Hamra Enterprises opens new Wendy’s by MSU campus
Springfield-based Hamra Enterprises opened its new Wendy’s location in Springfield near the Missouri State University campus.
The new restaurant, which features the latest digital features and is located at 525 S. National Ave., is Hamra’s eighth Wendy’s in Springfield and 40th in Missouri. The company currently operates 97 Wendy’s restaurants across five states.
The “Global Next Gen” restaurant design includes a kitchen engineered for speed and efficiency and a building optimized to reflect digital ordering preferences. It also includes dedicated mobile and delivery pick-up points and an enhanced drive-thru design.
Springfield Chamber announces 2025 Board of Directors
At its January board of directors meeting, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce will install new members, as well as its slate of officers for 2025.
The following board members will serve on the Chamber’s Executive Committee in 2025:
- Chairman: Bob Helm, Elliott, Robinson & Company, LLP CPAs
- Chairman-Elect: Jessica Harmison-Olson, Maxon Fine Jewelry
- Treasurer: Sean Balisle, KPM CPAs & Advisors
- Assistant Treasurer: Linda Daugherty, Academy of Hair Design & BeVelle Barber
- Vice Chair, Economic Development: Jason England, Arvest Bank
- Vice Chair, Workforce Development: Max Buetow, CoxHealth
- Vice Chair, Public Affairs: Elizabeth Wente, SRC Holdings Corp.
- Vice Chair, Membership: Dr. Spencer Harris, Mostly Serious, Habitat Communication & Culture
New board members serving three-year terms are:
- John Myers, Mercy Hospital Springfield Communities
- Aaron Burden, The French’s Food Company
- Dwayne Fulk, City Utilities
- Laura Gates, TransLand
- Stephanie Ireland, Ireland Architects
- Nicole Jarratt, Revel Advertising
- Marshall Kinne, Med-Pay, Inc.
OMB Bank promotes Beazley and Daniel
OMB Bank announced the recent promotions of Travis Beazley to senior vice president and director of SBA lending and Sarah Daniel to senior vice president, government guaranty specialist.
Beazley joined OMB in 2023 as senior vice president, loan officer, and has specialized in Small Business Administration lending for much of his 15 year banking career. In his new role, Beazley will spearhead the strategic development of the bank’s SBA lending initiatives. He now serves as the primary guide for the bank’s lenders while overseeing the SBA loan application process and ensuring seamless collaboration with the bank’s Government Guaranty Lending department to support the filing, processing and funding of loans.
Daniel joined OMB in 2020 as a government guaranty specialist and has been instrumental in helping the bank achieve Preferred Lender status with the SBA. In her role, Daniel helps lead the bank’s support efforts for loan officers and local business owners navigating the complexities of government-backed loan programs, ensuring a smooth process for securing financing through the SBA and other guaranty options.
Smart Chicken donates 5,200 pounds of chicken Ozarks Food Harvest
Ozarks Food Harvest received 5,200 pounds of chicken this holiday season, thanks to Smart Chicken’s 22nd annual Smart Giving Holiday Challenge campaign. The Food Bank will distribute the chicken to its network of 270 faith-based and community charities to meet the increased demand for food in southwest Missouri.
Through its Smart Giving Holiday Challenge, Smart Chicken donates 10% of poultry purchased at participating retailers in November to Ozarks Food Harvest. Participating retailers include Apple Market, Country Mart, Food 4 Less, G&W Foods, Harter House, Price Cutter, Town & Country and Woods Supermarket. Since 2004, Ozarks Food Harvest has received more than 161,000 pounds of poultry from Smart Chicken.
Ozarks Food Harvest reports more families continue to seek food assistance from its network of 270 partners than during the height of the pandemic. The Food Bank’s network now serves an average of 70,000 individuals each month — nearly 20,000 more than during the peak of the COVID-19 crisis.
5 Springfield Mediacom employees earn top company awards
Five employees based out of Springfield were among 196 Mediacom Communications employees recognized with the company’s top performance rankings over the past year.
Heather Engelhardt earned the highest marks in service performance over the past year, resulting in a National Gold-level OnMedia Operations Employee of The Year award. She has been employed by Mediacom for six years and was one of 40 employees to earn a National Gold-level award.
Thomas St. John has been a Mediacom employee for 27 years and was recognized as the Mediacom Business Sales Support Employee of the Year.
Thomas Lint has been employed by Mediacom for seven years and was recognized as “Lead of the Year.” They were two of 35 employees companywide to earn a National Silver-level award for exemplary service to business customers in 2024.
Melissa Henderson earned the highest marks in service performance over the past year and was recognized as the Area Operations Employee of the Year. She has been employed by Mediacom for 10 years.
Nicole Fienhold has been a Mediacom employee for nine years and was recognized with the Employees Choice Award. She was one of 39 employees nationwide to earn a Call Center-level award for exemplary customer service in 2024.
SRC graduates 23 from leadership academy
The SRC family of businesses announced the graduation of 23 of its employee-owners from its leadership development academy in December. The graduates represented nine different SRC facilities from three states: Missouri, Kentucky, and Illinois.
The program, which involves more than 100 hours of “learn-it-do-it” training, is designed to give aspiring leaders new leadership skills and more comprehensive knowledge of The Great Game of Business and SRC’s transparent, owner-driven culture.
The graduates include Tim Anderson, Kristin Arber, Katelyn Ashcraft, Trevor Baumgartner, Jimmy Cooper, Tim Cypret, Alicia Del Toro, Michael Eimer, Drew Englert, Blake Ewing, Easton Flaugh, Luis Gonzalez, Randy Harshberger, Tyler Hoskins, Adam Kuiken, Connor Lee, John Nickle, Tyler Rasmussen, Tina Storey, Daniela Thornton, Heather Watson, Charles Wilhere, and Christian Winfield.
Patrol’s Troop D announces promotions
The Missouri State Highway Patrol announced several promotions in Springfield’s Troop D effective Jan. 1.
Corporal James “Ricky” Rorie has been promoted to the rank of sergeant and designated zone supervisor of Zone 6, serving Dade and Lawrence counties. Ricky was appointed to the Patrol on July 1, 2008, as a member of the 88th Recruit Class. Rorie is a native of Republic. He graduated from Republic High School in 2004.Trooper Joshua S. Baird has been promoted to the rank of corporal and designated as assistant zone supervisor of Zone 13, serving Newton and McDonald counties. Josh was appointed to the Patrol on January 2, 2017, as a member of the 104th Recruit Class. Baird is a native of Lamar and graduated from Lamar High School in 2013.Trooper Jason W. Philpott has been promoted to the rank of corporal and designated as assistant zone supervisor of Zone 10, serving Webster County. Jason was appointed to the Patrol on July 1, 2009, as a member of the 90th Recruit Class. Philpott is a native of Ava and graduated from Ava High School in 2005. In 2009, he earned his undergraduate degree from Drury University in Springfield.
Central Bank adds to training and development team
Central Bank announced the hiring of a new professional development manager and promotion of another staff member to training coordinator.
Elaina O’Neal joins the Central Bank team as its new professional development manager. With experience as a trainer at companies including Paddio and Veterans United Home Loans, she will plan, develop, and implement bank training and development programs to serve the Ozarks team. This training will encompass a diverse variety of content ranging from new employee onboarding to leadership skills training. O’Neal will lead the training team, providing ongoing training of techniques that ensure all staff are sales and service focused.
Terra Lenox, meanwhile, has been promoted to training coordinator. A graduate of Southwest Baptist University, Lenox has a BS in Education and spent four years teaching before transitioning into a role as floating teller for Central Bank in 2020. Over the past several years, she has continued to grow into new roles from full-time teller to customer service representative. In her new position, Lenox will facilitate technical training for customer service representatives and tellers as well as the facilitation of professional development trainings for staff down the road.