Jan 07, 2026

Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories

Heleniak

Pullman-based Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories (SEL) has promoted Frank Heleniak to vice president of sales and customer service. In his new role, Heleniak will lead the sales and customer service strategy for SEL across the U.S. and Canada, focusing on growth, innovation and customer experiences.

Heleniak began his career at SEL in 2014 as an application engineering intern. Over the years, he has served in a variety of roles of increasing responsibility, including application engineer, team lead, regional technical manager and his most recent role as director of sales and customer service for the northeast region.

Heleniak holds a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering and physics from Widener University and a Master of Science in electrical engineering from Villanova University. He is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and a licensed professional engineer in power systems in the state of Pennsylvania. He has served as a volunteer firefighter since 2005 for the Plymouth Fire Company in Plymouth Township, Pennsylvania. He currently serves as the department's deputy fire chief.

Heleniak will continue to be based in the SEL office in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

SEL, a 100% employee-owned company headquartered in Pullman, invents, designs and builds digital products and systems to protect power grids around the world. The employee-owned company was founded in 1984 and recently expanded into medical device production.

Bellevue College

Jazmyn Clark

Bellevue College announced that Jazmyn Clark, Smart Justice Policy program director at the ACLU of Washington, will be the keynote speaker of the college's annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. event. Clark leads statewide efforts to reduce mass incarceration, end the criminalization of poverty, and dismantle systems that perpetuate racial inequity.

The event, “Beloved Community: Building One Hope, One Humanity,” takes place Wednesday, Jan. 14, in the Gary Locke Ballroom (U Building) and is free and open to the public. The program begins at noon with a light lunch, followed by welcome remarks from Dr. David May, president of Bellevue College. The keynote address is scheduled from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. The program aims to reflect Bellevue College's ongoing commitment to access, equity, and student success, continuing the college's tradition of observing Martin Luther King Jr. Day through education, dialogue, and community engagement.

Lasher

Seattle law firm Lasher elevated Harman Bual, Will Reingold, Jr., and Amanda Whitely to principals of the firm. Bual is a business litigation attorney assisting clients with contract, corporate, bankruptcy, intellectual property and real estate matters. Reingold, Jr. focuses his practices on family law and appeals, where he helps clients navigate the legal and personal complexities of divorce and related family-law issues. Whitely maintains a broad business-focused practice that includes corporate & business law, estate planning, probate, private wealth services, and estate and gift tax law. She advises clients on business succession, tax planning, and advanced estate planning strategies.

Founded more than 50 years ago, Lasher provides comprehensive legal services to businesses, their owners, and to families. The firm's practice areas include business and tax law, divorce and family law, civil litigation, creditors' rights and bankruptcy, employment law, estate planning, probate and related litigation, and real estate law.

Jan 06, 2026

BakerHostetler

BakerHostetler has elected 26 lawyers to firm partnership. The new class includes attorneys from all six of the firm's core practice groups and from 12 of the firm's 18 offices across the United States. Two lawyers from the Seattle office, Nikki Sanford and Alexander Vitruk, were named partner. Sanford focuses her intellectual property practice on patent prosecution and global intellectual property portfolio development for emerging U.S. market leaders and multinational corporations. Drawing on extensive research and academic experience in physics, mathematics and biomedical engineering, she advises across scientific fields such as artificial intelligence, software, mechanical and electrical systems, and life sciences technologies. Sanford has contributed to multinational research initiatives ranging from nuclear physics to computer science, and builds portfolios that protect complex, cross disciplinary innovations. Vitruk advises clients on complex data privacy and cybersecurity matters, offering practical solutions to help companies comply with rapidly evolving privacy and data protection laws and defending class actions. He advises and defends clients across different industries on multifaceted issues such as biometric privacy, artificial intelligence, pixel-related technologies and HIPAA compliance. Vitruk also has substantial experience defending clients in securities, consumer protection, ERISA and employment class actions. BakerHostetler helps clients around the world address complex and critical business and regulatory issues, and employs more than 1,000 lawyers nationwide.

L'Ecole No. 41

L'Ecole No. 41, one of the founding wineries of Washington's Walla Walla Valley, has formed a national partnership Winebow, one of the leading distributors of Pacific Northwest wines. The partnership adds distribution in Washington and California — the two markets where the partners were not already aligned — to their existing partnership in 15 other markets. L'Ecole No. 41 and Winebow are now aligned in California, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. “Winebow has been a terrific partner, and we are excited to expand our partnership with them across their national footprint,” said Ryan Pennington, chief operating officer for L'Ecole No. 41. “Winebow has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to Washington wine, and we look forward to continuing our work with them to grow the Washington wine category in our home market and across the country.” L'Ecole No. 41 and Winebow first began working together in 2014, when Winebow merged with The Country Vintner, which at the time represented L'Ecole No. 41 in 12 markets. L'Ecole 41 then aligned with Winebow in three additional markets in 2021. The addition of Washington and California to the partnership completes the alignment of L'Ecole No. 41 across Winebow's national footprint and significantly increases the partners' volume of business together.

Dec 31, 2025

CAST

Nguyen

CAST architecture has hired Vy Nguyen, a generalist architect with experience across diverse project types, including hospitality, healthcare, multifamily, and custom single-family residences. Nguyen has a Master of Architecture with an Urban Design Certificate, and a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, both from the University of Washington.

Säzän Group

McKinnon

Yamin

Gardner

Säzän Group recently added new team members in its Seattle and Portland offices.

Mark Gardner joins Säzän as director of engineering. Gardner brings three decades of experience leading service groups and design-build teams across biotech, commercial, corporate campus, and higher education markets. He will focus on aligning Säzän Group's work with client outcomes and on team building. He comes to the firm from McKinstry, where he most recently served as senior operations manager. His portfolio includes the WSU North Puget Sound Campus building in Everett and the Thomas S. Foley United States Courthouse in Spokane.

Farid Yamin joins as a principal in the Portland office, where he leads the mechanical engineering team. Yamin has over four decades of experience in organizational and design management, overseeing engineering and construction activities of multidisciplinary teams across a variety of sectors, including transportation, semiconductor, life sciences, healthcare, and mission-critical facilities. Throughout his career, Yamin has advanced through key leadership roles such as mechanical lead, department manager, engineering manager, principal engineer and buildings/MEP practice lead for the western U.S. region.

Corey McKinnon joins as an associate principal. McKinnon brings more than 25 years of electrical design and engineering leadership experience across healthcare, mission-critical, industrial, logistics, and commercial markets in the Pacific Northwest. His experience in the design-build sector includes leading multidisciplinary teams and overseeing complex electrical systems from concept through construction. McKinnon most recently served as executive director of design at SeaTac Electric Design.

Dec 30, 2025

Capstone Accounting and Tax

Capstone Accounting and Tax has partnered with North Star Tax & Accounting, further expanding Capstone's presence in Washington with locations in Snohomish and Lynden. Capstone's acquisition of North Star aligns with its strategy to expand its footprint into new geographies by partnering with local firms. While North Star Tax & Accounting will integrate its operations under the Capstone brand, clients will continue to receive local service from the professionals they have come to know and trust. David Romano and Sheena Frenzel, leaders of North Star, will continue their practices as partners within Capstone. Founded in 2004, Capstone Accounting and Tax is a full-service accounting firm providing tax, accounting, and advisory services to businesses and individuals across the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West regions. Capstone is actively seeking to invest in small and mid-sized accounting, tax, bookkeeping and HR advisory practices nationally. Founded in 2008, North Star Tax and Accounting provides a full suite of tax and accounting services.

Phosio

Phosio named Andrew Grenville, former CEO of Inpria, to its board of directors. Grenville is a recognized leader in advanced materials and semiconductor innovation, with deep experience guiding materials platforms from early-stage development through manufacturing scale-up and strategic acquisition, including the successful sale of Inpria to JSR Corporation. As CEO of Inpria, Grenville led the commercialization of metal-oxide photoresist materials critical to next-generation semiconductor manufacturing. His leadership helped transform cutting-edge R&D into large-scale industrial adoption and a strategic exit. Joe O'Keeffe, executive chairman of Phosio, said, “Andrew's ability to bring breakthrough technologies to market and navigate strategic partnerships will be instrumental as Phosio accelerates customer engagement and commercialization.” Phosio, headquartered in Corvallis, Oregon, develops advanced lens coating materials that enable immersive visual experiences through lightweight AR eyewear.