New Hires & Promotions
Brad Thomas of Touchstone Energy Cooperatives has been named to the board of directors of the National Rural Economic Developers Association.
R. J. Corman Railroad Group, LLC has named Michael Donfris as its new chief financial officer.
AppHarvest has announced Travis Parman will join the AgTech leader as chief communications officer, reporting to founder & CEO Jonathan Webb. Parman most recently served as vice president for Nissan Americas and president of the Nissan Foundation.
Shawn Lyons, a longtime development and alumni engagement expert and Centre College vice president, has been named as Transylvania University’s new vice president for advancement.
LEX18 announced the hiring of Larry Smith as the new main co-anchor for LEX18 News. Smith replaces longtime WLEX anchor Kevin Christopher, who retired after two decades behind the news desk at LEX18.
Charles Thompson, business development manager; James Ochsenbein, director of photography; and Ethan Mills, live events operations manager, have joined Studio46 Media – a video production, live/virtual event services, and creative services company in Lexington.
Science and engineering firm SynTerra has announced the hiring of environmental consultant Scott Smith.
Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton has named Jason G. Wells as the city’s next fi re chief.
Kudos
The city of Lexington has received an all-time high score of 95 out of 100 from the Human Rights Campaign, a national civil rights organization focused on protecting and supporting the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. Each year the organization scores cities based on how inclusive their laws, policies, services and programs are of their LGBTQ citizens. In 2020, the organization evaluated 506 cities across the country. The national organization listed Lexington as a Municipal Equality Index AllStar because it received a high score in a state without LGBTQ nondiscrimination laws.
Gov. Andy Beshear and the Kentucky Arts Council have presented the prestigious 2020 Governor’s Awards in the Arts: Milner Award to folksinger Michael Johnathon, who joins Kentucky artists such as Wendell Berry, James Still, Jean Ritchie and Homer Ledford in receiving the honor.
CHI Saint Joseph Medical Group announced its 2020 Employee of the Year and Leader of the Year award recipients. Rachel Cope, of Berea, a physician liaison, was presented the Employee of the Year award, and Patrick Anderson, of Lexington, an applications manager, earned the Leader of the Year award.
G.D. Hieronymus, who has served as Keeneland’s Eclipse Award-winning director of broadcast services since 2000, announced his retirement effective Feb. 1, 2021. Hieronymus will continue to work during Keeneland’s spring and fall race meets and on special projects for the track and its industry and philanthropic partners.