— Lawyer Bryan Neiderhiser was recently listed in Super Lawyers Pittsburgh and Philadelphia magazines on the Rising Stars list of attorneys in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. No more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in Pennsylvania are included on this list.

This is the second consecutive year that Neiderhiser was named to the Rising Stars list.

Neiderhiser is an associate at the law firm of Marcus & Mack, where his practice is devoted solely to representing the interests of injured people.

Neiderhiser spent several years practicing law in Pittsburgh before moving back to his hometown of Indiana in 2006, when he joined Marcus & Mack.

A graduate of Grove City College and the Pitt School of Law, Neiderhiser was licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania in 1998 and is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania’s state courts as well as the Federal Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

Neiderhiser serves on the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association and is a member of the Pennsylvania Association for Justice. He also is a member of the Indiana and Allegheny County bar associations.

When he is not at work, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Andrea, and his daughters, Ainsley and Arden.

Asset Planning Group honors local planner

Franklin Banfer, a registered investment adviser and certified financial planner with Asset Planning Group Inc., was named a top adviser with Cadaret, Grant and Co. of Syracuse, N.Y.

Of the nearly 11,000 advisers associated with the firm, the top 11 percent qualify for the honor, and this is the 12th consecutive year that Banfer has done so.

“These are advisers who show ongoing commitment to doing what’s best for clients, dedication to integrity, and emphasis on ethical business,” said Cadaret Grant President and CEO Arthur F. Grant.

“It is a hard-earned award that is reserved for advisers who are leaders. It is our pleasure to recognize their success.”

Banfer recently attended a corporate conference in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where he participated in meetings covering topics ranging from investment management to current economic policy and trends.

Asset Planning Group is located at 139 Clinton St., Johnstown.

Wells Fargo adviser earns designation

Wells Fargo Advisors has designated Brad M. Hindman first vice president – investment officer as a member of the firm’s “Premier Advisors Program.”

The distinction reflects Hindman’s achievement of professional success through a consistent commitment to client service, the company said.

The top 16 percent of Wells Fargo advisers qualify for this level of recognition.  

“Brad’s inclusion in this program is a testament to his ability to understand his clients’ aspirations and to develop investment plans and strategies designed to achieve those goals,” said Jim Hays, president of Wells Fargo Advisors Private Client Group. “More importantly, it reflects Brad’s ongoing commitment to his clients demonstrated by offering sound, objective professional advice and high quality service.”

Hindman has been a financial adviser with Wells Fargo Advisors for 11 years. He has a degree in accounting and finance from Pitt.

Hindman lives in Johnstown with his wife and their two children.

F.N.B. board member enters wildlife group

F.N.B. Corp. has announced that corporate board member Earl K. “Butch” Wahl has been inducted into the Boone and Crockett Club, an organization founded by Theodore Roosevelt more than 117 years ago as a first step to restoring America’s wildlands.

The group remains dedicated to conservation and the management of natural resources in a manner that balances human needs with wildlife needs.

Other founding members included Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, Gifford Pinchot and George Bird Grinnell.

The Boone and Crockett Club has championed the passage of laws, the establishment of institutions and the designation of wildlands, which today make up the nation’s National Forest, National Park and National Wildlife Refuge systems.

Additionally, the group supports research that protects endangered species, aids in the education of students, addresses hunting ethics and helps develop ongoing programs that sustain wildlife populations.

Wahl has served as a member of the F.N.B. Corp. board of directors since 2002. In 2009, he divested his interest in J.E.D. Corporation, an environmental consulting firm.

During the past 36 years, he has served in an executive capacity and owned and operated various businesses involving mining, drilling, industrial contracting, restaurant, municipal water and environmental services. He also has served for more than 26 years on the boards of various financial institutions.

Health Net names employees of month

Health Net Federal Services, located in the Crown American Building in Johnstown, has announced its employees of the month for March and April.

Wanda Wilson was named employee of the month for March.

She is a graduate of Cambria Rowe Business College, with an associate degree in medical office administration, and has been with Health Net since January 2007. She is a resident of Elton.

Barbara Seger was named employee of the month for April.

She is a graduate of Cambria Rowe Business College with an associate degree in medical office management. She has been with Health Net since September 2005.

She lives in Windber with her husband, William, and son Zachery.

Reverse mortgage consultant named

William M. Robinson Jr. of Windber has joined MetLife Bank as a reverse mortgage consultant for the region covering Cambria, Somerset, Blair and Fulton counties.

Prior to joining MetLife, Robinson worked as a reverse mortgage consultant for five years at First Commonwealth Home Mortgage. Robinson graduated from Pitt with a bachelor’s degree.

“I am excited to have William M. Robinson Jr. join MetLife company to help meet the needs of a growing number of consumers in western Pennsylvania who are considering whether a reverse mortgage is a good fit for their retirement needs,” said Eric P. Declercq, vice president of MetLife Bank.

Gleason presents lecture at symposium

Lawyer Robert Davis Gleason presented a lecture at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute Criminal Law Symposum on June 2 in Harrisburg.

He spoke on the topic of presentence memorandums at the organization’s annual Criminal Law Continuing Education Program.

Gleason is the senior partner in the Johnstown law firm of Gleason, Barbin and Markovitz, and has been a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute faculty for 12 years.

He has practiced criminal defense law for more than 40 years, and was named a Pennsylvania Super Criminal Defense Lawyer by Philadelphia Magazine. He has served as chairman of the Cambria County Bar Association Criminal Law Committee for more than 30 years and has lectured extensively before professional and collegiate groups.

Harrisburg chamber appoints local native

Larissa Bailey, formerly of Johnstown, has been named government relations manager with the Harrisburg Regional Chamber.

She will manage the activities of government relations through the design, coordination and operation of programs and events to aid the chamber’s business members and the community.

Bailey is responsible for presenting the chamber’s policies and viewpoints to local, state and national governmental units and agencies. Her duties also include managing the Harrisburg Regional Chamber Political Action Committee.

Bailey is the daughter of Larry and Pattie Bailey of Johnstown. She graduated from Conemaugh Township Area High School in 2007.

In December, she received her bachelor’s degree in politics with a concentration in international relations from Messiah College in Grantham, Cumberland County.

Prior to joining the Harrisburg Regional Chamber, Bailey completed two major internships while enrolled at Messiah College.

She studied in London during the spring of 2010 as an intern for Justine Greening, a member of Parliament, focusing largely on constituent services and various London-based research initiatives.

In the summer of 2009, she was an intern in the legislative office of the Pennsylvania Department of Aging. The experience allowed her to gain insight as well as play an active role in the legislative process from a state agency perspective.

The Harrisburg Regional Chamber serves Cumberland, Dauphin and Perry counties.

Johnstown man joins area law office

Christopher G. Gvozdich of Johnstown has joined Gvozdich Law Offices in Ebensburg.

He will concentrate his practice in the area of business and corporate law, real estate law, wills and trusts and guardianship proceedings.

Gvozdich received his bachelor’s degree in political science from St. Francis University and his juris doctor from Widener University School of Law.

He serves on the board of Pennsylvania Bar Foundation and is chairman of the Cambria County Bar Association’s Stepping Out Program. He is co-chairman of the Cambria County Bar Association’s Young Lawyers Division.

Optometrist earns association honor

Dr. Charles Falsone, son of Carmella and the late Steve Falsone of Geistown, is the 2011 recipient of the Pennsylvania Optometric Association’s Optometrist of the Year Award.

The award was presented during a ceremony at the optometric association’s congress, which was held this year at the Nittany Lion Inn in State College.

Falsone is a 1998 graduate of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry and has a private practice, In Focus Family Vision, in Centre Hall. He and his wife, Becky, and their two children reside in Boalsburg.

Keystone Cooperative hires Windber man

Keystone Cooperative has welcomed Robert Keyser to its location in Windber.

Keyser, a native of Windber, graduated from Windber High School in 2006 and attended the Greater Johnstown Career and Technology Center.

Keyser will be overseeing the Keystone Cooperative Windber office as a certified field technician.

“I look forward to continuing to serve and give back to the only  home I have ever known, Windber,” Keyser said.

Keystone Cooperative is a nonprofit, member-owned cooperative, formed in 1999 for the purpose of bringing natural gas service to the areas of Windber, Scalp Level and Paint boroughs.

The cooperative is able to provide residents of those areas with the opportunity to benefit from natural gas.

Keystone Cooperative’s office is located on 14th Street in Windber, next to Windber Beverage. It opened in the early fall of 2010. The Keystone Cooperative Board of Directors felt the office would allow the cooperative to better serve its members.

Keystone Cooperative is managed by Utility Pipeline Ltd. of North Canton, Ohio.

Utility Pipeline was established in January 1995. It is a professional natural gas management company that provides a full range of services in the natural gas industry for 20,000 families, businesses and other institutions throughout Ohio as well as parts of Pennsylvania and Indiana.

The company provides an economical and efficient energy alternative to communities by engineering, installing, maintaining and operating natural gas distribution systems.  

Established in 1995, Utility Pipeline’s mission is to operate natural gas pipelines that provide safe, reliable service and help homeowners obtain gas service as inexpensively as possible.

Keystone Cooperative strives to be an economical energy alternative for its members and local community.



The Tribune-Democrat wants to publish news about the people at your company. Please submit Business People news by email to cminemyer@trib-dem.com or by fax to 539-1409. Please include photographs when possible.