Movers in South Florida

Chief credit officer at Republic Federal Bank

Michael Clutter has been named chief credit officer at Republic Federal Bank, based in Miami.

Vice president of commercial lending at Union Credit Bank

Jose Solsona has been hired as vice president of commercial lending at Union Credit Bank. Previously, he was vice president with The International Bank of Miami.

Vice president of communications for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Marc Fest has been appointed as vice president of communications for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. He succeeds Larry Meyer, who has become senior communications officer and remains secretary to the board of trustees.

Fest joined the foundation in March 2007 as director of communications.

Public relations firm Jim Dow Agency opens in Pembroke Pines

Jim Dow has started the Jim Dow Agency, a public relations firm based in Pembroke Pines that specializes in representing companies from the international trade services sector. He was most recently the editor of American Shipper’s Florida Caribbean Connection.

Law firm Thomas O. Wells opens in Coral Gables

After practicing six years as a shareholder with Berger Singerman, Tom Wells has started his own firm as Thomas O. Wells. It is located at 540 Biltmore Way in Coral Gables.

Board member at the Coral Gables Trust Company

Matthew S. Greer, chief executive officer of Carlisle Development Group, has joined the Board of Directors of the Coral Gables Trust Company.

Board member at the British-American Chamber of Commerce

Harold Lewis, a partner at the law firm of Pathman Lewis, has been elected to the board of directors of the British-American Chamber of Commerce.  He has been a member of the chamber for three years. 

The chamber serves the business interests between the UK and South Florida, focusing on business activities across the North Atlantic. In recent years, the chamber has broadened its role to include business development opportunities between the UK, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Chief information officer of Our Kids of Miami-Dade/Monroe

Patricia K. Smith has been appointed chief information officer of the non-profit organization Our Kids of Miami-Dade/Monroe. Previously, she was global vice president of IT at Stiefel Laboratories.

Vice presidents hired at Intercredit Bank

Intercredit Bank in Miami has hired two executives:

Vicente Mora has been hired as senior vice president of the retail banking division.

Paola Cardona has been hired as vice president, branch manager and business developer.

Executive vice president of Dade County Federal Credit Union

John D. Holt has been promoted to executive vice president of Dade County Federal Credit Union.  He previously served as the credit union’s senior vice president of member services and operations.

Executive vice president and chief retail banking executive at BankAtlantic

Patty Fernandez-Lefebvre has been promoted to executive vice president and chief retail banking executive at BankAtlantic, based in Fort Lauderdale.

Board member for local chapter of Staffing Management Association

Melyssa Bernstein has been named to the board of directors for the South Florida Chapter of Staffing Management Association. She will serve as secretary.

She currently works as an account executive at CKR Group, a recruitment marketing agency.

Administrative director for the Junior Orange Bowl Committee

Mark Pidal has been hired as administrative director for the Junior Orange Bowl Committee. He has served four months as interim director during most of the festival season.

Two shareholders at Carlton Fields

The law firm of Carlton Fields has elected two new shareholders to its Miami office. They are:

Cristina Alonso: Her areas of concentration are products liability, complex commercial litigation and personal injury defense.

Amy Lane Hurwitz: She is a member of the products liability and toxic tort practice group, and her practice focuses on the defense of clients in personal injury and wrongful death actions, as well as complex commercial disputes.

President of the Realtors Commercial Alliance of Greater Miami and the Beaches

Tom Byrne has been elected 2008 president of the Realtors Commercial Alliance of Greater Miami and the Beaches. He is with Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors' commercial division. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Realtors and the National Associations of Realtors.

Jose I. Juncadella was elected president-elect of the organization.

Mall manager for Coral Square Mall

John Baker has been hired as the mall manager for Coral Square Mall, which is managed by the The Simon Property Group. He was previously the mall manager for Northlake Mall in Atlanta.

Vice presidents at Ocean Bank

Elizabeth Padrón has been promoted to vice president in the commercial real estate department at Ocean Bank, based in Miami. She was formerly assistant vice president in the same department.

The bank also hired three officers. They are:

Pedro Max has been hired as senior vice president and director of special assets. Previously, he was with Citibank-Commercial Group, managing their classified asset department.

Paul Harrison has been hired as senior vice president and chief appraiser. Previously, he was an independent contractor for several firms, operated his own firm, Appraisal Advisory Associates, and acquired income properties as a partner with McGuirre Properties.

John Akiti has been hired as vice president and branch manager. Previously, he was a vice president and branch manager with National City.

Vice presidents at technology provider Solutions@MBAF

Mark Fenaughty, Harold Simon and Joel Boniske have been hired as vice presidents at Solutions@MBAF, a business technology provider in Miami and an affiliate of accounting firm Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra.

Chair of the board for Carrfour Supportive Housing

John Messer has been elected as the 2008 chairperson of the board of directors for Carrfour Supportive Housing. He is a partner with the Miami accounting firm of Grant Thornton.

Board members for the African American Success Foundation.

Shelia Dudley, senior manager of human resources compliance at Burger King Corp., and Irvin Minney, manager at Broward County Transportation, have joined the board of directors for the African American Success Foundation.

The following people were elected as Board Officers for 2008:

• Charles Webster as chair
• Tyson Jones as vice chair
• Shelia Dudley as secretary
• Rosetta Newton as treasurer

Senior vice presidents at TotalBank

TotalBank has hired two senior vice presidents:

Maria Melero has been hired as senior vice president and enterprise risk assessment manager.

Louis Perez has been hired as senior vice president and branch relationship manager.

Partners at the law firm Ruden McClosky

Hope W. Calhoun and Daniel W. Matlow have been named partners in the Fort Lauderdale law firm of Ruden McClosky.

 

Shareholder at law firm of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler

Carlos J. Reyes has been hired as a shareholder at the Fort Lauderdale law firm of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler. Previously, he was a shareholder at Greenberg Traurig.

Vice president and controller at Turnberry Bank

Gregory M. Bartice has been hired at Turnberry Bank as vice president and controller. Previously, he served as senior vice president and chief financial officer with Republic Federal Bank.

Vice president of commercial lending and business banking at Republic Federal Bank

Daisy Ramos has been hired as vice president of commercial lending and business banking at Republic Federal Bank in Miami.

Previously, she was as vice president and commercial lender with Commerce Bank, N.A.

Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Barry University

Karen A. Callaghan has been appointed as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Barry University. She has served on the Barry faculty for 19 years, beginning her career as assistant professor of Sociology, and most recently served as interim dean for the School of Arts and Sciences.

vice president and private banker at Citi Private Bank

Sandra Economacos has been hired at Citi Private Bank as vice president and private banker in the Miami office of the bank's Law Firm Group.

She was previously at UBS International in Miami. Before that, she spent two years as an international investment adviser with Citicorp Investment services in Miami.

Shareholders at law firm Gunster Yoakley

Gunster Yoakley has promoted attorneys from its Miami and Fort Lauderdale offices.

Andres Fernandez has been promoted to shareholder in the Miami office. He is a member of the firm’s Corporate Department as well as the Banking and Financial Services Group.

Gigi Tanghe has been promoted to shareholder in the Fort Lauderdale office. She concentrates her practice in real estate development.

Executive vice president of the Insurance Premium Finance Division at TotalBank

Thomas Baschoff has been hired as executive vice president of the Insurance Premium Finance Division at TotalBank. Most recently, he worked for XL Insurance.

Shareholder at Miami law firm Akerman Senterfitt

Akerman Senterfitt has hired Ronald B. Ravikoff to it's Miami firm as a shareholder.

Three shareholders at law firm Stearns Weaver Miller

The law firm of Stearns Weaver Miller has added three shareholders to it's Fort Lauderdale office.  The new attorneys are:

John M. Fox-Snider has been hired as a shareholder in the real estate department.

George A. Pincus has been hired as a shareholder in the real estate department.

Donald E. "Rocky" Thompson II has been hired as a shareholder in the corporate department.

Senior vice president and director of real estate services for Foram Group

Danet Linares has been named senior vice president and director of real estate services for Foram Group, developers of Downtown Miami’s Brickell Financial Centre.

President of the local chapter of National Association of Professional Organizers

Suzy Wilkoff, owner and president of Tasks Unlimited in Miami, has been elected president of the newly formed South Florida Chapter of The National Association of Professional Organizers.

Founded in 1985, association's mission is to develop, lead, and promote professional organizers and the organizing industry. NAPO South Florida's membership includes 27 organizers from Dade, Broward, Palm Beach and Martin counties.

Shareholder at law firm Fowler White Burnett

Attorney Erin Gaskin has been hired as a shareholder in the Miami office of law firm of Fowler White Burnett. She was most recently an associate at Ogden & Sullivan in Tampa.

Vice president of information technology for TransCapital Bank

Eric Rueger has been hired as vice president of information technology for TransCapital Bank, based in Hallandale Beach. Most recently he was with Kislak National Bank/Banco Popular N.A. in Miami Lakes.

Partner at the law firm of Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell

Eric McAliley has been promoted to partner at Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell in Miami. He joined the firm in 1999.

Vice president of commercial real estate lending at Republic Federal Bank

Susanne Leal has been hired as vice president of commercial real estate lending at Republic Federal Bank.

Previously, she was the vice president and commercial relationship manager at Banco Popular North America.

New community advisory board members for WLRN

The Community Advisory Board of WLRN Public Radio and Television for South Florida has elected new officers. They are: Jeanne Westphal, director of The Hospitality Institute in Miami, and Noreen Frye, director of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Miami.

Vice presidents and other management hires at Espirito Santo Bank

The following people have been hired at Espirito Santo Bank in Miami:

Carlos Calero as vice president of commercial real estate lending

Joseph Davis as assistant vice president of commercial real estate lending   










Valeria Trauer as a private banking officer for the Brazilian private banking team

Chief operating officer of Ocean Bank

Terry J. Curry has been promoted to chief operating officer of Ocean Bank in Miami. He has been serving as executive vice president and chief credit officer since 1999, and joined Ocean Bank in 1989.

Senior vice president at Coral Gables Trust Company

Gene C. Witherspoon has been appointed as senior vice president of business development at Coral Gables Trust Company. Previously, he was a partner with Moya Insurance Group.

Executive vice president and regional president at HSBC Bank USA

Richard Laviña has been appointed as executive vice president and regional president of the  commercial banking business for the Southeast United States for HSBC Bank USA, N.A. He is based in Miami.

Board member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County.

Gregory A. Haile, an attorney with the Florida business law firm Berger Singerman, has joined the board of directors of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Broward County.

Chair of the board of directors for Health Foundation of South Florida

Susan Kelley, founder and chief executive officer of marketing, advertising and public relations agency Kelley Swofford Roy, has been elected as the first chairwoman of the board of directors for Health Foundation of South Florida.

Chair for The Doral Business Council

Nubielena Medina, Principal of NMG Consulting, has been elected as the 2008 chairperson for the Doral Business Council. At the same time, City of Doral Mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez appointed her to his first International Business Affairs Advisory Board.

Financial advisory firm WTAS opens in Fort Lauderdale

WTAS, a consulting firm that provides financial advisory services, has opened a new location in Fort Lauderdale at 401 East Las Olas Blvd., Suite 1400.

Partners at Miami law firm Jackson Lewis

The law firm of Jackson Lewis has named two partners:

Thomas Mead Santoro has been named a partner in the Miami office.

Pedro J. Torres-Díaz has also been named a partner in the Miami office.

Chair of the accounting and auditing section for the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants

Marc A. Berenfeld, a senior partner of the Coral Gables accounting firm Berenfeld Spritzer Shechter & Sheer, has been named chair of the accounting and auditing section for the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Partners at Kluger Peretz Kaplan & Berlin

The law firm of Kluger Peretz Kaplan & Berlin has appointed two attorneys as partners.

Dee Dee Fischer has been named a partner, working in the commercial litigation practice group.

William R. Trueba Jr. as been named a partner, working in the intellectual property law practice group.

Chair of Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida

Benjamine Reid, a shareholder of Carlton Fields, has been appointed chair of Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida. He previously served as vice chair.

Chief financial officer and comptroller for Union Credit Bank

Julio R. Martinez has been hired as chief financial officer and comptroller for Union Credit Bank in Miami.

Previously, he was senior vice president and CFO with BAC Florida Bank.

Vice president and controller for CBIZ Accounting, Tax & Advisory Services

Sean L. Greene has been hired as vice president and controller for the Florida offices of CBIZ Accounting, Tax & Advisory Services.

Previously, he was a director in the internal audit practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Vice president and director of design at LEO A DALY

Ricardo J. Fernández has been hired as vice president and director of design at the Miami office of LEO A DALY, an architecture, planning, engineering, interior design and program management firm.

Board members at The Broward Community College Foundation

The Broward Community College Foundation has named six people to its board of directors.  They include:

• Marybeth Bosko, shareholder at Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart
• Joel Kamphuis, financial advisor at Gunn Allen Financial
• Anne "Annie" Kessler, who serves on the board of directors for the Broward General Children’s Cancer Hospital
• Marsha Levy, who serves on the boards of directors for STARS Academy at BCC, HANDY, Jack & Jill Children’s Center, Broward Beautiful, and the Florida Highway Beautification Council
• Robert Nicholson, attorney at Broad and Cassel Attorneys at Law
• Jorge Antonio Seminario, vice president and financial advisor at Morgan Stanley

Board of trustees members for local chapter of Leukemia & Lymphoma Society

The Southern Florida Chapter of The Leukemia &