis Neuzil has joined Perteet Engineering Inc. as a Senior Traffic and Transportation Engineer. Neuzil has 35 years of experience in traffic and transportation engineering as well as transportation and public transportation planning.

Sally Smith has been named Vice President of Golf Savings Bank. Smith joined the bank in 1995 to create a manufactured housing division. In her new position, she will continue to serve as manager of that division.

Steve Wright has joined Workplace Health Inc., an Oregon company that administers substance abuse and drug testing programs. He will work for the firm from his Lake Stevens home and serve businesses and organizations in Western Washington. His phone number is 425-397-6303.

Fred Siranni has been named Assistant Vice President for Investments at U.S. Bancorp Piper Jaffray. Siranni is based at the company’s Everett office.

Tom Fisher, an Allstate insurance agent in Lynnwood, has earned a personal financial representative title from the company and will now offer a variety of financial products and services.

Donna Marshall has been appointed Vice President of Coastal Community Bank, and she will continue to serve as Manager of the bank’s Sky Valley branch in Sultan. A resident of Sultan for 21 years with 24 years of banking experience, Marshall serves on the Board of Directors for the Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce.

James Forsyth of Everett has been named to the Executives Club, and Thomas Brandt of Lynnwood has been named to the Presidents Club of the Aid Association for Lutherans/Lutheran Brotherhood, for their insurance sales success in 2001.

Kammie L. Lewis, a supervising CPA with Hascal, Sjoholm & Co. PS of Everett, has earned the professional designation of Certified Specialist in Estate Planning from the National Institute for Excellence in Professional Education LLC in conjunction with various state societies of CPAs and Surgent and Associates LLC.

Dr. Lyle Sorensen has joined Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Lynnwood clinic to provide orthopedic services. He specializes in orthopedic surgery and sports medicine — joint replacement, limb reconstruction, fracture surgery, shoulder surgery, arthroscopy and non-operative musculoskeletal problems.

Blake Little has been named Vice President of Engineering at SonoSite Inc. of Bothell. Previously Director of Engineering, Little has been with SonoSite since its spin-off from ATL Ultrasound in 1998, and has earned several U.S. patents and awards for his technical work.

Bothell-based Integrex added new people and shifted others in its senior management team recently. Alan Fuhrman was hired as Senior Vice President responsible for business development, marketing, sales, administration and finance. Mark Johnson was promoted to Senior Vice President of Operations, and Joe Yabuki was hired as Director of Program Management. Each has about 20 years of experience with other high-tech companies.

Kirk A. Bottles has been appointed Executive Vice President of EverTrust Bank. Bottles, who has spent the past 18 years working for various financial institutions in senior management and production capacities, will be based in the bank’s new Seattle office. He will be responsible for establishing and building the bank’s business and private banking practices in King County.

Northwest Biotherapeutics Inc. of Bothell has appointed Scott Stromatt Vice President and Chief Medical Officer. With experience in medical practice, the pharmaceutical industry and investment banking, Stromatt most recently was Vice President of Health-care Research at C.E. Unterberg, Towbin, a New York investment bank that managed Northwest Biotherapeutics’ initial public offering last year. He holds a medical degree from the University of Chicago and an MBA from the University of Colorado.

Dale Miller of Lynnwood and Jim Page of Edmonds recently were appointed to serve on Girl Scouts — Totem Council’s Board of Directors. As board members, they will be responsible for assisting in policy making, financial management and strategic planning efforts for the council.

LifeSpex Inc., a Bothell company developing light-based products for early cancer detection, has hired Betty Spann as its Director of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs. Spann will provide primary oversight for clinical studies for LifeSpex and will serve as the company’s liaison with key regulatory agencies, including the FDA. With nearly 25 years of experience in health care, Spann’s previous experience includes working for Sonus Pharmaceuticals.

Bob Jammerman is the new General Manager at TownePlace Suites, formerly Stonebrook Suites, in Mukilteo.

Thomas J. Gaffney, a partner in the Everett office of Moss Adams LLP, has been appointed to the Board of Trustees of Everett Community College. His term runs through Sept. 30, 2006. He replaces Kathleen Gutierrez, who served 11 years on the board.

Heather E. McCartney, Mukilteo’s Planning Director, has been elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Certified Planners. She is one of just nine fellows from Washington state.

Accountant M. Jeanne Hunsinger has joined the staff of Temple Lewis Anderson & Co. PS of Everett. Hunsinger’s accounting background includes serving as a tax accountant for Diel & Forguson LLC as well as performing accounting services for T.E. Blackwell CPA.

The Greater Everett Community Foundation has five new members on its Board of Directors for 2002. They are: Gigi Burke, Executive Vice President of Crown Distributing; Maggie Faulkner, who is active in community service; Tim Kirstein, President of Cascade Coffee; Melissa Morgan, a chemical dependency counselor at Compass Health; and Mark Nesse, Director of the Everett Public Library. The new members join Suzanne Ames, Jim Finley, Dan Gaffney, Greg Goldfinch, Micki Hazen, Jo Metzger-Levin, Peter Newland and Bill Rucker on the board.

Shari Davidson has joined Windermere Real Estate’s Mukilteo office as a sales associate. She previously was a sales associate with Flat Listing Fee.com in Monroe and holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing and graphic design. Karen Nelson has joined Windermere’s Lake Stevens office as a sales associate. She previously was a sales associate with Eklund Real Estate of Lake Stevens. Christine Anderson has joined Windermere’s Alderwood office as a sales associate. She previously was a sales associate with Prudential MacPhersons in Shoreline.

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