LANDIS — LaFave’s Construction Inc. recently honored six employees for exemplary service of 10 or more years.
Patricia LaFave, one of the original employees, has served as corporate secretary for 30 years.
Jeff Deason, retrofit superintendent, has been with the company for 20 years. Deason manages all aspects of retrofit metal projects and is responsible for project quality, efficiency, safety and timeliness.
Doug Linker, another 20-year employee, serves as job supervisor. He handles on-site management of general construction projects and industrial maintenance and supervises projects from start to finish.
Ronnie Marshall, retrofit roof supervisor, has 10 years on the job. He serves as the on-site retrofit roofing supervisor and is responsible for managing material deliveries, guaranteeing quality of work and supervising the project.
Adrian “Joseph” LaFave was honored for his 10 years as metal shop foreman at LaFave’s fabricating metal accessories and trim for jobs.
Sandy Gobble, administrative assistant, has worked for 10 years as the main support person for corporate management. She handles all aspects of office and job-related issues and in-house paperwork.
“We are proud to acknowledge the exemplary work and long-term dedication of Patricia, Jeff, Doug, Ronnie, Joseph and Sandy,” said Joe LaFave, president of LaFave’s Construction. “Their loyalty to LaFave’s over the last 30 years has helped us grow into one of the most well respected commercial construction companies in the great state of North Carolina.”
LaFave’s Construction has worked within the commercial and industrial construction industry since 1982. The company handles all aspects of commercial construction including design build, maintenance and repair work, construction management, renovation and retrofit roofing throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Visit www.lafavesconstruction.com to learn more.
Three ways to win in summer contest
The next 11 weeks of the “Get Real, Go Real Summer Giveaway” for Salisbury-Rowan County will make the summer even sweeter.
You have three ways to win:
• Visit GetRealGoReal.com to register to win one of three Salisbury-Rowan County Summer Getaway Prize Packages valued up to $2,000. They include overnight accommodations, restaurant gift cards, attraction passes and a free iPad 3.
• Enter the “Pin It. Win It” photo contest on Pinterest for chance to win a $50 Visa Gift Card by sharing your best Salisbury-Rowan County photos.
• Test your knowledge with a little Salisbury-Rowan County trivia on Facebook to win a $25 gift card to a local restaurant or attraction.
For more information, visit GetRealGoReal.com or call 704-638-3100.
Kinzey joins effort to help nonprofits
SALISBURY — The Kinzey Company has joined A Billion + Change, a national campaign to mobilize billions of dollars in skills-based and pro bono volunteer services to build the capacity of nonprofit organizations.
In less than a year, more than 160 companies, from sole proprietorships to those in the Fortune 500, have pledged to create or expand volunteer programs in their workplace. These pledges reflect a combined total of nearly $1.8 billion and at least 11.5 million hours of time and talent to nonprofits.
“The Kinzey Company has always been dedicated to supporting educational endeavors and is committed to the belief that education and training will improve the work force of tomorrow. By helping individuals enhance their workplace skills and increase their knowledge base, companies will have a larger talent pool from which to draw, ultimately making U.S. business more competitive,” said Ruth Kinzey, president of the Kinzey Company.
Electric train official coming to Spencer
SPENCER — In conjunction with the unveiling of Norfolk Southern’s 20 engine Heritage fleet on July 3 and 4 in Spencer, Mike Wolf, president of M.T.H. Electric Trains, will visit the Little Choo Choo Shop.
Wolf will appear from 3 to 5 p.m. July 3 to discuss the company’s upcoming products. The Little Choo Choo Shop is an M.T.H. authorized retailer.
Since Wolf founded the electric train company in 1980, it has become one of the largest and most diverse manufacturers of model trains in the United States.
Little Choo Choo Shop was founded on Aug. 1, 1989, by Ann and Steve Surratt to serve the model railroad community. The shop is located at 500 S. Salisbury Ave., directly across from the N.C. Transportation Museum.
Stover earns Avon scholarship
SALISBURY — The Avon Foundation for Women has awarded Kelsey Stover of Salisbury with a 2012 Avon Representative Scholarship.
The scholarship is designed to assist Avon sales representatives who are enrolled in college or graduate school to advance their careers. The foundation annually awards up to 100 scholarship awards of either $1,500 or $2,500.
“The Avon Foundation for Women understands it is important for all Avon sales representatives to have the opportunity to continue their education to help pave the way to their future economic advancement,” President Carol Kurzig said.
Carolina Farm Credit’s food drive, photo contest
Carolina Farm Credit is holding a food drive during July and August, with donations going to local food banks.
Local donations can be made at the Carolina Farm Credit office at 2810 Statesville Blvd. in Salisbury. Donations will go to Rowan Helping Ministries.
The food drive is in association with the N.C. Co-Op Council’s Early Harvest food drive. Members of Carolina Farm Credit and the community can make monetary or non-perishable food donations at each of the 36 service centers throughout western North Carolina.
As part of the food drive, Carolina Farm Credit employees and Board members recently collected more than $1,090 and 300 pounds of food at their annual Employee Appreciation Day held at Jellystone Park. The donations were made to the Manna Food Bank of Asheville.
• Voting to select the top three photos for the 2013 Carolina Farm Credit Calendar Photo Contest is now open to the public at www.carolinafarmcredit. com.
More than 330 photos were submitted by Carolina Farm Credit members, employees, and friends for the contest. The 33 finalists are displayed on the Carolina Farm Credit website. Visitors will be able to vote once a day for their three favorite pictures through July 18. The three photos with the most votes will be awarded first, second and third place, and receive cash prizes. The additional calendar photos will be selected from the remaining finalists.This is the third year that the public has been able to vote for the Carolina Farm Credit photo contest finalists online.
• Carolina Farm Credit is now accepting applications for the fourth class of an e-learning financial and business planning course called Ag Biz Planner. The course is available to farm families and is funded through a grant from the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission.
The curriculum includes financial and business planning, budgeting and other money matters essential to a farm’s success. The online training will be offered statewide through North Carolina’s three Farm Credit associations (Carolina Farm Credit, Ag Carolina Financial, and Cape Fear Farm Credit).
This program is funded by a $51, 775 grant from the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission. The N.C. General Assembly established the commission in 2000 to help tobacco farmers, farm workers and related businesses. Funding comes from money paid by cigarette manufacturers in the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement.
Farm Credit’s e-learning program targets young, beginning, small and minority farmers throughout the state.
The program will begin in October and run through March 2013. Applications, a course outline, program information and testimonials from past participants are available at www.CarolinaFarmCredit.com. Applications will be accepted through Sept. 1.
Carolina Farm Credit is a farmer-owned cooperative providing financing to farmers and agricultural-related businesses.
Among its service centers are ones in Albemarle, Concord, Lexington, Mocksville, Salisbury and Statesville.
Directors for Carolina Farm Credit include L. Kim Starnes of Salisbury.
Concord Realtor makes it into top 1,000 in U.S.
CONCORD — Jason Benham, co-founder of Benham Real Estate Group and Benham Companies in Concord, has been named the third most productive realtor in the United States by the Wall Street Journal and Real Trends Inc.
The list is based upon the number of closed transactions for 2011. Benham had 970 closings.
“For me to take credit for an award like this would be like a shovel taking credit for digging a hole,” Benham said. “I’m simply the tool God used to accomplish the task.”
He and his twin brother David Benham founded the real estate company in 2003 and now have nearly 100 affiliate offices across the United States. The firm contracts with several banks to bring foreclosed properties up to marketable condition and to act as the seller’s agent.
In 1998, Jason Benham was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles and David Benham was drafted by the Boston Red Sox. After college and four years in minor league baseball, the two reunited to start Benham Real Estate.
Learn more at www.benhamcompanies.com .
Walker Marketing earns web health award
CONCORD — Walker Marketing has been recognized for the third straight year by the national Web Health Awards, earning a Bronze Award for the Liberty HomeCare & Hospice Services website.
The Web Health Awards are the leading web awards for the health care industry. The Web Health Awards received more than 600 entries. Walker Marketing was previously honored for the Active Day and VNA of Western Pennsylvania websites.
“Winning a national Web Health Award three years in a row is a testament to our commitment to adapting in an ever-changing digital world,” Walker Marketing President and CEO Gary Walker said. “Caregivers are turning to the Internet for information in record numbers, and we’ve worked with clients to ensure they can easily find what they need. The Web Health Awards are an excellent barometer to reflect that.”
The Liberty website, launched in September, includes interactive blogs and surveys, videos, referral forms and needs assessment surveys. The website brought in unprecedented new referrals for Liberty, and was part of an integrated campaign that was awarded a Silver InSpire award from the N.C. chapter of the Public Relations Society of America earlier this year.
The Web Health Awards features the top healthcare websites in the nation, including babycenter.com and the Mayo Clinic.
Two from Snippers Salonattend training event
Cindi and Whitley Stevens recently attended the Premiere Orlando International Beauty Event, which offers the most comprehensive education offering worldwide.
Cindi experienced the beauty and hair part of the event. Michael O’Rourke of Rock your Hair and his team gave new hair cuts.
Whitley attended the DaySpa conference, where she took a class with Eminence Organic Skin Care on the newest trends in natural skin care. She learned about the age corrective collagen boosting collection with natural retinol.
Snippers also has a new line of mineral cosmetic called YoungBlood that was developed by paramedical esthetician for a plastic surgeon.
Snippers is at 830 Faith Road, Salisbury and can be reached at 704-431-4226
Carolina Courts Concord holds grand opening
Carolina Courts Concord held a grand opening for its new 48,000-square-foot facility Saturday.
The gym is at 24 SW Spring St. in Concord.
Call 704-935-5501 for more information.
Submit information about new businesses, honors and management promotions to bizbriefs@salisburypost.com. Include a daytime phone number.
CommunityOne Bank has named Kim Graham as Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Program Officer.
CommunityOne and Bank of Granite are the two historic bank subsidiaries of FNB United Corp. of Asheboro, North Carolina. As CRA Program Officer, Graham will serve as an officer of both CommunityOne and Bank of Granite and will oversee the banks’ community relations efforts and will develop programs to help meet the credit needs of the communities the banks serve, including low and moderate income neighborhoods.
“We are excited to welcome Kim to CommunityOne during such an exciting time for our organization,” commented Karen Warlick, Sales, Service and Marketing Executive for CommunityOne. “As a community bank, we are dedicated to the people and communities that we serve and Kim’s knowledge and experience will help solidify our position as an involved business leader in each of our communities.”
Graham joins the bank with more than 25 years of banking experience in North Carolina and brings a wealth of knowledge in the areas of CRA compliance, business development, charitable giving, real estate finance, and credit analysis. She received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte and is a graduate of the Leadership Charlotte and American Leadership Forum Fellow programs. Graham is actively involved in the Charlotte community and serves as a board member for the North Carolina Housing Coalition and the Friendship Community Development Corporation. She was a 2011 recipient of the Urban League of Central Carolinas’ Whitney M. Young, Jr. Award for her leadership and philanthropic endeavors.
Founded in 1907, CommunityOne operates 45 branches in 38 communities throughout central, southern and western North Carolina. Founded in 1906, Bank of Granite operates 18 branches in western North Carolina. Through these two banking subsidiaries, FNB United Corp. offers a full range of consumer, mortgage and business banking services, including loan, deposit, cash management, wealth management and online banking services. CommunityOne Bank, N.A. and Bank of Granite are equal housing lenders and members of the FDIC.