Business Digest: 2 become Spears shareholders

2 become Spears shareholders

Attorneys Cara E. Weiner and Cassie C. Rieder have been added as shareholders of the law firm of Spears, Moore, Rebman & Williams P.C.

Weiner is a native of Marietta, Ga., and a 2004 University of Georgia graduate. She received a law degree from Georgia State University in 2007, with a pro bono distinction for legal work while attending law school. She joined the firm in 2013 and works primarily in insurance and professional liability defense as well as in general corporate practice.

Rieder is a Humboldt, Tenn., native. She graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2006, and from the University of Tennessee School of Law in 2009. She has been an associate with the firm since 2009. She practices primarily in the areas of insurance defense and estate administration. She is married to William J. Rieder, also a shareholder in the firm.

Cash wins award from Bar Association

Harry R. Cash, a director with the law firm Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison, P.C. was recently presented the 2014 Chapter Appreciation Award by the Chattanooga chapter of the Federal Bar Association. The award is given annually for dedicated service to the chapter and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. The award was presented by Gary L. Henry, out-going president.

Cash joined Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison, P.C. in 1994. He focuses on representation of creditors in bankruptcy cases and in commercial litigation, personal injury and property law. Mr. Cash is a member of the Chattanooga, Tennessee and Federal Bar Associations, and the American Bankruptcy Law Institute. He has been chosen as a Fellow of the Chattanooga Bar Foundation. Mr. Cash received his J.D. degree from Memphis State University School of Law in 1981 and is a graduate of the University of the South. He and his wife, Leaba, live on Signal Mountain and have three children.

The mission of the Federal Bar Association is to advance the federal judicial system and promote effective legal practice before the federal courts and federal agencies.

Callahan, Pickett join Signature

Real estate professional Jeremy Callahan has joined Signature Brokers as a residential agent. Callahan is a native Chattanoogan and graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga where he majored in communications and marketing.

He spent several years in the real estate industry in Nashville, where he was a multi-million dollar producer and among the top 1 percent of industry professionals in the nation. Signature Brokers owner Gina Sakich said Callahan “brings a high level of enthusiasm to the team and has a solid track record of client satisfaction and proven results.”

Angie Pickett is a native Chattanoogan who grew up in Ooltewah and has been a North Chattanooga resident for more than 20 years. Pickett has undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Tennessee. She holds a Broker Price Opinion Certification. Prior to becoming a Realtor, she served as an educator.

Pickett’s practice focuses on executive relocation and first-time home buyers.

Vision opens hotel in Nashville

Vision announces Patty Martinez as general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Chattanooga/Downtown and Scott Shepard as general manager of the Hampton Inn & Suites Chattanooga/Downtown.

Prior to joining Vision, she worked in operations for Marriott International with the Courtyard and Residence Inn brands and as general manager for the Hilton Garden Inn in Boca Raton, Fla.

In her more than two years with Vision, Martinez has managed the award-winning Hampton Inn & Suites Chattanooga/Downtown that became the first hotel in Chattanooga to receive the Silver Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Certification. Her dedication to excellence is evident in many areas, including guest satisfaction and community service. Martinez regularly engages her associates in a variety of local volunteer and fund-raising projects.

Shepard has been a member of the Vision family for five years. Company officials say he has exemplified outstanding leadership and made significant contributions to the growth of the company.

After owning and managing his own company, Shepard entered the hospitality industry. In 2009, he brought his operations expertise to the Fairfield Inn & Suites Chattanooga/Lookout Mountain. Taking the role of general manager in 2011, he led the team in achieving outstanding guest service marks. At the end of 2012, the hotel was ranked in the top five percent of the brand in guest satisfaction.

In 2013, he assumed the role of opening general manager for the Hampton Inn Chattanooga West/Lookout Mountain.

George wins Fisheries award

Anna George, director of the Tennessee Aquarium Conservation Institute (TNACI), was recently recognized as the 2015 Outstanding Fisheries Scientist by the Tennessee chapter of the American Fisheries Society (TNAFS).

The award is presented annually to a TNAFS member who has exhibited exceptional contributions to the fisheries community in Tennessee and the Southeast.

Dr. George has been the director of TNACI since 2007, keeping the focus of the institute on freshwater conservation while expanding the scope of research and influence to include game fish like Southern Appalachian brook trout, nongame species like lake sturgeon and laurel dace as well as reptiles and freshwater invertebrates throughout the Southeast. Outreach, freshwater literacy and research are all key components of her leadership model.