Newsmakers & Annoucements

Eggart, Executive Director of Visit Billings

21 October 2024
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Aly Eggart, MSPR, CATP, recently accepted a promotion to Executive Director of Visit Billings, managed by the Billings Chamber of Commerce.

Eggart has been a member of the Visit Billings team since 2016 and most recently served as the Leisure Marketing Director. “We are excited for Aly to lead Visit Billings and the destination as its new executive director,” says Billings Chamber President and CEO John Brewer. “During her time with the organization, Aly has grown as a leader both internally and externally, positioning herself as a trusted advocate for Montana’s City. Her experience and passion for Billings will serve her well as she implements the new strategic plan for Visit Billings and continues to move the destination forward.”

As the Executive Director, she is responsible for fostering Visit Billings’ mission of generating room nights for lodging facilities in the city of Billings by effectively marketing the region as a preferred travel destination. She will oversee the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) board and a staff of four people, execute the lodging tax contract and a $4 million tourism budget, along with growing the sports tourism segment. Visit Billings promotes the city and the region through sales and marketing to meeting and sporting event planners, tour operators, travel industry professionals, journalists, and leisure visitors

Mulvaney Joins Visit Billings

16 September 2024
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Polly Mulvaney joined Visit Billings, managed by the Billings Chamber of Commerce, as the new Group Sales Manager. In her new role, Mulvaney will manage meeting and convention recruitment as well as group tour sales for the destination.

 She has spent her career in outdoor hospitality, travel and tourism industry, working in Montana and the western region while serving the U.S. and Canada. Her marketing, sales, franchise division and relationship building skills equate well to member services and support that are central to the Group Sales Manager position.

“Polly is no stranger to tourism or chamber work, as she has worked for KOA, the Bozeman and Billings Chambers of Commerce, and Colorado Tourism Board,” says Alex Tyson, executive director of Visit Billings. ”We are excited to have Polly back home with the Visit Billings team and look forward to the vast expertise and industry knowledge she brings to this role, as she elevates Montana’s City nationwide.”

Mulvaney is a proud alumna of Montana State University, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. She is pursuing certifications as a Certified Autism Travel Professional (CATP) and a Professional in Destination Management. 

She has called Billings home for over two decades with her husband, has three grown children and two Golden Retrievers. Outside of work and family life, Mulvaney enjoys fly fishing and is a new fan of pickleball.

New County Emergency Coordinator

23 August 2024
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Derek Yeager has been named as Yellowstone County’s new Disaster and Emergency Services (DES) Director, following the resignation of “KC” Williams, who served as director for the past five and a half years.

Williams has taken a position with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The position of DES Coordinator includes the duties of fire warden in Yellowstone County.

Yeager, a native of Yellowstone County from Laurel, served for eleven years with the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) after serving as a wild land firefighter. Most recently he was head of the communications center which serves both the City of Billings and Yellowstone County.

Rocky Mountain Bank Branches Convert to Stockman Bank

13 August 2024
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Stockman Bank has announced the conversion of Rocky Mountain Bank branches located in Kalispell, Bigfork and Plains to Stockman is complete. Systems were converted and building signage was replaced over the weekend, with the bank doors opening as Stockman on July 22, 2024.

“We are excited to welcome Rocky Mountain Bank’s employees and customers to the Stockman family,” said Bill Coffee, CEO of Stockman Bank. “We are a family-owned, Montana community bank committed to serving the financial needs of everyone in our community. We are delighted that all of Rocky Mountain Bank’s employees chose to stay and work with our northwest Montana team. Customers can expect local decisions from people who live and work in their community and are committed to their financial success.”

Coffee says there are many moving parts when converting a bank. He encourages customers who have questions or need assistance to stop by their local Stockman branch. Customers can also visit Stockman’s website, stockmanbank.com, for product and service information, as well as conversion-dedicated customer support contact information.  

Annual Energy Open, Aug. 8 and 9

22 July 2024
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The 21st Annual Energy Open Conference and Golf Tournament will be held on Aug.8  and 9  in Colstrip.

Southeastern Montana Development invites the public to participate in this event which “showcases the economic benefits of responsible energy development.” It  is an opportunity to tour unique energy facilities, network with energy leaders, decision makers, legislators, and if desired, golf on the second day. The Energy Open starts at 9 am on Thursday, August 8. Tours will be given of the Rosebud Mine and of the Rosebud Power Plant.

Contact SEMDC at (406) 748-2990 or email jatchision@semdc.org or ahert@semdc.org. Registration at www.semdc.org.

Stockman Bank -“Best in State”

11 July 2024
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Stockman Bank has once again been awarded on the Forbes list of America’s Best-In-State Banks 2024. This prestigious award is presented by Forbes and Statista Inc., the world-leading statistics portal and industry ranking provider. The awards list was announced on June 18, 2024.

Financial institutions are the cornerstone of the financial world and play a central role in stabilizing global systems. America’s Best-In-State Banks 2024 ranking lists the institutions that stood out for fulfilling the unique financial needs and expectations of their local communities thereby being most valued by residents of each state.

This is the second award Stockman has received from Forbes in 2024. The Bank was recognized by Forbes as one the World’s Best Banks in April. “We are proud to once again be recognized on Forbes list of Best-In-State Banks. This award is particularly special to us since the recognition is coming directly from Montana consumers who participated in the independent survey,” stated Bill Coffee, CEO of Stockman Bank.  “The award is a testament to the dedication and expertise of our staff, who are committed to putting the needs of their customers and communities first.  I am proud of their outstanding service to our bank, our customers and our state.”

The ranking is based on two sources:

1. An Independent Survey: Approximately 26,000 U.S. residents were surveyed online. Participants were asked to name all banks where they have a checking/savings account and rate it in six different subdimensions: Trust, Terms & Conditions, Branch Services, Digital Services, Customer Services, and Financial Advice.

2. Publicly Available Reviews: For each bank, in each state, a sentiment analysis approach of publicly available online text reviews and ratings was applied.

In each state, the banks with the highest combined score from the analysis of survey results and publicly available reviews were awarded. The survey score was rated 80% and publicly available reviews 20%.

Statista publishes hundreds of worldwide industry rankings and company listings with high-profile media partners. This research and analysis service is based on the success of statista.com, the leading data and business intelligence portal that provides statistics, relevant business data, and various market and consumer studies and surveys.

Par Montana Gets Safety Award

18 April 2024
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Par Montana, a subsidiary of Par Pacific Holdings, Inc., was recently honored for its 2023 safety performance by the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufactures (AFPM).  The award is part of the refining and petrochemical industry’s ongoing commitment to enhance and recognize outstanding workplace safety.

The awards are considered the premier recognition of the industry and are part of a comprehensive program developed by the AFPM Safety and Health Committee to promote safe operations in the refining and petrochemical industries.

The Par Montana refinery in Billings was elected for an Elite Silver Award, recognizing sites that have attained top industry safety performance in 2023 while demonstrating excellent program innovation and leadership over time. Elite Silver status represents the top 10 percent of industry safety performance.

The past year also represented a year of change for the Billings refinery employees as they prepared for ownership transition from ExxonMobil to Par Pacific Holdings. George Graham, the Health, Safety, Security and Environment manager at Par Montana, said being recognized for a year of safety excellence shows that leaders, frontline workers and contractors all prioritized personal and process safety when it was need most.

Kim Jakub, Senior vice President of Rocky Mountain Refining for Par Pacific and former refinery manager in Billings, said the award demonstrates a continuing commitment to safety by everyone at the site. “It is a well-deserved recognition for the Billings team,” she said.

As an example of new initiatives in 2023, the refinery completed the rollout of a new homegrown, safety program as a result of the transition to Par Pacific. This initial rollout was only the first step in a series of new leadership growth and development initiatives, as a component of a sustainable program. The refinery has also implemented new technologies to help monitor for potentially dangerous gases and improved personal protection for planned maintenance activities.

Named Manager of Year

18 April 2024
Evelyn Pyburn
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The Montana Rural Water Systems has named the manager of Lockwood Water and Sewer District, Mike Ariztia, as “Manager of the Year.” That Ariztia should be recognized as the best manager in the state came as no surprise to people in Lockwood, who have been observing Ariztia’s outstanding achievements over the past nine years that he has served as the district’s manager.

The Lockwood community is fortunate to have Mike as our manager, said Carl Peters, President of the LWSD board of directors. The award was presented last week at the state annual meeting of the Montana Rural Water Systems in Great Falls.

Peters went on to say, “Mike is a thoughtful, fair minded, dedicate, and hardworking manager, with integrity and excellent communication skills and he has a great sense of humor toward his fellow LWSD co-workers, board members and customers, along with the District’s professional advisors and representatives from both state, federal and local governmental agencies.”

Ariztia came to Lockwood in 2015 to serve as manager and was immediately plunged into the $9 million Phase II of the Lockwood Sewer Project, which included 43,000 lineal feet of sewer main and over 600 services to property lines.

Ariztia has worked years with LWSD engineering consultants, Morrison Maierle, for planning and design decisions and with Nittany Grantworks on grant applications to help finance and build several major projects. Among those projects were:

—The $3.5 million upgrade to the Yellowstone River raw water intake in 2017-18 built a new pump station, replaced and added screens, increasing capacity and reliability;

—The $9 million Water Treatment Plant Upgrade completed in 2023, added UV disinfection, two additional filter/ clarifier trains for continued drinking water standards compliance, increased capacity, redundancy and reliability;

—The current $26 million Phase III Wastewater Project which will include 70,000 lineal feet of sewer line to nearly 800 residential properties and to larger undeveloped areas for future residential development;

—Other completed projects include a new “state of the art” dual bulk water station, and the installation of a major loop for the water system to provide a secondary feed to the system’s largest storage facility.

Ariztia is currently working with the Montana Department of Transportation on the redesigned I-90 Johnson Lane Interchange and the Billings Bypass for modifications to the LWSD water and sewer lines under Interstate 90 to a potentially large industrial area which will need water and sewer service.

Ariztia also works with Par Montana on their wastewater needs.

Chamber Welcomes Staff

19 January 2024
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The Billings Chamber of Commerce welcomes Abbie Chvilicek and Sara Hollenbeck to its staff.

Chvilicek fills the position of Member and Operations Specialist and Hollenbeck joins as the Marketing Specialist for Visit Southeast Montana, a tourism marketing arm managed by the Billings Chamber.

Chvilicek is a born and raised Billings, who graduated in 2022 after attending both Billings West High School and the Billings Career Center. Upon graduating, she attended massage therapy school and began practicing reiki. She has been working in customer service since 2019 which will serve her well as she embarks in her professional career with the Billings Chamber as the Member and Operations Specialist.

Hollenbeck grew up in California, obtained an Agricultural Business degree from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, and became a sheep rancher in Molt. She has immersed herself in the agriculture sector for over 15 years and combines this passion with marketing as the founder of High Five Meats and co-founder of Yellowstone Valley Food Hub. Hollenbeck brings her boundless love for Montana agriculture, the great outdoors, and the cherished traditions of the American West to the Visit Southeast Montana team.

Schimke, Ag Officer

15 January 2024
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Alex Schimke recently joined Stockman Bank as Ag Loan Officer for the Stockman Bank King Avenue location. His responsibilities include developing and servicing agricultural loans and assisting customers with their lending and credit needs.

Schimke brings an extensive background in agriculture and business, which will be an asset to Stockman Bank and the Billings community.

He has been active in the community, having served as a Board member for several organizations, and is currently Co-Chair of the Billings Chamber of Commerce Agriculture Committee.

Schimke is located at 2700 King Avenue in Billings.

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