Automotive

Justin Wilborn has been named as Meridian Ford’s “Technology Specialist” and will be a bridge between the customer, Ford Motor Co., and Meridian Ford’s sales and service departments. He will serve as a go-to person at Meridian Ford’s dealership for all technology-related knowledge, information and demonstrations.

Wilborn educates both customers and dealership personnel on the SYNC and MyTouch technology systems that are in most new Ford vehicles. SYNC and MyTouch allow users to perform tasks such as hands-free calling, climate control, navigation, entertainment and 911 assistance.

Education

Mamie Oliver and Larry McMillin were honored by Northwest Nazarene University on their retirement and for their service commitment.

Oliver first came to NNU as an adjunct in the early 1970s. In 2000 she started teaching full time, bringing more than 40 years of experience in social work. Currently, Oliver serves as pastor of the Mountain View Community Fellowship in Boise. She is the executive director of the Community Ministries center; chairwoman of the Committee on Women’s Affairs in Richmond, Va.; commissioner of Idaho Commission on Aging; and a member of the Boise chapter of the NAACP.

McMillin, a native Nampan and NNU alumnus, joined the faculty of Northwest Nazarene University in 1987 and helped lead the institution’s transition from a liberal arts college that served undergraduate students to a comprehensive university with multiple graduate programs at the master’s and doctoral-degree levels.

He also led large continuing studies and concurrent credit programs.

After earning his undergraduate degree from Northwest Nazarene College, he earned a master’s degree from Oregon State University and a doctorate of education from the University of Northern Colorado.

After serving several years as an elementary school teacher, McMillin moved into an administrative role as a language arts specialist for the Title 1 Migrant Summer Program. In the late 1970s he served as assistant to the superintendent for instruction and curriculum in the Nampa School District.

From there McMillin moved to Bremerton, Wash., where he served as superintendent of schools for five years before heading back to his hometown of Nampa to develop the college’s continuing studies program.

McMillin is credited also in the development of NNU’s adult online, and adult and professional programs, which now serve students around the world.

McMillin was conferred the title of Professor Emeritus of Education during the 96th annual commencement convocation in May.

Financial services

Gena K. Russell has been named vice president and senior relationship manager at U.S. Bank Commercial Real Estate in Boise.

Russell is an Idaho native with more than 26 years of banking experience, including documentation, loan administration, credit analysis and commercial real estate underwriting. She will be responsible for managing a portfolio of top tier commercial real estate investors and developers in the Idaho market. Russell works at the U.S. Bank office at 101 S. Capitol Boulevard.

Russell serves on the state of Idaho’s Permanent Building Fund Advisory Council and is active with Junior Achievement of Idaho. She is a past board member of BOMA-Boise. Russell received her bachelor’s degree from Boise State University.

Robert Taylor, CEO of Idaho State University Credit Union in Pocatello, was presented the Outstanding Professional of the Year award by the Idaho Credit Union League.

Taylor has 25 years of experience in the credit union industry, serving in a variety of capacities. He held positions with increasing responsibilities in lending and information technology before becoming CEO. Taylor also serves as vice chairman of the board of the Idaho Credit Union League and serves on the league’s governmental affairs committee. He has been part of the Idaho credit union professionals and volunteers who have traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with Idaho's congressional delegation.

Taylor is active in Rotary and serves on the committee for the international student exchange program. He and his wife have hosted a number of foreign exchange students in their home. He is also active in the local chamber of commerce, serving on its board of directors and as finance chairman. He has completed Leadership Pocatello, a two-year program that studies the local community.

Kelley Macpherson with Payne Financial Group was honored by her peers with two awards: “Member of the Year” from the Boise Insurance Professional Association and “Insurance Professional of the Year” from the local branch of the International Association of Insurance Professionals.

Based in Payne Financial Group’s Boise office, Macpherson also works out of its Spokane office. With 24 years of industry experience, she is an expert in commercial lines of insurance with a client base focused in the construction business.

She also won the Boise Insurance Professional’s “Member of the Year” award in 2008 and 2010. Her work includes involvement in the association’s annual golf tournament and auction to help raise money for the Women’s and Children’s Alliance in Boise. She has served the association as secretary, treasurer, president-elect and president. Currently, she serves as co-state council director and is involved in organizing the regional conference to be held in Boise next March.

The national award recognizes an individual who has contributed to the insurance industry through education, creation of industry alliances and/or legislative activity.

Jim Wolfe, president of Wolfe Financial Asset Management Inc., a Meridian financial advisory firm specializing in retirement planning for individuals and small businesses, has been awarded the Accredited Investment Fiduciary designation from Fiduciary360 (fi360), an organization offering training, tools and resources to promote a culture of fiduciary responsibility and improve the decision-making processes of fiduciaries. The AIF designation signifies knowledge of fiduciary responsibility and the ability to implement policies and procedures that meet a defined standard of care.

Wolfe is an investment adviser representative of Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a registered investment adviser.

Julie Hart has joined Waterstone Mortgage as a loan originator. Hart has been in the mortgage industry for seven years and has an extensive background in sales and accounting.

Darin Ramp has joined HomeStreet Bank as mortgage consultant and will be based at HomeStreet’s Eagle lending office.

Government

Britt Kiser, Ashley Raina, Amelia Hall and Greg Casey have been welcomed by U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo to serve internships in his Washington, D.C., office The D.C. internship program provides students the chance to learn about Congress and the political process, while gaining work experience and exploring possible career options.

Some of the activities interns assist with include working with staff members on legislative matters, assisting with constituent service, helping in communications operations, attending congressional hearings and providing tours of the Capitol for visiting Idahoans.

Kiser just finished her junior year at the University of Idaho studying public relations, business and communications, and recently completed a term as news editor for the university’s student publication, The Argonaut.

Raina is a Boise resident who recently finished her junior year at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. Raina is double majoring in political science and economics and served an internship in Crapo’s Boise office last summer.

Hall, a native of Emmett, recently graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in political science. At the U of I, Hall was a member of Kappa Delta and served on the Panhellenic Council for two terms.

Casey, who comes from a long line of Idahoans, is a sophomore at Hampden-Sydney College and hopes the internship experience will help him define his college and career goals.

Health care

Boise-based Healthwise captured a national award for the clearest language in its Learn to Earn Course on Coronary Heart Disease from the Center for Plain Language, a nonprofit organization that promotes clear and concise language in business, government and nonprofit documents and websites. Healthwise captured first place in the category web/multimedia — nonprofit.

Dr. Suzanne Allen, Boise, was installed as the president of the Idaho Academy of Family Physicians, and Dr. Keith Davis, Shoshone, was named the 2012 Idaho Family Physician of the Year at the group’s 64th annual conference in May.

Allen succeeds Dr. Mary Barinaga from Boise.

Davis received his medical education at the George Washington University School of Medicine in Washington, DC. He did his residency training in family medicine at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. Davis began his solo private practice, Shoshone Family Medical Center, in Shoshone after residency training in 1985 and remains the only physician in the county. He has served as the Lincoln County coroner since 1996 and still serves as the EMS director for Lincoln County and Jerome.

Davis has served on the academy’s board of directors since 2002 and was president from 2008 to 2009. He serves as the District 5 trustee, as a board member of the Idaho Medical Association, and as a member of the Advanced Practice Professional Nursing Advisory Committee. He received the designation of Diplomate of the American Board of Family Medicine and Fellow of the American Academy of Family Physicians. He is an affiliate faculty member of the Department of Family Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle; and is on the clinical faculty of the Utah Physician Assistant Program, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City.

Davis serves as a preceptor for the Rural Underserved Opportunities Program, inviting medical students to spend time with him in his practice experiencing the attraction of medicine in a small rural community.

The academy is the largest medical specialty society in Idaho, representing more than 600 members.�It promotes quality health care, education and advocacy on behalf of Idaho’s family physicians and their patients.

Hospitality

The Best Western Plus McCall Lodge & Suites has received the Best Western Director's Award for outstanding quality standards.

The award recognizes Best Western International hotels scoring in the top 20 percent of all 2,400 North American properties in cleanliness and maintenance. Hotels must also meet Best Western’s requirements for design and must receive high customer service scores to qualify for the distinction. Located at 211 South 3rd Street, McCall, across the street from the airport, the hotel is McCall’s newest, with 66 guest rooms.

Natural resources

Tracy Hollingshead will fill the Palisades district ranger position with the U.S. Forest Service in Idaho Falls.

Hollingshead comes to the Caribou-Targhee National Forest from the Bridger-Teton National Forest, where she was the district ranger in the Kemmerer Ranger District for five years. Before that she was the Sula district ranger on the Bitterroot National Forest in Montana. Hollingshead also has experience as a wildlife biologist in the Wasatch-Cache National Forest in Utah and the White River Ranger District on the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest in Washington.

Real estate

J.L. Boyd Co., a Boise commercial real estate firm, will merge with Thornton Oliver Keller, a locally owned commercial real estate firm. James L. Boyd will join the firm as a partner and will continue to focus on investment and industrial brokerage.

Jeff Shaffer will join Thornton Oliver Keller as a property manager. Debra Walters will also join as a brokerage assistant. J.L. Boyd clients will continue to be represented by Boyd upon his arrival at Thornton Oliver Keller.