Compiled by Christina Hur
ACCOUNTING
Irvine-based Haskell & White LLP, an accounting, auditing and tax consulting firm, promoted nine people to senior- and management-level positions: Michelle McDuffie and Dan O’Connor as principals in the tax department; Eric Warbrick as senior manager in tax; Ben Wamsley as manager in tax; Ryan Woodhouse as manager in tax; Eugene Kim as senior manager in tax; Jenny Lee as senior manager in tax; Merit Zuniga as senior manager in tax; and Lee Chang as senior manager in audit and business advisory services.
BANKING
Orange County’s Credit Union promoted three people and hired one. Mary Ann Felix was promoted to assistant vice president of sales and service. Dawn Danielson was promoted to assistant vice president of vendor management and branch audits. Mach Vu was promoted to technology manager. Steven Chaker joined the credit union as vice president of commercial lending and Small Business Administration loans.
EDUCATION
Laguna College of Art & Design in Laguna Beach hired three professors and one staff member: Sandy Appleoff in the illustration department; Grant Hier in the English writing and critical reasoning program; Matt Frantz in graphic design; and Robin Fuld as a career development and placement officer. Appleoff previously taught at Kansas City Art Institute. Hier has been an adjunct teacher at the college since 1998. Frantz specializes in digital videography and digital media.
HEALTHCARE
John Abeles joined the scientific advisory board of CombiMatrix Group, the biotechnology unit of Newport Beach-based Acacia Research Corp. Abeles practiced medicine in London before working as senior medical executive with Pfizer Inc., Sterling Drug and Revlon Inc.’s healthcare unit.
Hoag Hospital Foundation, which raises money for Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian in Newport Beach, appointed Floyd Harmon as vice president and chief operating officer. Previously, Harmon served as executive director of development for the University of California, Irvine. He has 25 years of experience in private fund raising and institutional management.
HOTEL
Frank Torrez was appointed general manager for the Holiday Inn Express Anaheim Disney Maingate. Before, Torrez served in various operational roles including as general manager and as customer support manager.
LAW
Tymothy MacLeod joined Jackson DeMarco Tidus Peckenpaugh, a real estate and corporate law firm based in Irvine. MacLeod previously was a sole practitioner in San Francisco, and was with the Silicon Valley firm Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich (now DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary) and the Los Angeles litigation firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart Oliver & Hedges.
MARKETING
Epic Brand Communications, a healthcare marketing and brand strategy firm based in Aliso Viejo, named Christine French project manager. French previously served as marketing and communications manager for the cellular analysis division of Fullerton’s Beckman Coulter Inc.
NONPROFIT
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Capistrano Valley appointed four members to its board: Michael Betzler, Bill Cole, Terry O’Shea and Cathy Van der Ahe.
REAL ESTATE
Santa Ana-based First American Corp., a title insurer and business data company, named Paul Hammann as senior vice president and Christopher Del Moral-Niles as treasurer and as an officer. Hammann previously served as vice president, underwriting director and senior underwriting counsel. Del Moral-Niles previously served as senior vice president and director of liability management for Union Bank of California NA.
Tim Sipowicz was hired as portfolio manager at Australia’s Macquarie Bank Ltd.’s Irvine office. Sipowicz was with Brea-based Fremont Investment & Loan’s commercial real estate group.
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