041814 gbbj

BY NORMAN POLTENSONJOURNAL STAFF

“When E. F. Hutton talks, people listen.” — 1980’s advertisement tag line.

ONEONTA — News flash from the Spectrem Group, an Illinois–based inves-tor research and consulting firm: Total millionaire households in the U.S. jumped during 2013 to more than 9.6 million. That’s an increase of more than 600,000, or nearly 7 percent, over the previous year. The number of households with more than $5 million in assets grew to 1.24 million.

What to do with all that wealth? The answer is to manage it. But how?

Enter Erna Morgan McReynolds, finan-cial advisor, managing director, wealth-management portfolio manager, and international-client advisor of the Morgan McReynolds Group — headquartered on Outer Chestnut Street in Oneonta. For the past six years, she has been recognized by Barron’s as one of “America’s Top 100 Women Financial Advisors,” based on assets under management, revenue generated for the firm, and the quality of the practice.

Research magazine nominated Morgan McReynolds as “Woman Consultant of the Year.” Morgan Stanley named her an “International Client Advisor” because of her experience working with non-res-ident clients and in 2010 invited Morgan

McReynolds to sit on the company’s Business Owner Executive Council. In 2013, the financial-services firm named her to the Chairman’s Club. Most recent-ly, the Financial Times included Morgan McReynolds on its list of America’s “Top 400 Financial Advisors.”

The Morgan McReynolds Group at Morgan Stanley is a wealth-advisory busi-ness located in Central New York, an area designated by Morgan Stanley to include Albany, Binghamton, Elmira, the North

Country, and Syracuse. “As of February, we have more than

$500 million in assets under manage-ment,” says the managing director, “and we accomplish this with a staff of six. The team assets have grown more than 50 percent just in the last five years. Our clientele is diverse … A lot of them have been with us for 25 years, and the average client has been with us for seven years.

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BUSINESS JOURNALBUSINESS JOURNALVol. IX • No. 2 April 18, 2014 • $2.00

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TOP RANKS: GREATER BINGHAMTON LARGEST EMPLOYERS / 9, 10

Way to Grow: Ioxus forges triple-digit growth. Page 3.

See ERNA, page 10

When Erna talks, people listen

Nonprofit Corner: Roberson Museum and Science Center. Page 7.

NORMAN POLTENSON/THE GREATER BINGHAMTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

Erna Morgan McReynolds, seated in her office in Oneonta, has been recognized by Barron’s as one of “America’s Top 100 Women Financial Advisors,” by Research magazine as “Woman Consultant of the Year,” and by the Financial Times as one of America’s “Top 400 Financial Advisors.” As the managing director of the Morgan McReynolds group at Morgan Stanley, she has more than $500 million in assets under management.

Preferred Mutual continuing its growth tradition after 118 years

BY NORMAN POLTENSONJOURNAL STAFF

NEW BERLIN — In a research report is-sued in December, 2013, Conning Inc., an investment-management firm for the global insurance industry, identified “18 standout companies which led their peers in both growth and profitability.”

The report analyzed the performance of 241 insurance companies’ personal-lines products over the past five-year and 10-year periods. Preferred Mutual Insurance Co., headquar-tered in New Berlin, was cited as one of the leaders, which grew collectively at a com-

See PREFERRED MUTUAL, page 6

NORMAN POLTENSON/TGBBJ

Christopher Taft, the president and CEO of Preferred Mutual Insurance Co.

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2 • The Greater Binghamton Business Journal April 18, 2014

BY ERIC REINHARDTJOURNAL STAFF

F ive Star Urgent Care, which already has a pair of Southern Tier offices and a third one on the way, recently

opened its second Syracuse–area location.On March 28, the provider of walk-in, ur-

gent-care services announced the opening of a location at 3504 W. Genesee St. in the Fairmount area of Camillus, west of Syracuse.

The health-care provider first entered the Syracuse market last May when it opened a new facility on Route 11 in Cicero.

It also operates locations in Ithaca, Big Flats, and Jamestown.

“In looking at the Cicero location, I further looked deeper into Syracuse to see what needs there would be for urgent-care centers and determined that the area should support two more centers, thus coming to Camillus,” says Dr. John Radford, founder and majority owner of Five Star Urgent Care.

Radford has physician partners in the venture, he says, but declined to disclose how much each person owns.

Five Star also has plans to open offices in DeWitt and Corning, according to its website.

Radford is an emergency physician from Buffalo. Through his work in emergency departments, he’s seen an increase over the past five to 10 years in the need for urgent-care facilities, he says.

He was a partner in a large group in Buffalo that owned several urgent-care cen-ters and decided a few years ago “to branch out” on his own.

Radford worked with Tampa, Fla.–based National UC Realty, a realtor that “special-izes in finding prime sites that will maximize revenue” for new urgent-care facilities, ac-cording to its website.

National UC Realty is a division of Columbus, Ohio–based Zelnik Realty Group, Inc.

The company helps medical clinics with site location, examining population demo-graphics and traffic counts.

Five Star leases its space from the DeWitt–based Widewaters Group, Radford says. CBD Construction, part of the Syracuse–based CBD Cos., handled the build-out work on the Camillus clinic, he adds.

The cost to open a single clinic ranges from $850,000 to $1 million, depending on the center, Radford says.

To finance the opening in Big Flats, he used a loan from M&T Bank, which had the support of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“Once they saw the center was doing well, they backed us on our other sites,” he says.

A management and billing company in Ellicottville in Erie County serves as the headquarters for Five Star Urgent Care. The billing company sends bills and accepts pa-tient payments. The management company hires staff members, develops new sites, and handles managerial functions for the clinics, Radford says.

Five Star employs a total of 63 people, a majority of whom are full-time workers. The figure includes seven people working at the management and billing company.

“Like an emergency department … we have folks cross-train. If somebody were sick at one location, even from as far away as Jamestown, we bring somebody in to work at another location,” he says.

Doctors, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners comprise between 20 percent and 25 percent of Five Star’s employee count. Nurses make up 50 percent of the staff, and the remaining employees include X-ray technicians and front-end staff.

The Camillus office has 10 employees. Doctors at Five Star’s Cicero and Ithaca loca-tions also provide service in Camillus.

Five Star provides medical exams and treats all non-life threatening ailments, includ-ing bronchitis, sprains, and fractures. It can also apply stitches to minor open wounds.

Urgent-care clinics provide a “conve-nience” for patients, Radford says.

“We don’t see ourselves as a substitute for primary-care providers,” he adds.

Patients can seek treatment for stitches or broken bones in an urgent-care center for “a fraction of the cost.”

Five Star accepts most insurance plans and Medicare. For patients without insur-ance coverage, basic costs begin at $110.

“If they get procedures … that bill goes from $110 up to $175,” he says.

Five Star Urgent Care operates on a walk-in basis and doesn’t require an appointment.

The Camillus location operates seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. q

Contact Reinhardt at [email protected]

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Orband is re-elected as Hinman, Howard & Kattell managing partner

BINGHAMTON — The partners of Binghamton–based law firm Hinman, Howard & Kattell, LLP have re-elected James W. Orband as managing partner for another five-year term.

Orband joined Hinman, Howard & Kattell on Sept. 10, 1984, and became a partner in the firm on Jan. 1, 1991. He has served as manag-ing partner of the law firm since Jan. 1, 1999. Orband’s new term will run through Dec. 31, 2018, the

firm said in a news release.In addition to his managing-partner

duties, Orband maintains an active legal practice, focusing in the areas of banking, construction and corporate law, and merg-ers and acquisitions, the firm said in the release. He graduated from Binghamton University in 1981 and received his juris doctorate from Albany Law School of Union University in 1984.

Orband is a member of the New York state, Pennsylvania, and Florida bar as-sociations. He served as chairman of the Business Law Section of the New York State Bar and was also chairman of its Banking Law Committee.

Hinman, Howard & Kattell was organized in 1902, and has occupied offices in the Security Mutual Building in downtown Binghamton since 1905. The firm employs attorneys in 10 office locations throughout four states and has a total staff of more than 200 employees, according to the news release. Those offices include Syracuse and Oneonta.

News of note for and about Greater Binghamton businesses

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Five Star Urgent Care opens second Syracuse–area office

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Five Star Urgent Care technicians

enter patient information into

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April 18, 2014 The Greater Binghamton Business Journal • 3

By NormaN PolteNsoNJournal Staff

ONEONTA — At the start of 2014, Ioxus, Inc. leased an additional 24,000 square feet of manufacturing space. The high-tech company, which is nearing production ca-pacity, expects to open a second Oneonta facility in April for electrode and module assemblies of its ultracapacitors.

Ioxus was founded in 2007 and is head-quartered in Oneonta in the former National Soccer Hall of Fame. Its two plants in Oneonta (40,000 and 24,000 square feet, re-spectively) are complemented by a research and development lab near Schenectady and another manufacturing plant in Japan (30,000 square feet), acquired in 2012 for its expertise in producing lightweight, high-power, and high-energy density cells using a prismatic pouch design.

“Ioxus is the only fully integrated ultraca-pacitor design and manufacturing facility in North America,” says Mark E. McGough, the company’s president and CEO. “We produce a family of energy-storage prod-ucts for transportation, renewable-energy, and industrial applications. Our proprietary ultracapacitors provide modules in a wide voltage range and in different configura-tions.”

Capacitors are electric-circuit elements designed to store an electric charge tem-porarily and have been used for more than 100 years to augment batteries by quickly absorbing and discharging energy. “Ultracapacitors are now 1,000 times more powerful than batteries and are capable of

cycling (charging and recharging) a million times,” exclaims McGough. “They are both reliable and also operate in a wide tempera-ture range.”

Ioxus is owned by a group of venture-capital funds. In June 2008, the company raised $5 million in its series-A offer. The series-B offer 27 months later raised $25 million. The series-C offer, which opened in July 2013 and is still open, has raised $16 million to date. Ioxus is already consider-ing a series-D offer. The investors include Braemar Energy Ventures; Northwater Capital Management Inc.; Aster Capital, comprised of Alstom SA, Schneider Electric SA, and Solvay SA; and Energy Technology Ventures, a joint venture of General Electric, ConocoPhillips, and NRG Energy, Inc. The series-C offer was led by The Westerly Group.

Growth storyThe recent venture-capital investment

has helped to propel the exponential growth at Ioxus. While Ioxus doesn’t release its revenue figures, Inc. magazine listed it at $5.4 million (2012 figures) with a 467 percent growth rate over the previous year. The magazine also labeled Ioxus as the 38th fastest-growing energy company.

As of early February, Ioxus employed 140 people companywide. “We anticipate hiring another 30 to 40 this year,” McGough says. Current employment places 100 in Oneonta, 15 in Schenectady, and 25 in Japan. New hires in 2014 will support the expanded Oneonta operation.

Ioxus’s growth is also propelled by the

growing demand for ultracapacitors. “In the short-term,” McGough points out, “Ioxus is focused on ‘winning’ applications. In the transportation industry, we are shipping our ‘ultracaps’ to hybrid-diesel bus manu-facturers. Our iMOD modules improve the buses’ fuel economy by 55 percent. They are particularly effective in accelerating

from a stop to 5 miles an hour, when the diesel is burning a lot of fuel and generat-ing little torque. We also have a customer setting up a demonstration project for the Long Island Railroad, which serves com-muters in the greater metro area.

Ioxus forges triple-digit growth

norman poltenson/tHe greater bingHamton bUsiness JoUrnal

mark e. mcGough, president and Ceo of Ioxus, Inc., stands on a balcony above the production floor. the company produces ultracapacitors for the transportation and renewable-energy industrials, as well as for other industrial applications. mcGough is holding an imoD module from the shipment immediately behind him.

see Ioxus, page 8

http://www.nysif.com


Highlights from the Greater Binghamton Business Expo

BY NICOLE COLLINSJOURNAL STAFF

BINGHAMTON — If you were walk-ing around the 27th annual Greater Binghamton Business Expo (GBBE) on April 10 and noticed fire hats, it wasn’t because the arena was on fire.

The flare came courtesy of Curcio Printing, a Vestal–based commercial printing company, which adopted a fire-house theme for this year’s expo held at the Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena in downtown Binghamton.

Contestants who visited the Curcio booth won a fire hat if they tossed a ring around an orange cone. The company let contestants keep trying until they won.

These efforts landed the company the “best booth” award, as voted on by at-tendees. Last year, Curcio Printing had attendees rope a model calf in order to win a cowboy hat.

For the 2014 expo, the Greater

Binghamton Chamber of Commerce re-vealed a rebranded show, and kicked off the event with a video presentation that showcased the new design and what to expect from the future of the local busi-ness community.

Also new to the expo this year, NewsChannel 34 in Binghamton set up a press booth with local newscaster Jim Ehmke interviewing sponsors and exhibi-tors about their businesses.

More than 90 local businesses and nonprofits took up booths at the event to promote their products and services.

Attendees walked out with business-labeled re-useable bags of all colors filled with endless schwag, including night-lights from NYSEG, desk calendars from Carr Printing, and hand-held ice-scrapers and water bottles from ACHIEVE, along with candy and cookies galore from nu-merous exhibitors. q

Contact Collins at [email protected]

NICOLE COLLINS/THE GREATER BINGHAMTON BUSINESS JOURNAL

Top left and right: Some of the vendors at this year’s GBBE. Above: the Business Journal News Network’s Dan Buddie, right, is interviewed by Jim Ehmke.

BY JOURNAL STAFF

ELMIRA — Chemung Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: CHMG) announced it has added G. Thomas Tranter, Jr., of Horseheads, and Thomas R. Tyrrell, of Loudonville, to the board of directors of Chemung Financial and its primary sub-sidiary, Chemung Canal Trust Company.

Tranter is president of Corning Enterprises, a unit of Corning, Inc. He joined Corning in 2000 after serv-ing 10 years as Chemung County ex-ecutive. Tranter previously was Chemung County deputy executive, Horseheads vil-

lage manager, and executive director of the Chemung/Schuyler Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Tranter currently serves as co-chairman of the Southern Tier Regional Economic Council for New York State, is vice chair of the New York State Business Council, and vice chair of Corning Hospital.

Tyrrell, a native of Albany, is the Albany–area chairman of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., an international service provider of property/casualty insurance, and risk-management programs. Tyrrell has been in the insurance industry his entire career. He joined Fuller & O’Brien in 1974 and served as president and CEO until 2008, when the company was sold to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Throughout his insurance

career he has specialized in the construc-tion industry, with particular emphasis on the heavy highway, bridge, and general building construction disciplines.

Tyrrell currently serves as chairman of the St. Peter’s Hospital Foundation board of directors and is a member of the board of the Eastern Contractors’ Association of New York State, the Empire Broadcasting Company, Maria College of Albany, the Albany Police and Fire Foundation, and Saint Gregory’s School for Boys. He has also served on the Advisory Board of Capital Bank, the Albany division of Chemung Canal Trust Company. q

Chemung Financial board adds Tranter, Tyrell as new directors

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by nicole collinsjournal staff

T ompkins County and Chemung County are the healthiest and unhealthiest counties, respectively, in

Central New York, according to a recent national report.

Tompkins County is also one of the healthiest counties statewide, ranking second out of the 62 New York counties, according to the fifth edition of “County Health Rankings.” It’s a report compiled by researchers at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.

Of the other 15 Central New York coun-ties, Tioga and Madison also place among the healthiest.

Tompkins’ Southern Tier counterpart, Chemung County, is among the unhealthi-est counties in the state, ranking at number 60 out of 62 New York counties. Most of the remaining Central New York counties fall in the middle of the health rankings among Empire State counties.

The report compares the health of coun-ties within a state based on 29 factors, in-cluding smoking, unemployment, access to healthy foods, and physical inactivity. This year’s report also features six new mea-surements — housing, transportation, food

environment, mental health, injury-related deaths, and exercise opportunities.

The counties then receive two rankings based on a weighted summary of the mea-surements, health outcomes, and health factors. “Health outcomes represent how healthy a county is while health factors represent what influences the health of the county,” the report says.

Jefferson County, the fastest growing coun-ty in New York state, ranks 31 for health outcomes, but comes in lower for health fac-tors, ranking No. 52. Fellow North Country county, St. Lawrence, is among the unhealthy counties, as it ranks number 55 for health out-comes and number 56 for health factors.

Livingston County in Western New York and downstate Nassau County rank first in health outcomes and health factors, respec-tively. Bronx County, also downstate, is the unhealthiest county in the state based on the rankings. It comes in last (No. 62) for both health outcomes and factors.

As a whole, New York state is the 15th healthiest state in the nation, as determined by a different report, “America’s Health Ranking,” a long-running annual assess-ment of the nation’s health on a state-by-state basis. q


Report identifies CNY’s healthiest and unhealthiest counties

CNY counties rank among New York State’s 62 counties in the 2014 County Health Rankings

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Where do CNY counties rank among New York’s 62 counties in “2014 County Health Rankings“?

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New York state approves Binghamton University’s participation in START-UP NY BY JOURNAL STAFF

BINGHAMTON — Empire State Development (ESD), New York’s eco-nomic-development agency, has approved Binghamton University’s application to par-ticipate in START-UP NY, the school an-nounced April 8.

START-UP NY is Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s offer to new or expanding companies and business ventures to operate completely tax-free in areas on or connected to cam-puses of the State University of New York.

Binghamton University identified space

on campus and in the community that could accommodate new or expanding business-es hoping to take advantage of the state’s offer to operate tax-free for 10 years.

Eligible startups that collaborate with the university would be exempt from state income, business, and corporate taxes. They would also be exempt from sales and property taxes.

“We want to collaborate with companies whose products and technologies align with [Binghamton] University’s research and academic missions,” Harvey Stenger, president of Binghamton University, said in

a news release.The university is

targeting technol-ogy businesses with expertise in the areas of health sciences, smart energy, and microelectronics integration and packag-ing.

The school’s Innovative Technologies Complex in Vestal has startup suites that will soon accommodate new START-UP NY companies. Campuswide, Binghamton has 21 offices in which startup companies could operate, the school said.

Binghamton University and its foundation are also building the Southern

Tier High Technology Incubator in down-town Binghamton, which will provide near-ly 20,000 square feet of space that can host up to 10 new high-tech businesses, accord-ing to the school.

Binghamton University’s partnership with new or expanding companies under the START-UP NY program “can begin im-mediately,” the university said. q

pounded rate of 6.2 percent compared to an industry average of just 2 percent.

The concept of mutual insurance in America dates back to 1752 when Ben Franklin brought independent, fire-fight-ing companies together to form the first successful fire-insurance company in the colonies. The concept was designed to offer the public lower-cost insurance than could be obtained from a stock company, which needed to show a profit and satisfy third-party investors as well as the policy-holders.

In 1896, Frank E. Holmes, who grew up on a farm outside New Berlin, decided to model his own insurance company on Ben Franklin’s original concept. The business was incorporated as the Preferred Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Chenango County and employed three people. The founder of Preferred Mutual introduced two new ideas to Franklin’s model: He insisted on receiving advanced premium payments, and he sold the policies through agents. The first year in business generated assets of $4,559.89, premium income of $11,871.14, and a surplus of $4,539.89.

In 1899, the offices of Preferred Mutual burned to the ground along with 11 other buildings. Holmes, ironically, carried no fire insurance on his business property. The company quickly regained its foot-ing and began a long record of growth and profitability. Today, Preferred Mutual Insurance Co., which changed its name in 1957, employs 270 people — with 240 of those residing in Central New York. The company owns its 84,000-square-foot head-quarters, another 18,000-square-foot office in Norwich, and leases space for its office in Latham, near Albany.

Preferred Mutual’s key numbersAccording to the 2013 Preferred

Mutual annual report, the insurance car-rier operates in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, serv-ing 235,000 individual and business cus-tomers through 457 independent insurance agents. As of Dec. 31, 2013, company assets totaled $484.84 million, premium income (direct-written) equaled $279 million, and the surplus topped $185 million. The an-nual payroll is $17.5 million. Revenue totals $295 million, which includes the premiums, another $11 million from investment in-come, and $5 million from other sources.

“Most people think of us as selling

property-and-casualty insurance such as homeowners, auto, business-owners, and commercial packages,” says Christopher Paul Taft, president and CEO of Preferred Mutual, “which is true. But what the in-dustry really sells is a promise that we will be there for you [in the event of a claim]. It’s all about trust and living up to prom-ises. Our role is to separate ourselves from the competition who all promise the same thing. Our challenge is to convince our business partners (agents) and customers of three things: our stability, our service, and the fact that the products are current and relevant.”

To ensure its position in the market-place, Preferred Mutual decided in the 1990s to withdraw from six of the 10 states in which it sold insurance. “The board [of directors] made a strategic decision to be number one in the marketplaces served,” asserts Taft. “We couldn’t be number one in 10 states, so we stopped selling insur-ance in Ohio, Connecticut, Florida, the Carolinas, and Rhode Island. When we consolidated [our sales area], premiums shrank by $27 million. At the time, no agent sold more than $1 million in premiums; today, we have more than 70 agents [each] selling in excess of $1 million annually. This was a critical move to position us for con-tinued growth, as evidenced by an overall 7 percent increase in premium dollars last year over 2012. [Of the growth in 2013,] … the commercial lines increased 18 percent, which is helping to move us from a 75/25 ratio of personal to commercial lines to-ward a 60/40 ratio.”

Preferred Mutual’s peopleWhen asked why Preferred Mutual is

consistently successful in growing the company’s premiums and profitability, the president points to the employees and to the board of directors. “We focus on talent,” asserts Taft, “especially in the last decade. Our employees are our primary resource, and it’s management’s role to develop each one to … [his or her] maximum. Preferred Mutual has a very knowledgeable staff which is encouraged to grow personally and to help their … [fellow] employees grow. On average, the staff earns 50 new, job-related certifications yearly in areas such as underwriting, claims, project-man-agement, and risk management, an effort supported by tuition reimbursement and direct company payment. In addition, we sponsor educational monetary awards and funds for continuing education for employ-

ees pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree.”

To create the optimum work environ-ment for the staff, Preferred Mutual says it invested $1.5 million over the past two years updating facilities. “We invested this money not only to make the workplace more pleasant, but also to help form an environment that promotes an entrepre-neurial spirit,” declares Taft. “We believe strongly in empowering the employees to collaborate with agency partners to help the customers identify the right solutions to meet their needs. You can’t become the most highly regarded insurance company without an exceptional [corporate] culture that fosters a team relationship to deliver superior insurance products and customer service that is unsurpassed … The key words to our continual growth are ‘innova-tive,’ ‘ethical,’ ‘responsive,’ ‘passionate,’ and ‘collaborative.’ ”

In describing the Preferred Mutual cul-ture, Taft notes the importance of trans-parency in operations. “If you truly want your employees to be empowered, it’s not enough just to say the words,” he says. “How can they make decisions unless they understand the impact on the com-pany’s bottom line? If you want to hire the best [people] and encourage them to take responsibility, they can’t be accountable without understanding the company P&L (profit-and-loss statement). That’s why we created ‘The Connection’, which updates every employee monthly on our perfor-mance. The staff also gathers quarterly to hear from senior management on our progress. That’s how we hold ourselves accountable. At year-end, our policy is to distribute 6 percent of the bottom line to re-ward the employees for their contribution. After all, they should share in the financial success.”

Taft next shifts his praise to the board of directors. “We have a brilliant group of leaders on the board who help to give us a competitive advantage,” opines the president. “Their role is vision and gover-nance: They have to be two steps ahead and looking around the corner [to see what’s coming], identifying strategic investments [at least] three years out. Everybody on our board has run a company, and each takes a personal interest in his or her role at Preferred Mutual. The board has a keen level of awareness [of how the company runs], and the members meet quarterly to measure how well we are executing.”

TechnologyPreferred Mutual’s efforts to differenti-

ate itself on its service and be current rest in large part on the firm’s investment in technology. “Technology drives revenue,” asserts Taft. “We started using computers decades ago, largely for electronic storage. Then we discovered efficiencies in data sharing, and by the 1990s the company really began to understand the value of the data it had. In 2000, we started mak-ing better business decisions by creating analytic models, and we made it easier for our agents and customers to do business with us through our customer portals. We continue to strive to make our systems user-friendly by [simultaneously] expand-ing the amount of information available while reducing any friction [in the tech-nology platform].In addition, technology makes it easier for us to attract outstanding employees who prefer to work remotely.” Preferred Mutual has 33 employees in its IT department.

According to Taft, being an industry leader also involves giving back to the communities in which Preferred Mutual operates. In 2013, the company launched a program to encourage its employees to support local charities by matching their in-dividual contributions up to $300. Preferred Mutual continues to sponsor commu-nity events and organizations including the YMCA, American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, performances at the Chenango Council of Arts, Chenango Memorial Hospital Foundation, Bassett Hospital, and the Chenango United Way, to name a few. The sponsorships are underwritten by the Preferred Mutual Foundation, a 501(c)(3) corporation with assets of $1 million, which acts as the

PREFERRED MUTUAL: Firm says it invested $1.5 million over the past two years updating facilitiesContinued from page 1

See PREFERRED MUTUAL, page 9

When asked why Preferred Mutual is consistently

successful in growing the company’s premiums and profitability, the president points to the employees

and to the board of directors.


Profiling local

nonprofit organizations

NonprofitFINANCIAL DATA

Fiscal year ending June 30, 2012Roberson Museum and Science Center

30 Front St.Binghamton, NY 13905Phone: (607) 772-0660

Roberson.orgKEY STAFF

Executive Director Terry McDonaldExecutive Director’s Compensation from 2012 Form 990 $82,104Marketing & Public Relations Manager Jason FiumeBusiness Operations Manager Brian LakeDirector of Education and Visitor Services Danielle Britton

BOARD OF TRUSTEES OFFICERSCHAIRPERSON

Glenn Small M&T BankVICE CHAIRPERSON

David Guy Broome County Surrogate JudgeTREASURER

Diana Robertson Johnson, Lauder & Savidge LLPSECRETARY

Patrick Doyle Doyle Consulting

BOARD MEMBERSDiana Bendz National Initiative for Girls in Math and ScienceSherman Bodner Press & Sun BulletinMarcia Craner Binghamton UniversityPeter Cronk VolunteerDavid Dixon Broome County Historical SocietyPatrick Doyle Doyle ConsultingStacey Duncan Broome County Land BankScott Gerhart Universal InstrumentsMark S. Gorgos Coughlin & Gerhart LLPDavid Guy Broome County Surrogate JudgeDavid Harris Delta EngineeringAngela Kehoe interior designerKathleen Lake Raymond CorporationJamye Lindsey Levene Goulding & Thompson LLPMarion Martinez Binghamton schoolsHeather Miller UHS HospitalsRobert S. Roberson VolunteerDiana Robertson Johnson, Lauder & Savidge LLPGlenn Small M&T BankDan Zimmerman Data Flow, Inc.

PROGRAMS & SERVICESRoberson Museum and Science Center provides a “tremendous variety of school programs” meeting both New York state and Pennsylvania education standards. It also offers summer camps from June to August. Special events and programs throughout the year focus on creating unique learning opportunities and memorable experiences. For its an-nual Home for the Holidays event, the entire museum is decorated with “dazzling displays” to showcase holiday traditions from around the world.

RECENT ORGANIZATIONAL HIGHLIGHTSThe Roberson celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2014. It just opened its newest exhibition, “Journey From Our Prehistoric Past.” The exhibit features fossils and bones from some of New York state’s earliest life forms. The exhibit is a partnership with the New York State Museum and the Museum of the Earth. Its New Year’s Eve Masquerade in the Mansion sold out for the third straight year. The Roberson’s 14th Annual Wine and Food Fest on April 24 is sold out, marking the fourth straight sell-out. Several new additions have been added to the model train display, the largest public model train layout in the region.

PLANNING/FUNDRAISING OUTLOOK FOR 2014:“As part of our 60-year celebration, the annual fund drive will focus on infrastructure and HVAC improvements to the mansion and museum. Facilities’ improvements will ensure Roberson Museum and Science Center is around for at least another 60 years.” The museum will also put up a 50s/60s era exhibition in late 2014.

Revenue SourcesContributions & Grants $660,884Program Services $278,426Investment Income $4,867Other $242,973

Total Revenue $1,187,150

ExpendituresSalaries & Employee Benefits $507,851Other $466,204

Total Expenses $974,055Surplus for the Year $213,095

BY NICOLE COLLINSJOURNAL STAFF

BINGHAMTON — As the Roberson Museum and Science Center marks its 60th year in Binghamton, it expands its mission to provide region-focused programs and exhibitions while mak-ing improvements to the facility.

“Even now, our exhibitions and programs emphasize the history, cul-ture, and products of New York,” says Terry McDonald, executive director of the Roberson Museum and Science Center.

In March, the museum opened its newest exhibit, “Journey From Our Prehistoric Past.” This collection, with pieces on loan from the New York State Museum in Albany and Museum of the Earth in Ithaca, showcases some of New York’s earliest life forms, chang-ing environment, and geologic forma-tion. Visitors will see ice age mammals, the region’s only dinosaur, and the skull and tusks from the Randolph Mammoth, one of the most complete mammoth specimens ever found in New York state.

The Roberson is also expanding its partnership with the New York State Museum, which is under the umbrella of the Office of Cultural Education (OCE) within the New York State Education Department (NYSED). The collaboration of the two museums began in November 2012, when the state museum asked the Roberson Museum and Science Center if it wanted to host the traveling Abraham Lincoln exhibit.

The Roberson accepted the oppor-tunity, becoming one of just eight sites statewide to display the “Abraham Lincoln Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation” exhibit.

Since then, the Roberson has en-gaged OCE, along with faculty from Binghamton University, in developing future programs. In March, the mu-seum hosted a regional conference for formal and informal educators to learn how they can incorporate and access cultural resources for their curriculum, as well as to interact with each other. More than 200 educators attended, and the conference featured a keynote speaker from NYSED.

The Roberson is also now on OCE’s four-year strategic plan under partner-ships, along with two other museums, the Burchfield Penney Art Center in Buffalo and the Studio Museum in Harlem.

McDonald speculates that the Roberson Museum and Science Center was selected to be part of the strategic plan because of the positive outcomes of the short-term exhibit of OCE’s

artifacts and the museum’s interest in further showcasing other New York state treasures.

Going forward, McDonald sees the Roberson playing a leading role in mar-keting the Binghamton community, attracting tourism to the region, and embracing Binghamton’s presence as the gateway to New York. To make this happen, she is working on collaborat-ing with the city of Binghamton, which owns the Roberson building, and other local organizations to highlight what is central to Binghamton.

The Roberson is Greater Binghamton’s largest year-round tour-ist attraction and houses the city’s visitor center. With nine full-time em-ployees and an operating budget of just under $900,000, the museum attracted 50,000 visitors in 2013, up about 20

CornerRoberson Museum shows off New York State

Roberson Museum factsn Founded: 1954n Employees: 9 full timen Volunteers: 137n Service Area: Greater Binghamton, Southern Tier, CNY, sur-rounding statesn Mission: The Roberson Museum and Science Center engages people of all ages and backgrounds by pro-viding regionally significant exhibi-tions and programs in art, history, and science education.

See ROBERSON, page 11

Terry McDonald, executive director of the Roberson Museum and Science Center.

PHOTO COURTESY OF TERRY MCDONALD FACEBOOK PAGE


“In the renewable-energy business, our products control blade pitch in the giant wind turbines that are dotting the land, and drive solar heliostats that are used in solar-panel systems for tracking the sun. The industrial applications for our modules include auto-guided vehicles, cranes, and lift trucks.”

While focused on current markets, Ioxus sees huge, longer-term growth, especially in the auto industry. “Hybrid cars represent a fraction of the 80 million

cars built worldwide every year,” declares McGough. “In the U.S., which represents nearly a quarter of the world’s demand, the industry is driven by the new CAFÉ standards (corporate average fuel econ-omy) established by the EPA. To meet these standards, car manufacturers need to make their vehicle fleets more efficient. Ioxus can offer hybrids, gas, and diesel cars a product that not only boosts fuel economy but also is priced economically in the $80 to $180 range.”

McGough estimates today’s world mar-ket for ultracapacitors at around $350 mil-

lion, growing to $7 billion by 2020. Ioxus projects its market share to be in the 10 percent to 20 percent range by 2020. In the U.S., the company sells its products di-rectly to its customers, in China it sells both directly and through distributors, and in Europe relies only on distributors. Ioxus’s customers are located throughout the U.S., China, Japan, and Europe.

Hiring talentIoxus has assembled an impressive

management team. McGough has been the president since September 2010. Chad

Hall, a co-founder of the company, is the vice president for marketing and product management; Ken Rudisuela is chief tech-nology officer; Henry Barber serves as the CFO; Philip Meek is COO; Nick Cataldo is senior vice president for sales and mar-keting; and Hiroyoshi Okutani is general manager of the company’s Ioxus Power Systems division in Japan.

McGough is equally concerned about creating a dynamic production staff. “I interview every candidate before hiring,” stresses McGough. “I can’t afford any deadwood … Everyone has to come to work every day and do an ‘A’ job. We draw our production workers [primarily] from Delaware and Otsego counties … They need to be educated, reliable, capable of cross-training, and willing to grow [in the job]. Ioxus is building world-class products that need to be consistent. That means con-stant training … Since last year, we have put a priority on learning.

“To find Ph.D.s, we need to draw from a wider area. This is a research company at heart where 25 to 30 members of our staff are currently employed in research. We search out candidates in New York and Boston and overseas. We’re the most advanced R&D company in the market and it’s our cutting-edge technology that keeps us ahead of the competition.” The lobby wall at headquarters is filled with the com-pany’s patents, attesting to the emphasis on research.

McGough formerly served as the presi-dent and CEO of Pentadyne Power Corp., Envinta Corp., and Energetics, PLC. He also was a division president at Maxwell Technologies, where he launched a new business unit focused on ultracapacitors. Maxwell is a major competitor of Ioxus.

McGough has been instrumental in rais-ing most of the venture capital for Ioxus, and he spearheaded the acquisition of Power Systems Co., Ltd. in Japan.

He is often asked why Ioxus chose Oneonta for its headquarters. “First, it’s inexpensive to manufacture here,” pos-its McGough. “Second, the workforce is dependable. There is a solid work ethic among the area residents. Third, New York state has bent over backwards to help us get started. We have received grants for our research and worker train-ing, loans from the county, and grants from NYSEG to fit out the plant. Both U.S. senators and our state senator were proactive in reaching out to us to see what we needed. I think we should be the poster child for ‘Start-up New York.’ And fourth, when we spun off from Custom Electronics, my goal was to build a world-class company right here in Oneonta.” Ioxus also received $1.4 million in fed-eral funds through the office of U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D–NY).

McGough says his goal in the short-term is to quickly build a company with a few hundred million dollars in sales and solid margins. If his projections for a 10 percent to 20 percent share of a $7 billion market in 2020 are accurate, Ioxus could well be a $1 billion company, helping to spearhead the economic revival of the Oneonta com-munity. q

Contact Poltenson at [email protected]

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IOXUS: Firm sees huge, longer-term growth, especially in the auto industry

Continued from page 3

http://www.bsk.com


GREATER BINGHAMTON LARGEST EMPLOYERSRanked by Number of GB FT Employees

Rank

NameAddressPhone/Web site

No. of FTEmployees:

GB/CNY2013

Revenue Type of Business

Parent Co.—

Headquarters Key ExecutivesYear

Estab.

1.UHS10-42 Mitchell Ave.Binghamton, NY 13903(607) 762-2176/uhs.net

5,557/5,750 NA health-care provider same Matthew J. Salanger, CEO 1981

2.Binghamton UniversityP.O. Box 6000Binghamton, NY 13902(607) 777-2000/binghamton.edu

5,000/5,000 $295.8M educational institution State University of NewYork—

Albany

Harvey G. Stenger, PresidentJames Van Voorst, Vice President for

Administration

1946

3.Lockheed Martin Mission Systems &Training1801 State Route 17COwego, NY 13827(607) 751-2200/lockheedmartin.com/ms2

2,600/4,200 $45.4B provides systems engineering,software development, and complex

program management for globalsecurity, civil, and commercial

markets

Lockheed MartinCorporation

—Bethesda, MD

Dan Spoor, VP & Owego General ManagerGreg Larioni, VP & Syracuse General

Manager

1957

4.Lourdes Hospital169 Riverside DriveBinghamton, NY 13905(607) 798-5111/lourdes.com

1,763/1,763 $269.2M health care Ascension Health—

St. Louis, MO

David Patak, President & CEO 1925

5.The Raymond Corporation20 S. Canal St.Greene, NY 13778(607) 656-2311/raymondcorp.com

1,500/1,670 NA designs and manufactures electric lifttrucks, fleet management solutions

Toyota Industries Corp.—

Japan

Mike Field, President, Operations &Engineering Division

Tim Combs, EVP Sales and Marketing

1922

6.BAE Systems1098 Clark St.Endicott, NY 13760(607) 343-6141/baesystems.com

1,350/1,350 NA designs, develops, and producescontrol electronics for military andcivilian aircraft and ground vehicles

BAE Systems plc—

London, England

Dan Gobel, PresidentAmar Rai, Site Executive-Endicott

1949

7.Chobani147 State Highway 320Norwich, NY 13815(607) 337-1246/chobani.com

1,225/1,225 NA dairy manufacturing Chobani, Inc.—

Norwich

Hamdi Ulukaya, Founder & CEODavid Denholm, PresidentJames McConeghy, CFO

Halil Ulukaya, COO

2005

8.Maines Paper & Food Service, Inc.101 Broome Corporate ParkwayConklin, NY 13748(607) 779-1200/maines.net

1,100/1,100 $3B food-service distributor same—

Conklin

Christopher Mellon, President & CEOTerri Deane, SVP & CFO

1919

9.SUNY Broome Community College907 Upper Front St.Binghamton, NY 13905(607) 778-5001/sunybroome.edu

751/751 NA higher education SUNY Kevin E. Drumm, President 1946

10.NYSEG18 Link DriveBinghamton, NY 13904(800) 572-1111/nyseg.com

740/1,070 NA NYSEG, a subsidiary of Iberdrola USA,serves 878,000 electricity customersand 261,000 natural gas customers

across upstate New York

Iberdrola USA—

New Gloucester, ME

Mark S. Lynch, President & CEO, NYSEG andRG&E (Rochester Gas and Electric)

1852

11.NBT Bank52 S. Broad St.Norwich, NY 13815(607) 337-2265/nbtbank.com

645/1,181 $371.9M financial institution NBT Bancorp Inc.—

Norwich

Martin A. Dietrich, President & CEO 1856

12.Matrix Integrated Facility Management19 Avenue DJohnson City, NY 13790(607) 766-0700/cleanforhealth.com

600/1,250 NA facility management services such asjanitorial, site engineers, constructionclean-up, and material handling for

larger commercial and industrialcustomers

same—

Johnson City

James R. Peduto, CEO & PresidentTom Niland, EVP

Mark Putrino, Controller

1996

corporate-giving arm. The foundation also grants four college scholarships annually, without any preference for the families of company employees.

Giving back means more than donating money. “Our employees donate thousands of hours as volunteers to help our com-munities,” Taft says with pride. “When the Mohawk Valley was devastated by floods, nearly 30 [company] employees volunteered to help in the affected communities. Closer to home, Preferred Mutual employees cleaned a stretch of Route 8 in New Berlin. In ad-dition to volunteering, the employees also raise their own funds to donate for disaster relief, not just at home but as far away as the Tuscaloosa Disaster Relief Fund. These are just some examples of the broader commit-ment we cultivate here at the company.”

Taft, 49, is not only active in guiding Preferred Mutual as a growth and profit leader, but he also finds time to help guide the industry association — the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC). NAMIC is the country’s largest property/casualty insurance trade associa-

tion with 1,400 insurance companies writ-ing more than $196 billion in premiums annually. He currently serves on the board of directors and as the group’s secretary/treasurer.

Taft left Coopers & Lybrand to join Preferred Mutual in January 1995 as the vice president of financial services, advanc-ing to the position of CFO the following year. In 2006, he was promoted to president and COO before assuming his current role as president and CEO in 2009. A 1987 gradu-ate of Clarkson University, Taft is a certified insurance counselor and a licensed CPA. Raised in Utica, he married his high-school sweetheart, Maria. The couple resides in Clinton and has three children.

Preferred Mutual is projecting to add another $20 million in premium income this year, continuing the tradition Frank Holmes started of progressive growth and conservative financial management. The only difference between 1896 and today, aside from the size of the current organiza-tion, is that Preferred Mutual now carries fire insurance on its own property. q


PREFERRED MUTUAL: The insurance firm is projecting to add another $20 million in premium income this year

Continued from page 6

MARK YOUR CALENDAR! The next issue of The Greater Binghamton

Business Journal: June 27, 2014

THE LISTResearch by Nicole Collins

[email protected] (315) 579-3911

Twitter: @cnybjresearch

Look for the Hotels list in the next issue of the Greater Binghamton

Business Journal, June 27.

ABOUT THE LISTInformation was provided by representatives of listed organizations and their websites. Other groups may have been eligible but did not respond to our requests for information. While The Business Journal strives to print accurate information, it is not possible to independently verify all data submitted. We reserve the right to edit entries or delete categories for space considerations.

WHAT cOnSTITUTES THE GB REGIOn?For the purpose of this list, we included institutions in adjacent counties that serve students in our readership area. For this list, Greater Bingham-ton includes Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Otsego, Tioga and Tompkins counties.

nEEd A cOpy Of A LIST?Electronic versions of all our lists, with additional fields of information and survey contacts, are available for purchase at our website, cnybj.com/Research.aspx

WAnT TO BE On THE LIST?If your company would like to be considered for next year’s list, or another list, please email [email protected]

http://www.tiogabank.com


THE LISTResearch by Nicole Collins

[email protected] (315) 579-3911

Twitter: @cnybjresearch

NOTES1. i3 Electronics, Inc. is the former Endicott Interconnect Technologies

ABOUT THE LISTInformation was provided by representatives of listed organizations and their websites. Other groups may have been eligible but did not respond to our requests for information. While The Business Journal strives to print accurate information, it is not possible to independently verify all data submitted. We reserve the right to edit entries or delete categories for space considerations.

WHAT cONSTITUTES THE GB REGION?For the purpose of this list, we included institutions in adjacent counties that serve students in our readership area. For this list, Greater Bingham-ton includes Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Delaware, Otsego, Tioga and Tompkins counties.

NEEd A cOpy Of A LIST?Electronic versions of all our lists, with additional fields of information and survey contacts, are available for purchase at our website, cnybj.com/Research.aspx

WANT TO BE ON THE LIST?If your company would like to be considered for next year’s list, or another list, please email [email protected]

GREATER BINGHAMTON LARGEST EMPLOYERSRanked by Number of GB FT Employees

Rank

NameAddressPhone/Web site

No. of FTEmployees:

GB/CNY2013

Revenue Type of Business

Parent Co.—

Headquarters Key ExecutivesYear

Estab.

13.Frito-Lay, Inc.10 Spud RoadBinghamton, NY 13904(607) 775-7000/fritolay.com

550/550 $13B manufacturing and distribution ofsnack food

PepsiCo—

Purchase

Mitch Hamilton, Director of ManufacturingBrian Watson, Director of Logistics,

Distribution & TransportationTim Polman, Director of Technology

1974

14. i3 Electronics, Inc.11093 Clark St.Endicott, NY 13760(866) 820-4820/endicottinterconnect.com

500/500 NA provider of high-performanceelectronic-packaging solutions

same—

Endicott

Robert L. Nead, President 2002

15.Handicapped Children's Association ofSouthern New York, Inc.18 Broad St.Johnson City, NY 13790(607) 798-0074/hcaserves.com

400/400 $10.4M nonprofit organization that providesprograms and services to individualswith developmental disabilities and

their families

NA Steve Sano, Executive Director 1946

.Upstate Shredding, LLC1 Recycle DriveOwego, NY 13827(607) 687-7777/upstateshredding.com

400/400 $750M scrap metal recycling and processing NA—

Owego

Adam Weitsman, President 1938

17.Willow Run Foods, Inc1006 US Route 11Kirkwood, NY 13795(607) 338-5221/willowrunfoods.com

360/360 $500M Northeast and Mid-Atlantic fast foodsystems distributor

same—

Kirkwood

Terry Wood, CEO 1949

18.Visions FCU24 McKinley Ave.Endicott, NY 13760(607) 754-7900/visionsfcu.org

355/355 NA financial services NA—

Endwell

Tyrone Muse, President & CEO 1965

19.Security Mutual Life Insurance Companyof New York100 Court St.Binghamton, NY 13902(607) 723-3551/smlny.com

302/309 $323.7M manufacture, distribution, andadministration of life, disability, and

accident insurance, and annuityproducts

Security Mutual LifeInsurance Company of

New York—

Binghamton

Bruce W. Boyea, Chairman, President & CEO 1886

20.Buckingham Group, Inc.1-11 Travis Ave.Binghamton, NY 13904(607) 773-2400/buckinghammfg.com

277/277 NA climbing and fall protectionequipment for linemen and arborists

same—

Binghamton

H. Andrew Batty, Jr., PresidentJames Pennefeather, VP Sales and

MarketingJames Nichols, VP HR & Materials

1896

21.Universal Instruments Corporation33 Broome Corporate ParkwayConklin, NY 13748(607) 779-7522/uic.com

255/255 NA global leader in the design andmanufacture of advanced automationand assembly equipment solutions forthe electronics manufacturing industry

same—

Conklin

Jean-Luc Pelissier, President & CEOBrad Bennett, Director of Americas

Operations

1919

22.Achieve (NYSARC, Inc. Broome-TiogaChapter)125 Cutler Pond RoadBinghamton, NY 13905(607) 723-8361/achieveny.org

250/250 $19.5M nonprofit to advocate for an enhancedquality of life and independence ofpersons with intellectual and other

developmental disabilities

NYSARC, Inc.—

Delmar

Mary Jo Thorn, CEO 1956

23.Matthews Auto Group3721 Vestal RoadVestal, NY 13850(607) 798-8000/http://matthewsauto.com

200/200 $200 auto dealership same—

Vestal

Rob Matthews, President NA

24.Wegmans Food Markets, Inc.650 Harry L DriveJohnson City, NY 13790(607) 729-7782/wegmans.com

166/1,336 $7B an 83-store supermarket chain withstores in New York, Pennsylvania,

New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, andMassachusetts

same—

Rochester

Danny Wegman, CEOColleen Wegman, President

1916

We are now getting to know their children and even their grandchildren.” In 2013, the typical account size for Morgan McReynolds’ clients was about $1 million and the clients’ net worth averaged $3 million.

Navigating change and adversityMorgan McReynolds started with E.F. Hutton

in 1986. The stock-market crash in the fall of 1987 forced Hutton to merge with Shearson Lehman/American Express in 1988. The bro-kerage house subsequently changed names at a dizzying pace, becoming just Shearson, then Smith Barney Shearson, Shearson again, Citi Smith Barney, and finally Morgan Stanley. Morgan McReynolds became the Oneonta group’s managing director in 2005.

Through all the changes, Morgan McReynolds and her husband and business partner Tom Morgan focused on their clients. “I never believed in selling ‘hot stocks,’ ” as-serts Morgan McReynolds. “My approach was to think of the client first and look at a client’s total picture and give advice on not only invest-ing but also in financial planning, business suc-cession, and estate planning. When I started, we were called brokers. Now, we’re called financial advisors, but I always considered my role to be advisory. Whatever the name, it’s the idea of looking at the total picture and matching the client’s aspirations to a strategic plan, [i.e.,] total financial planning. There is no cookie-cutter approach; no canned plans. Every client is different.”

Morgan McReynolds says that the secret to her success is listening. “[In my first career], I was a journalist. I became passionate about writing after I won a Dow–Jones scholarship to a summer writing program at Blair Academy

in New Jersey. I took several jobs as a local newspaper reporter, including a … [stint] as a sports reporter, even though I was not athletic and knew nothing about sports or the lingo. I even talked a newspaper editor into making me the news director, to which he agreed as long as I sold advertising in addition to direct-ing the news. As a reporter, I was always a good listener which prepared me to listen to my financial clients.”

Tom Morgan, now retired from the busi-ness, has a broader view of the reasons for his wife’s success. “Her clients understand she cares about them,” avers Morgan. “She also has an unbelievable memory for their details and situations, wishes, and fears. If their affairs are particularly complicated, she has the per-fect mind for dealing with such. [Erna also] … brings excellent judgment to their situations. Many older clients feel she is like a daughter to them … [while] many younger clients feel she is like a mom to them. Her memory and judgment have helped her find solutions to some … [very] complex problems … [and her] solutions … have saved clients consider-able amounts of money … [Erna also] treats and trains her staff with care and caring. They have been faithful to her over many years, and together they are a formidable team.”

When Tom Morgan was in the business, he developed “Money Talk,” a radio show that runs on weekdays and also appears as a syndi-cated newspaper column. The radio and news-paper recognition attracted large numbers of people to his investment seminars. Those who attended already knew the Morgan name and investment philosophy, which proved more ef-fective than the typical prospect interviewing a financial-investment advisor. Not surprisingly, many of his attendees became clients. The broadcasts and columns brought investors

from Pennsylvania, Ohio, and locations all across Upstate.

How she startedUltimately, Erna Morgan McReynolds’s

success is due to her brains, hard work, and grit. She grew up in Gilbertsville, N.Y., an his-toric village in Otsego County, population 399. The family was poor, and Erna, at an early age, took responsibility for overseeing the family budget. When her father was unable to work, Erna’s mother took a job at the Bendix Corp., requiring Erna at age 8 to assume the cook-ing role for the family. In her early teens, she worked after school and on weekends, while earning perfect grades in school. She found time to develop a love for classical music and also enrolled in a Cordon Bleu cooking course. McReynolds read every book in the school library and then in the public library, while finishing her high-school curriculum and si-multaneously taking some college courses.

Her passion to live in another country took her to New Zealand, where she landed a job on a daily newspaper as the energy report-er. Shortly after she took on the assignment, the 1973 energy crisis erupted. Her stories got front-page leads. Next, she journeyed to London where she won a producer’s spot on the London Broadcasting Corp., eventually produc-ing the most widely listened-to radio program in Europe. McReynolds was 23. Tom Morgan, who had also grown up in Gilbertsville, was courting McReynolds at the time — long distance. He convinced her to return to New York City, where she became a producer for NBC radio and tele-vision, including the “Today Show.”

Today, The Morgan McReynolds Group serves individual and institutional clients in 22 states. It also provides consulting services to two Caribbean nations — Anguilla and

St. Lucia. “In 1994, we signed an agreement with the National Bank of Anguilla to pro-vide a broad range of investment services to its customers,” notes Morgan McReynolds. “The agreement was unique. We were proud to have been part of the development of the island … It’s important that their capital stays there and works for the community.” The Morgan McReynolds Group also pioneered the concept that some of these countries’ so-cial-security funds should be invested in stocks and bonds, and they pushed two of the islands to create and endow community foundations.

In addition to managing the group practice, Morgan McReynolds is active in the Otsego and Delaware counties’ communities. She helped to found the Executive Service Corps of the two counties, chaired the United Way, and served on the boards of the chamber of commerce, Hartwick College, and Friends of Bassett. She also served on the boards of the Orpheus Theatre, the Indian Hills Girl Scout Advisory Council, the New York State Historical Association Development Committee, and the Catskill Symphony Orchestra. Along with hus-band Tom, she has been an active fund-raiser for the Franklin Stage Co. and the Catskill Area Hospice. In 1997, the couple set up the Tom Morgan & Erna J. McReynolds Charitable Foundation, which makes grants for cultural, educational, and artistic endeavors. In 2011, according to the most recent reporting on file, the foundation reported assets of $328,241 and revenue of $47,837. It disbursed $20,855.

Morgan McReynolds and her husband of 30 years reside in the town of Franklin in Delaware County, surrounded by 100,000 daf-fodils. As long as people continue to listen to her, she has no plans to retire. q


ERNA: Today, The Morgan McReynolds Group serves individual and institutional clients in 22 statesContinued from page 1


advertising agenciesRosanne Sall Advertising has named Thomas Raff general manager of the agency. He joined Rosanne Sall Advertising in 2001 as creative director after a 23-year career with WBNG-TV as a videographer/editor and production manager overseeing the vast majority of advertising campaigns in the marketplace. Raff has created multi-media campaigns utilizing radio, television, print, Internet, outdoor, and direct mail for a wide variety of clients. He is an alumnus of Binghamton University.

bankingNBT Bank Greater Binghamton has hired Kevin O’Hara as se-nior vice president and regional commercial-banking manager. He has 23 years experience in the financial-services industry. Most recently, O’Hara was commer-cial lending relation-ship manager and team leader at M&T Bank in Binghamton. Prior to that, he was a commer-cial lender at BSB Bank & Trust. O’Hara earned his bachelor’s degree in finance and business economics from Alfred University. Steven Bulger has been hired by NBT as senior vice president and director of retail sales. He has 19 years experience in the financial-services industry. Most recently, Bulger was senior vice president of retail branch op-erations for PNC Bank in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. Previously, he was executive vice president and director of retail branch operations for HSBC Finance Canada. Other positions at HSBC included senior vice presi-dent and division general manager, district sales manager, and director of sales for HSBC’s Beneficial Group. Bulger earned his bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of South Carolina. He holds a Six Sigma Black Belt in process im-

provement from Eckes and Associates and his executive mastery certification from Gap International.

Tioga State Bank announced that April J. Kane-Lawrence has joined the mort-gage origination team. She will focus her ef-forts in the Owego and Endwell markets. Kane-Lawrence has more than 10 years mortgage-servicing ex-perience and has received an associate de-gree from SUNY Broome and a bachelor’s degree from SUNY Oneonta.

health careSummit Dental Arts announced that Carolyn Riley, D.D.S. and Ryan Olbrys, D.D.S. became partners on Jan. 1. Summit Dental Arts is a team of six dentists, sup-ported by a staff of about 30 hygienists, assistants, and office personnel, providing a full-range of dental services. It has offices in Binghamton and Endicott.

insuranceJamie Zuk has joined Preferred Mutual Insurance Company as a no-fault claims repre-sentative. Before join-ing Preferred Mutual, she was a recruitment and outreach specialist for Bassett Healthcare Cancer Services Program of Delaware Otsego Schoharie Counties. Lori Hubiak was recently promoted to liability claims rep-resentative at the firm. Prior to this position, she was an associate claims representative in the no-fault unit. Hubiak is a graduate of Wells College. Amy Law was recently promoted to financial operations manager at Preferred

Mutual. She previously was an account man-agement services su-pervisor in the finance department. Law is a graduate of the State University of New York College of Agriculture and Technology at Morrisville.

Catherine McArdle was recently promoted to field sales manager at Preferred Mutual Insurance. She joined Preferred Mutual in January 2012 as a field agency manager. McArdle, a gradu-ate of St. John Fisher College, has more than 22 years of sales and management experi-ence. Prior to joining Preferred Mutual, she held various management positions for sev-eral national and super-regional insurance carriers. McArdle is a licensed property and casualty agent in New York State.

Jef frey Lopata has been appointed senior vice president and chief information officer at Preferred Mutual Insurance. He joined Preferred Mutual in 2005 as man-ager of the commer-cial lines e-business team. Lopata, a gradu-ate of St. John Fisher College, has more than 15 years management experience in his field and the insurance in-dustry. Prior to joining Preferred Mutual, he worked eight years with Utica National Insurance Group, where he managed web development and application devel-opment, according to his LinkedIn page. Lopata holds a bachelor’s degree in man-agement with a concentration in marketing. Sandra Mack was recently promoted to li-ability claims manager at Preferred Mutual. Prior to this position, she was a claims

specialist in the liability claims unit. Mack is a graduate of the State University of New York at Alfred and holds the associate in claims, associate in insurance services, senior claim law associate, and certified insurance counselor designations.

lawHinman, Howard & Kattell LLP an-nounced that Megan E. Curinga recently became a partner in the firm. She is a mem-ber of the real estate, oil and gas, and credit union practice groups and practices in both the Binghamton and Syracuse areas. Curinga holds a bachelor’s degree from St. Lawrence University and earned her J.D. at Syracuse University College of Law. She is admitted to practice law in New York and Pennsylvania.

Levene Gouldin & Thompson, LLP an-nounced that Lauren Kiley Saleeby has be-come a partner with the firm and Matthew V. Carrigg and Sabrina R. Housh have be-come associates of the firm. Carrigg is a graduate of Syracuse University College of Law. Housh is a graduate of SUNY Buffalo Law School. She is a member of the Broome County Bar Association, serving on its board of direc-tors, the New York State Bar Association, serving on the House of Delegates, and the Northern District of New York Federal Court Bar Association. q

PeOPle On the MOve: new hires & PrOMOtiOns

O’Hara

Bulger

Kane-Lawrence

Zuk

Hubiak

Law

McArdle

Lopata

Mack

Curinga

Saleeby Carrigg

Housh

percent from 2012.The Roberson attracts visitors with com-

munity events in addition to its exhibits and education programs.

Currently, the museum is gearing up for its 14th annual Wine and Food Fest on April 24. As one of the museum’s fundraisers, more than 700 tickets were purchased for the sold-out festival. This is the fourth year in a row the festival has sold out.

“We don’t want to diminish the success and quality of the event by making it too crowded. You want it to feel like a party,” says McDonald, explaining why the mu-seum doesn’t increase the capacity of the event by selling more tickets.

The indoor/outdoor festival held on the museum grounds will feature more than 30 New York state wineries and more than 30

local restaurants and caterers. The funds raised, which totaled about $20,000, go to-ward the museum’s education programs.

The annual New Year’s Eve party, “Masquerade in the Mansion,” is another sell-out event for the Roberson, held in the historic house on the museum’s property. And this fall, the museum will celebrate its 60th birthday with a party.

“It’s important to see how you can better your community. Take an active role in mak-ing Binghamton a fun and inviting place to live,” says McDonald.

Originally from Minneapolis, McDonald came to Binghamton University to pur-sue a Ph.D. in art history with a focus on medieval art and architecture. She didn’t finish her dissertation, but began teach-ing art and architecture history courses at SUNY Broome Community College and Fordham University. At the same time, she

took a position as a museum educator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, but continued to live in Binghamton with her family.

After four years at the MET, McDonald grew tired of the commute and decided to leave. In an attempt to find a local job, she inquired about any open positions at the Roberson, where her artist husband had work on display at the time. As it turned out, the museum was looking for a director of education and hired McDonald for the role. She held that position for two years before moving into the executive director position.

“You can never make a mark there [New York City] like you can here,” says McDonald. “Here, I have been able to make changes.”

Now in her eighth year as executive direc-tor, she says the museum’s attendance is up, finances are strong, and programs and

events are well attended. “I’m very proud of the progress the Roberson has made,” says McDonald.

For its fiscal year ending June 2012, the Roberson generated revenue of $1.2 million, according to the IRS 990 report. That was up nearly 44 percent over the previous year’s revenue.

Next on the agenda, McDonald and her team are focusing on upgrading the 60,000-square-foot facility’s infrastructure, including the HVAC system. At press time, the facility’s master plan was put out to bid with local contractors to determine costs. The Roberson has already applied for up to $2 million in grants to use for the renova-tions. The museum was recently awarded a $500,000 state grant that will go toward the facility improvements. q


rObersOn: “Take an active role in making Binghamton a fun and inviting place to live,” says McDonaldContinued from page 7


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