Kice Industries, Inc. Steve Becker is Chief Financial Officer of Kice Industries in Wichita, KS. where he is responsible for the areas of finance, purchasing, planning, information technology, and human resources. A graduate of Kansas State University with a BS in Business Administration, majoring in Accounting, Steve joined Kice Industries in 2005 after working many years in the aerospace industry, including Boeing Commercial Airplanes and Raytheon Aircraft (Beechcraft). He was a recipient of the Wichita Business Journal CFO award in 2012. Steve served on the Renwick USD 267 School Board for eight years. Steve and his wife Jennifer have three children and live in Andale, KS.
AZO, Inc. Chuck Kerwin is General Manager of AZO Incorporated in Memphis, Tennessee, where he is responsible for the American sales office of AZO GmbH. He is a graduate of the Georgia Institute of Technology with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree and Georgia State University with a Masters of Business Administration. Chuck joined AZO in 1998 with 15 years of manufacturing and project management experience with Thomas & Betts, Northern Telecom and Atlanta Gas Light Company. He is active in various local civic associations and participates in the Memphis in May BBQ Festival. Chuck and his wife, Tricia, have one grown son and live in Memphis, Tennessee.
Jacob Tubing, L.P. Birte Mathis is CEO of Jacob Tubing, L.P. where she has worked since its entry into the U.S. market in 1998. In this role, she serves the needs of Jacob client companies in all of North, South, and Central America. Birte was instrumental in transitioning the company from a sales office to a manufacturing facility. Her team of more than 26 manufacture and deliver high- quality steel tubing, which is used in the manufacture of an array of products ranging from coffee to NASCAR components to the latest developments in space travel. Birte graduated with an engineering degree from the University of Florida. She and her husband Kent reside in Germantown, TN with her two stepdaughters and two rescue dogs. They are passionate about impacting the lives of humans and canines and work with the local homeless population and serve as a founding Board member of a near-by animal rescue.
French Oil Mill Machinery Company Jason McDaniel is President and Chief Operating Officer of The French Oil Mill Machinery Company in Piqua, Ohio. After earning his in B.S. Mechanical Engineering from Ohio State in 1996, McDaniel joined the company and worked in various divisions and roles from 1996 through 2012. Then in January 2013, Daniel P. French recommended McDaniel succeed him as the company's President, and the Board of Directors appointed McDaniel as President and Chief Operating Officer. McDaniel was instrumental in the decision to start operations in China and has been the point person for all FOM (Shanghai) Company, Ltd. activities, which allows French to serve the growing Chinese polymer industry with domestically made products to dewater and dry synthetic rubber. He was also recognized in August 2011 by Rubber & Plastic News as a top rubber industry professional under 40, for making a significant impact on the industry. Jason and his wife Amy have one daughter and reside in DeGraff, OH.
Stedman Machine Company, Inc. Chris Nawalaniec is Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Stedman Machine Company, Inc., Aurora, Indiana. Chris joined the company in 2004 as National Sales Manager, responsible for new machinery and systems sales. Current responsibilities include sales and general management, strategic planning, marketing and new product development. In his role at Stedman, Chris has been part of a team that helps customers improve their dry material processing systems in a wide range of international industries. Founded in 1834, Stedman assists its customers with improvement of product quality, lower operating costs and development of new products with size reduction and material processing expertise. Chris is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati: BSME, MBA. His career has been working with custom design, make-to-order manufacturing companies. Chris resides in Cincinnati with his wife Julie and their two college-aged children.
Industrial Magnetics, Inc. Dennis O'Leary is Chief Business Development Officer of Industrial Magnetics, Inc. (IMI) and CMO for IMI Holding Corp which includes IMI, Prater and Sterling Systems. Prior to being hired on as a Marketing Specialist with IMI in 1999, Dennis was Director of Product Development & Marketing for a major sporting goods brand and spent 14 years in the golf equipment industry. A graduate of Davenport University with a BBA in Marketing and BBA in Management degrees, Dennis makes his home in Northern Michigan with his wife and three daughters. He also sits on the Board of Directors for the Northwest Michigan Industrial Association.
Vortex Global Travis Young is Executive Vice President of Vortex Global in Salina, KS. Vortex is a global engineering and manufacturing company specializing in process gates, diverter valves, and dustless loading solutions for dry bulk solids. His career at Vortex began as Director of International Business, overseeing the company’s exports. He later established Vortex’s operations in Europe and Asia, serving for 10 years as Managing Director of Vortex Global Limited in the United Kingdom. In his current role, Travis is responsible for Vortex’s strategy and marketing direction. Travis holds a B.A. in Marketing and International Business from Kansas State University. In addition to PEMA, he serves on the Board of Directors of other non-profit and for-profit entities. Travis and his wife Melanie have two sons and reside in Salina, Kansas.
Sidney-by-the-Sea Rotary Club past-president holds a sample toonie entry in the club’s new Gold Mine weekly raffle.
With their gaming licence fresh in hand this week, the Sidney-by-the-Sea Rotary Club is chomping at the bit to launch its new fundraising campaign — the Rotary Gold Mine.
Club past-president and chair of the raffle committee Bob Leitch says they’ve based the campaign on one started on Prince Edward Island, which has seen success and growth since it started.
People can buy a raffle ticket number, or numbers, for a toonie each, Leitch explained. Once they have their number, players affix stickers to a toonie and drop it into a container at one of a number of local businesses.
Every Monday, the boxes are collected and a winner is drawn from among a maximum of 10,000 tickets — the amount of tickets being sold by the club as the campaign begins.
“People can play every week, or take a week off, and play again later,” he said. “Their number stays with them.”
Winners will receive 50 per cent of the money raised. The other half will be evenly split between the Rotary club itself and a select community organization or charity that sends volunteers to help with the weekly draw.
“We are starting with a small amount of tickets to begin with,” Leitch said. “It’s not a big investment for people and the payout is potentially great. And all of that money raised stays here on the Peninsula.”
The club itself will put their share into their bursaries and grants to local youth, sports and other organizations.
On Feb. 1 at 4:30 p.m., people will be able to buy tickets at stores such as Sidney Cold Beer and Wine, Deep Cove Market, BJs Bakery, Melinda’s Biscotti, Brentwood Bay Metro Liquor, the Roost, Russ Hay’s, Spelt’s Shell and the Military Book Store.
Ticket sales end at 1:30 p.m. every Monday, with winners chosen that night and announced in the Friday editions of the PNR.
Leitch said once the year-long campaign gets rolling, it stands to help up to 25 community groups directly, and many others through Rotary’s grants program.