Chambers set schedules

■ The Kenai and Soldotna Chambers of Commerce will host a joint luncheon at noon Tuesday at the Soldotna Sports Center, with a 2015 United Way Campaign Kick Off with Lisa Roberts, Executive Director, Kenai Peninsula United Way. RSVP is required to 262-9814 or 283-1991.

■ The Kenai Chamber of Commerce meets at noon Wednesday at the Kenai Visitor Center. A Kenai City Council candidate forum is planned. RSVP required to 283-1991.

KPAR selects Marti Pepper as Realtor of the Year

The Kenai Peninsula Association of Realtors gathered Aug. 27 for their annual General Membership Meeting and Board of Director Election.

Marti Pepper with Redoubt Realty was chosen as the Realtor of the Year.

The Realtor of the Year award is given to Realtors that show exceptional spirit and promotion of good real estate practices as well as involvement in the Realtor Association and community.

Small Business Development Center plans workshops

The Alaska Small Business Development Center, located in the Red Diamond Center on Kalifornsky Beach Road, is planning the following workshops:

■ Sept. 17, 10 a.m.-noon — Michelle (Miki) Rodekohr, Loan Officer with the Department of Commerce, Community & Economic Development is coming from Anchorage to the Kenai Peninsula to bring you information about the state’s loan programs. These free workshops will be scheduled in Homer, Soldotna and Seward. Miki will present to the South West Region’s business community how you can qualify for these loan programs, plus answer any questions you may have. The Soldotna workshop will be in the AKSBDC office in Suite 12 in the Red Diamond Center on Sept. 17 from 10:00 a.m. to noon. To attend, you must register by Sept. 14 at aksbdc.ecenterdirect.com. Call Bunny if you have any questions at 907-260-5629

■ Sept. 22, 10 a.m.-noon — Are you thinking about starting your own business? This workshop was built for you! The class will cover basic issues faced when starting a small business such as business licensing, legal forms of business, business record-keeping, hiring employees, business planning and access to financing. Let the SBDC help guide you through the process of starting a small business. This workshop is free, register online at aksbdc.ecenterdirect.com by 5 p.m. on Sept. 17. Call Bunny at 260-5629 if you have any questions.

■ Sept. 29, 12:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. — Learn methods to Monitor-Measure-and-Manage the amount of cash moving through your business by attending this workshop. Establishing budgets is the vital element that keeps every business financially healthy and Jim Duffield will guide you through this process. Register online at aksbdc.ecenterdirect.com by Sept. 24. You can pay when you register using the Upay option for VISA or MasterCard, or the SBDC accepts cash or check payments in our office. Contact Bunny at 260-5629 with questions. If you are a veteran with DD-214 identification, contact Bunny for a free scholarship ticket.

For more information on any workshop or the Alaska Small Business Development Center, call Bunny at 907-260-5629.

Gray named vice president of strategy and innovation for Morris Communications

Steve Gray has been named vice president of strategy and innovation of Morris Communications Company, it has been announced by William S. Morris IV, CEO. Gray will be responsible for company-wide strategic planning and innovation.

“Steve is an exceptional strategist who has made great contributions to our company and our family,” Morris said, “We are fortunate to have someone with his innovative and creative perspective and are very pleased to announce his new appointment.”

Gray was first hired by Morris as a strategy and innovation consultant in 2009 and became the director of strategy and innovation at Morris 2012. His career began at his family’s newspaper in Monroe, Michigan, now 100 percent employee-owned, where he was a reporter, editor and president and still serves as chairman of the board. From 1998 to 2005, he was managing publisher of The Christian Science Monitor. In 2005, Gray joined Newspaper Next, a three-year innovation project of the American Press Institute that worked to identify new opportunities, technologies and detailed business initiatives for the newspaper industry.

“I’m very honored by the new title,” said Gray. “It’s been a joy to work on strategy at Morris, where there’s a passion to evolve rapidly in a fast-changing world, and to find new ways to serve consumers, businesses and communities.”

Gray is a past president of the Inland Press Association and the Michigan Press Association. He and his wife, Cynthia, live in North Augusta and have two grown children.

Morris Communications is the parent company of the Peninsula Clarion.

Farm equipment for rent

The Kenai Soil & Water Conservation District has a wide variety of garden and farm equipment for rent, including tractor-drawn implements for initial field preparation (the fabled “Meri Crusher”), tillage, no-till seeding, bed shaping, mulch laying, and planting. Non-mechanized tools for rent include backpack sprayers, broadcast seed spreader and broadfork. A DEC-approved mobile kitchen trailer is also available.

For information, see the “Equipment Rental” page at www.kenaisoilandwater.org or visit Kenai Feed & Supply.

What’s new in your business?

Have you opened a new business, moved to a new location, hired a new person or promoted an employee? Send us your information at news@peninsulaclarion.com, fax it to 907-283-3299, or drop it by the Clarion at 150 Trading Bay in Kenai. Questions? Call 907-335-1251.

Business announcements may be submitted to news@peninsulaclarion.com. Items should be submitted by 5 p.m. on the Friday prior to publication.