BUSINESS PERSONNEL

NPS Corp. of Perryville, Hastings Company Ltd., and the late Warren Steven Hastings were honored during the recent O'Sullivan Industries Vendor Appreciation Conference at Lake of the Ozarks.

Patty Hastings, chief executive officer and owner of the company; John Moorman, president and chief operating officer of NPS; and Patrick Rosener, corporate sales manager, attended the conference.

NPS employs more than 130 employees at its three plants -- Perryville, South Boston, Va., and Memphis, Tenn. -- with about 100 of them at the 100,000-square-foot factory in Perryville's Industrial Park.

The company, which provides packing to O'Sullivan Furniture Co., received four plaques during the recent conference: NPS and Hastings each received "Packaging Supplier of the Year" awards; NPS received an O'Sullivan Vendor/Partners award for exceptional performance and professionalism; and Dan O'Sullivan, chairman of O'Sullivan Industries, a furniture manufacturer, honored the memory of Steven Hastings with a verbal presentation and a plaque to his wife, Patty.

Warren Steven Hastings established NPS 20 years ago, and was CEO and board chairman of the business at the time of his death last August.

NPS manufactures polystyrine, a foam used in packaging. One of the company's large accounts is O'Sullivan, a ready-to-assemble furniture maker. Other products include insulation sheeting used in commercial and residential construction.

Michelle Johnston has joined Consumer Credit Counseling Services as a counselor at its Cape Girardeau office, 1606 Independence.

Johnston, a graduate of Southeast Missouri State University with a bachelor of science degree, has almost 10 years of experience in retail sales, having most recently served in sales associate positions at Cellular World and JCPenney.

The Cape Girardeau CCCS office is a branch of the St. Louis CCCS agency, which has 21 facilities in five states.

Dr. Robert Kessinger and Dessy Boneva, of Kessinger Specific Chiropractic, 1424 Kurre Lane, recently led a group of 22 doctors on a health mission to Kishenov, Moldova, former Republic of the Soviet Union.

The group of international doctors was a part of the Kale Network Mission team, founded by Dr. Michael Kale of Spartanburg, S.C.

The Kale team saw 37,000 people during its 12-day mission.

James Arteme of Benton has joined Lorberg Memorial Funeral Chapel Inc., 829 N. West End Blvd, as a district representative for Catholic Knights of America, a fraternity benefit insurance society. The company, headquartered in St. Louis, provides life insurance and annuities.

Arteme is also an agent for the Allianz Life Insurance Company of North American, specialities in pre-need insurance.

Monica Waldon, sales associate at Prudential Bridgeport Inc. Realtors, has attended the Real Estate Dynamics course in Springfield, Mo.

The five-day course included sessions on sales, working with sellers and buyers, marketing property and negotiating a contract.

Laurel R. Thompson of West Plains has been named 1997 Community Economic Development Leader.

Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan presented the award to Thompson during the 39th annual Governor's Economic Development Conference in St. Louis.

The award, sponsored by Southwestern Bell, recognizes volunteers who assist economic development efforts through their community.

Thompson is owner/manager of Schwegman Office Supplies in West Plains. He has been involved in a number of projects in that area, including the West Plains Civic Center, Ozarks Development Corp. Industrial Park, welcome center, Ozarks medical center and the West Plains Campus of Southwest Missouri State University.

John L. Saunders, Missouri Department of Agriculture director, has been named "Livestock Person of the Year" by the University of Missouri Block and Bridle Club.

Saunders was honored for his leadership in the livestock industry, particularly his work with the Missouri and National Pork Producers Association.

Saunders has been director of the agriculture department since 1993.

He is a native of KeKalb County, where he manages the family-owned, 650-acre livestock and grain farm along with his wife, Jeannie.

Sherry Collier of McMinnville, Tenn., has been named chief operating officer at Lucy Lee Healthcare System in Poplar Bluff.

Collier, who starts his new position July 7, will succeed John W. Sanders, who has been promoted to chief executive officer at Twin Rivers Regional Medical Center at Kennett.

Collier, who has a bachelor of science degree in nursing from Southeastern Louisiana University at Hammond, La., has 14 years experience in the health care field. She serves as chief operating officer and chief nursing officer at the Medical Center of Manchester, Tenn., a 49-bed acute care facility. She also works as care coordinator of a 120-bed skilled nursing facility associated with that hospital.

George "Butch" Koeppel of Macke Equipment Inc., Cape Girardeau, has received the Bronze Major Volume Performance Award from J-Star Industries of Fort Atkinson, Wis.

The MVP award recognizes J-Star dealers who have achieved Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum levels of sales and performances during 1996.

J-Star Industries markets a number of agriculture equipment, such as silo unloaders, cattle feeders. conveyors, roller mills, feed mixers and other products.

Photojournalist Preston Ewing Jr. of Cairo, Ill., author of the book, "Let My People Go," has received an award for superior achievement in scholarly publications for the book.

The ward, presented by the Illinois State Historical Society, honors Ewing for excellence in research, study, and preservation of state and local history.

The award was presented during the Illinois State Historical Society's annual awards luncheon at Giant City State Park Lodge near Makanda.

"Let My People Go: Cairo, Illinois, 1967-1973," uses 110 photographs and eyewitness narrations to tell the seven-year story of turbulence in Cairo during one of the final civil rights protests of the 1960s.