Education Credit Union announces Interim President and Chief Executive Officer

Education Credit Union (ECU) announced Wednesday the departure of President and CEO, Eric Jenkins, citing a new opportunity that will allow him to return to his home state of Georgia.

“We are fortunate to have a tight-knit organization and leadership team, which has allowed the Credit Union to grow over $104 million in assets under Eric Jenkins’ direction,” said Chairperson of the Board, Daniel Coward. “And while we are all a bit saddened about the news of Eric’s departure, we are thrilled this move will take him closer to family. On behalf of the entire organization, we thank him for his leadership and we wish him the very best in his next chapter.”

The ECU Board has appointed Marcus Smith as interim CEO, and Smith will step in when Jenkins departs. Smith has served as CFO of ECU since 2014.

“Change is often hard but it is inevitable and we are losing part of our team. We wish Eric the best in his future endeavors; and we will continue to serve our members and love on our community!” Marcus Smith, interim CEO said.

Coward said the Board has the ultimate confidence in Smith and the leadership team Eric has put in place, and is confident the transition will be seamless for staff and for members alike. He said the organization is excited to continue on the path of growth and expanded service for the Credit Union’s members and employees in the Panhandle region under Smith’s leadership.

BSA announces new Chief Operating Officer

BSA Health System has named Jerome Brooks as the new chief operating officer (COO), effective July 25. He replaces Michael Cruz who was recently named BSA’s chief executive officer.

“Jerome brings extensive management experience in healthcare to his new role at BSA,’’ said BSA Chief Executive Officer Michael Cruz in a news release. “We look forward to Jerome’s contributions to our mission of providing qualityhealthcare in Christian love, service and dignity.’’

Jerome has more than 15 years in healthcare management and most recently served as the vice president of business development for HCA Rio Grande Regional Hospital in McAllen, Texas. Prior to that, Jerome also served as chief executive officer at Select Specialty Hospital in Dallas.

FirstBank Southwest promotes Will Miller as President of Commercial and Corporate Banking

FirstBank Southwest (FBSW) recently announced the promotion of Will Miller as President of Commercial and Corporate Banking. According to a news release, Miller has worked for FBSW for 27 years and has been the Amarillo Market President and Chief Lending Officer for the past 8 years. In his new position, he will supervise the Market Presidents in each of their markets.

Miller is very involved within the community, currently serving as president of the Golden Spread Council of the Boy Scouts of America, a board member for the Harrington Cancer and Health Foundation, Wesley Foundation, Downtown Women’s Center, and the Panhandle Plains Historical Society. In 2019, he was elected to the Independent Bankers Association of Texas (“IBAT”) board of directors, which is the largest state community banking association in the nation.

"If you or someone you know is interested in the newly opened position of Amarillo Market President," apply online at https://fbsw.com/ourstory/careers/ as mentioned in the release. "Exciting opportunities like this don’t come often."FBSW was founded in 1907 and family owned since 1934 and serves the families and businesses of the Texas Panhandle, DFW Metroplex, and Austin and San Antonio metro markets. For more, visit www.fbsw.com .

Brown & Fortunato, P.C. announces new attorney

Brown & Fortunato has announced John Byrom has joined the firm’s Corporate Group as a senior associate. John returns to B&F bringing almost eight years of oil and gas experience and will be available to assist clients with any oil and gas related litigation, transactions, or title work.

In addition to energy, John advises clients in many industries, including healthcare and real estate. He represents businesses in complex contract review, mergers, joint ventures, acquisitions, and divestitures. He is a member of the State Bar of Texas and Amarillo Area Bar Association, and currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Amarillo Area Young Lawyers Association. John is active in the Institute for Energy Law, where he was accepted into the fourth IEL Leadership Class.

John graduated cum laude from Texas Christian University with a BBA in Accounting and a minor in Energy Technology and Management. John received his JD from Texas Tech University School of Law, cum laude, and also earned his MBA from Texas Tech as part of a dual degree program.

Tyson Foods releases 2021 Sustainability Report

This week, Tyson Foods released its 2021 Sustainability Report, reflecting the company’s continued focus on supporting its people and communities, driving product responsibility and working to sustain natural resources, a news release says. Tyson Foods’ renewed commitment to responsibly sourcing affordable, accessible and nutritious food, as well as increasing team member benefits and investments, advances Formula to Feed the Future, the company’s framework to help build a food system that supports all people and the planet.

Highlights of Tyson Foods’ 2021 report include:

• Reimagining people and community impact: invested $500 million+ in wage increases and bonuses to our hourly workforce, including $50 million in one-time, thank-you bonuses delivered at the end of the year. Donated 16 million+ pounds of protein — valued at $36 million and equivalent to 64 million meals — to support food banks, pantries and hunger relief organizations. Achieved more than 96% COVID-19 vaccination rate in its U.S. workforce by the target of Nov. 1, 2021, as part of the company’s commitment to keep employees, their families and plant communities safe.

• Driving product responsibility from farm to table: Reached a $100 million+ total investment into Tyson Ventures to support startups and other companies focused on emerging proteins, new technologies for food and worker safety and sustainable production.

• Working toward sustaining natural resources and achieving net zero: Achieved Zero Waste to Landfill gold-level validation at six U.S. plants where 95-99% of certain waste streams has been diverted from landfills.

The sustainability report and accompanying information can be found on Tyson Foods’ Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Hub, which provides resources on all sustainability initiatives, including background information on key topics, ESG-related policies and statements and an ESG data center. For more, visit https://www.tysonfoods.com/.

JBS announces leadership transition plan

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — On July 22, JBS announced that current President of Operations – North America Andre Nogueira has made the decision to retire from his role effective Nov. 1. Nogueira will continue serving the company in an advisory capacity through the end of the year, at which time he will join the JBS USA advisory board, in addition to maintaining his role on the Pilgrim’s Board of Directors.

As part of the planned transition, Wesley Batista Filho, with more than 12 years of experience in the company, will assume the role of Global President of Operations, and will continue reporting to Gilberto Tomazoni, JBS Global CEO. Tim Schellpeper, CEO of JBS USA; Brent Eastwood, CEO of JBS Australia; and Gilberto Xando, CEO of JBS Brazil will report to Batista Filho.

JBS is a leading global food company providing diversified, high-quality food products for sale to customers in more than 100 countries on six continents, with over 250,000 team members around the world. This includes meat, poultry and seafood products, a portfolio of recognized brands and innovative premium foods.

USDA reminds livestock producers of available drought assistance

COLLEGE STATION – USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) reminds drought-impacted producers that they may be eligible for financial assistance through the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program (ELAP) to cover above normal expenses for hauling water or feed to livestock or hauling livestock to forage or grazing acres.

For eligible producers in qualifying counties, ELAP provides financial assistance for:

• the transportation of water to livestock;

• the above normal cost of mileage for transporting feed to livestock,

• the above normal cost of transporting livestock to forage/grazing acres. (Hauling livestock one-way, one haul per animal reimbursement and no payment for “empty miles.”)

Eligible livestock include cattle, bison, goats and sheep, among others, that are maintained for commercial use and located in a county where qualifying drought conditions occur. A county must have had D2 severe drought intensity on the U.S. Drought Monitor for eight consecutive weeks during the normal grazing period, or D3 or D4 drought intensity at any time during the normal grazing period. Producers must have risk in both eligible livestock and eligible grazing land in an eligible county to qualify for ELAP assistance.

More than 200 Texas counties have met the drought severity levels that trigger LFP eligibility for the 2022 program year. Additional disaster assistance information can be found on farmers.gov, including the Farmers.gov Drought Webpage, Disaster Assistance Discovery Tool, Disaster-at-a-Glance fact sheet, and Farm Loan Discovery Tool.

Win Dunkin’ prizes with the Soundtrack of Summer Sweepstakes

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To stay up to date on all things Dunkin’, sign up for our email news alerts at news.dunkindonuts.com/alerts.

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Business seen: Amarillo area business news and company developments