Compiled by Lauri Johnson
The St. Louis region and its companies make the national
news.
LIST OF BEST LAW FIRMS FOR WOMEN INCLUDES
THREE LOCAL FIRMS
Armstrong Teasdale, Blackwell Sanders and Bryan Cave have been
named on the 2007 Working Mother & Flex-Time Lawyers Best Law
Firms for Women list. Published in the August/September issue
of Working Mother magazine, the list honors 50 law firms
for implementing work/life and women-friendly programs in their
efforts to retain and promote top female legal talent.
“Forget the old stereotypes of law firms as inhospitable to
women,” stated Suzanne Riss, editor in chief of Working Mother
magazine. “As Working Mother examined the practices of many
of the nation’s law firms, I was pleasantly surprised to discover
that a number have been quietly changing their policies in recent
years to reflect changes that are afoot in society as a whole.
The 2007 Working Mother & Flex-Time Lawyers Best Law Firms for
Women are making women’s issues a priority, and the success
of their policies will hopefully become reflected in the number
of women, from associates all the way up to partners.”
The 50 winning firms were measured in six areas: workforce profile,
benefits and compensation, parental leave, childcare, flexibility,
and the retention and advancement of women.
BKD LLP RANKED NO. 10 AMONG THE NATION’S
LARGEST ACCOUNTING FIRMS
BKD LLP ranked No. 10 on the 2007 Top 100 Accounting Firms list,
a compilation of the largest accounting firms in the United
States published in INSIDE Public Accounting’s August
2007 issue. The firm also ranked No. 1 in the Great Plains region
with net revenue of $318,078,000. The Great Plains region includes
Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Texas. INSIDE Public Accounting
is published by The Platt Consulting Group.
PROGRESSIVE GROCER NAMES SHOP
‘N SAVE PRESIDENT ON TOP WOMEN IN GROCERY LIST
Shop ’n Save President Marlene Gebhard was named to Progressive
Grocer’s first annual Top Women in Grocery list in the Aug.
1 issue. The list recognizes 62 women at the top of their game
in the supermarket industry.
Gebhard has been with Shop ’n Save since it first opened in
St. Louis in 1979 and now oversees operations, finance, merchandising,
labor management and marketing for 40 stores in greater St.
Louis and Southern Illinois.
The editors of Progressive Grocer compiled the list based
on industry nominations. Selection criteria included leadership
and influence within both the nominee’s company and the greater
supermarket industry, primary areas of responsibility, major
achievements at the company, career awards, involvement in trade
organizations and philanthropic activities.
GILDA’S CLUB FEATURED IN USA TODAY
25th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
On July 20, Gilda’s Club Worldwide, an organization that provides
social and emotional support to families living with cancer,
was featured in USA TODAY as part of the newspaper’s
25th anniversary celebration. The “Spirit of the USA” celebration
acknowledged the generosity and social responsibility of American
citizens by saluting 25 major charities.
“USA TODAY wanted to find a way to give back to the nation
during our 25th anniversary celebration by celebrating causes
that are closest to the hearts of Americans,” stated Susan Lavington,
vice president of consumer marketing for USA TODAY. “We
selected charities that represent a broad range of interests
including environment, health, animals, arts, education, human
services, and public benefits, and hope our readers will join
us in saluting these charities.”
Founded in memory of comedienne Gilda Radner, Gilda’s Club Worldwide
operates 30 clubhouses throughout the United States and in Canada,
providing support to more than 45,000 members.
CHAIN STORE AGE SPOTLIGHTS THE
DESCO GROUP’S NEW RETAIL CENTER
The DESCO Group’s new retail center, Loughborough Commons, has
earned a place in the pages of Chain Store Age magazine’s
July 2007 issue. The story, written by Katherine Field, profiles
DESCO’s conversion of a former brownfield site with little apparent
value into a shopping destination for area residents and a money-maker
for the City. Located at Interstate 55 and Loughborough Road
in South St. Louis, the 30-acre site once housed a Nordyne industrial
plant.
“After the plant shut down, it had little in the way of economic
or socially redeeming value, save for its location adjacent
to an exit for an interstate highway and the fact that it was
proximate to mature, bedrock-solid neighborhoods,” said Scott
Sachtleben, senior vice president of development and general
counsel for DESCO, in the article. “The site had some retail,
but generated only $425,000 in city sales tax annually. It was
on its way to productive oblivion.”
The developer has plans to build a $40 million, 250,000-square-foot
shopping center that is expected to generate $2 million in annual
sales tax revenue, according to the article. Anchored by Lowe’s
and Schnucks, the tenant list includes OfficeMax, Saint Louis
Bread Co., Starbucks, Qdoba Mexican Grill and Great Clips. Construction
is underway and expected to be finished in the spring of 2008.
CHINESE SOCCER NEWSPAPER ARTICLE
SPOTLIGHTS ST. LOUIS AND 1904 OLYMPICS
The Chinese Soccer Newspaper shared a taste of St. Louis
with soccer fans in China via a July 27 article about the 1904
Olympic Games held in St. Louis. With Beijing set to host the
2008 Olympic Games, the article featured an extensive interview
with local historian, author and educator Ruth Wuest Becht about
the 1904 Olympics.
The three-page story included a photo of Becht and JiaWei Chen,
a doctoral student of chemistry at Washington University, in
front of the historic gates to Francis Field, along with a hand-written
note from Becht wishing success to the people of China in hosting
the 2008 summer games.
The Arch, the St. Louis Cardinals, the City’s connections to
the NFL and the NCAA, Washington University and other details
about the City also appeared in the piece. Donna Gamache, director
of communications at The Lawrence Group, facilitated the interview
with Becht.
SISTERS OF MERCY HEALTH SYSTEM NAMED
ONE OF NATION’S MOST WIRED HOSPITALS AND HEALTH SYSTEMS
The Sisters of Mercy Health System appeared on the 2007 Most
Wired Survey and Benchmarking Study in the July issue of Hospitals
& Health Networks magazine. Mercy has received the distinction
six times and is one of only 11 organizations to do so.
The nation’s 100 Most Wired hospitals demonstrate better outcomes
in four key areas: mortality rates, patient safety measures,
core measures and average length of stay. The survey, conducted
annually by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine, focuses
on how the nation’s hospitals use information technology for
quality, customer service, public health and safety, business
processes and workforce issues.
