Jonathan Farmer, former founding member of Farmer Purcell White & Lassiter, has joined Bone McAllester Norton PLLC, bringing 20 years of experience in federal and state criminal litigation and investigations, and commercial and tort litigation.

In his new role, Farmer will concentrate his practice on criminal defense and government investigations, personal injury, wrongful death and civil litigation.

Before joining Bone McAllester Norton, Farmer maintained a federal criminal defense practice representing clients charged or investigated by the federal government or its agencies with criminal activity. Farmer has successfully handled multiple complex white-collar cases, public corruption matters, fraud cases, drug-related offenses, and a variety of other federal felonies and misdemeanors.

Farmer is an active member of the American, Tennessee and Nashville bar associations and the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys. He is a regular lecturer at Vanderbilt University School of Law’s Trial Advocacy program and has written and presented Continuing Legal Education courses to other attorneys.

BNA president, CEO elected TAACA president

Nashville International Airport President and CEO Douglas E. Kreulen has been elected president of the Tennessee Association of Air Carrier Airports by a vote of member airports.

TAACA is the trade association for the five commercial airports in Tennessee, Nashville International, Memphis International Airport, Knoxville’s McGhee Tyson Airport, Chattanooga Airport and Tri-Cities Airport. The organization advocates for airport interests and priorities, particularly as they relate to state government. Kreulen succeeds Patrick Wilson, president of the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority.

Other officers elected by TAACA include Wilson as vice president and Terry Hart, president and CEO of the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority, as treasurer.

Kreulen joined the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority in 2012 and was named president and CEO in December 2017 after previously serving in an interim role. He previously served as chief operating officer for both Nashville International and John C. Tune airports. Before starting his tenure at BNA, Kreulen served four years as director of operations for Huntsville International Airport.

Before joining the commercial aviation sector, Kreulen served in the United States Air Force for 27 years. He is a graduate of National War College with a master’s in national security strategy, Troy University with a master’s in personnel management and Auburn University with a degree in laboratory technology.

First Farmers and Merchants promotes 4

First Farmers and Merchants Bank – a community bank serving Middle Tennessee with 22 banking locations in seven counties – has promoted four long-term leaders. Collectively the four have more than 70 years of experience with First Farmers.

Paul Butts Jr. has been promoted to executive vice president of branch operations, an expansion of his previous role as senior executive of branch operations. In this position, Butts oversees the general and administrative operations of all 22 First Farmers branches. He was hired as First Farmers’ first vice president and branch administrator and has served the institution for more than 34 years.

Sam Wantland has been named general counsel and special assets officer, previously serving as corporate counsel and special assets officer. He began working at First Farmers in 2006 as a relief teller and has since held a variety of roles within the organization. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee and earned his law degree from the Nashville School of Law. Wantland was recently selected to participate in the Tennessee Bar Association’s 2020 Leadership Law program.

Jill Giles has been appointed to chief accounting officer from controller. Giles leads the accounting department and manages its day-to-day operations. She joined First Farmers in 2013 and is a licensed CPA with a master’s degree in accountancy. Giles was awarded the 2018 First Farmers Innovation Award in recognition of her leadership in implementing more efficient accounts payable solutions for the bank.

Matthew Patterson has been promoted to credit officer and has served in various roles with the bank since 2000. He is responsible for all functions of credit administration, including managing and directing the bank’s loan portfolio and supervision of all credit-related aspects of the bank. Patterson earned his degree in finance from Middle Tennessee State University and was an honor graduate from The Southeastern School of Banking.

Dowdle Construction adds 3 superintendents

Randall Cook, Russell Hess and Jim Mears have joined Dowdle Construction Group as superintendents. They are responsible for daily scheduling, safety and quality control of projects from the start of construction through completion.

Cook has been in the construction industry for 20 years, working on both ground-up and major renovation projects. He previously served as a superintendent for Carter Group and Holladay Construction. He is OSHA 30 certified.

Hess was previously a superintendent at Rock City Construction LLC. A Hermitage native, he is a 2001 graduate of Cumberland University with a B.A. in fine arts. He is OSHA 30 certified, First Aid/CPR certified and has scaffold regulation training for suspended and supported scaffolds.

Mears is a ground-up construction specialist with a focus on dental/medical buildout and large-scale commercial construction. He previously worked as a supervisor at Shaub Construction and Tri-Star Construction. Mears is OSHA 30 certified, first aid/life safety certified, and Class 1 TDEC certified.

Zsamboky named to lead nursing school program

Marci Zsamboky, DNP, RN, PMHNP/CNS-BC, has been named academic director of the psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner (Lifespan) specialty at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing.

The Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner specialty is one of the school’s most competitive programs and is ranked No. 2 in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report in its 2020 Best Grad Schools of Nursing.

Zsamboky holds degrees from Vanderbilt University, the University of Pittsburgh and Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Also at VUMC, Whitney Gannon, MSN, MS, RN, APRN, has been named to the new position of director of quality and education for the Vanderbilt Extracorporeal Life Support Program.

She will oversee efforts to expand access to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, a life-sustaining mechanical pump that temporarily takes over for the heart and lungs of critically ill patients, allowing them to rest and recover.

MP&F adds 4 new team members

MP&F Strategic Communications has welcomed four new staff members to support the agency’s client, marketing and data analytics, creative and administrative services.

Jennifer Lanier has joined MP&F as a marketing and integrations strategist with more than 20 years of experience in email and direct marketing, analytics and project management.

Before joining MP&F, Lanier worked at Brand Wise Collective and Alcott Marketing Science. She holds a degree in finance and an MBA from Middle Tennessee State University.

Julia Stough has joined MP&F as an assistant account executive. She previously worked as an account executive for Tandem Public Relations in Louisville, where her work covered several industries including nonprofit, hospitality and the performing arts.

Stough is a graduate of Miami University with a degree in professional writing and a minor in marketing.

Bailey Parrish, a junior graphic designer, is a graduate of Spring Hill College where she majored in graphic design.

Before joining MP&F, Parrish was an intern in the MP&F creative services department.

Danette Thurman, a Nashville native, has 40 years of accounting experience in a variety of industries, including construction, architecture, health care and property management. Before joining MP&F as an accounting assistant, Thurman spent eight years with JLL, Inc., a property management company based in Chicago.