Baton Rouge
Brad Johnson and James Houtman have been hired by Bally’s Corp. to lead food and beverage services at their Baton Rouge casinos.
Johnson manages all restaurants, bars and catering at The Queen Baton Rouge.
Johnson has more than 20 years of experience in the food and beverage industry. He has held jobs from server to leading front- and back-of-house operations for national and local restaurants.
Houtman oversees preparations for the opening of restaurants and lounges at Bally’s Baton Rouge casino entertainment complex, which is slated to open later this year. He also manages food and beverage operations for the newly opened Bally’s Baton Rouge Hotel.
Houtman has more than 25 years of experience working in casual and fine dining, university and hotel dining services and quick-service franchise restaurant ownership and management.
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Lawson Nguyen has joined Breazeale Sachse & Wilson.
Nguyen focuses on commercial litigation.
He earned a bachelor’s from LSU and a law degree from the University of Houston.
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Jared Watkins has been hired by Currency Bank as chief financial officer.
Watkins previously served as chief financial officer for a local community bank.
He earned a bachelor’s in accounting and a bachelor’s in the entertainment industries, both from the University of Southern Mississippi. Watkins is a graduate of the LSU Graduate School of Banking.
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Heather Roemer has been promoted by b1Bank to executive vice president and chief administrative officer.
Roemer has been with b1Bank for 16 years, most recently serving as chief of staff. She has been president of the b1Bank Foundation since 2020.
She earned a bachelor’s from LSU. Roemer is a graduate of the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University, where she served as class president.
New Orleans
Allison Marrero has joined Cypress Planning Group as vice president of business development and operations.
Marrero has more than 26 years of experience in the hospitality industry. She held a variety of roles within the Hyatt brand including sales manager, director of sales and global sales director.
Marrero most recently worked for the Savannah College of Art and Design and the American Society of Interior Designers.
She earned a bachelor’s in business administration and management from Baylor University.
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Maj. Dwayne and Maj. Marion Durham are the new leaders of The Salvation Army in New Orleans.
The couple have 28 years of experience as Salvation Army officers. They have served in Maryland, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee and Texas.
In their new roles, the Durhams will be responsible for all programs and social services in addition to supervising disaster relief, social services, Angel Tree and Christmas campaigns. The couple will also serving as pastors to the local Salvation Army congregation.
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David Favret has been hired by Compass Inc. as the new regional vice president for Louisiana and Mississippi.
Favret has more than two decades of residential real estate experience, including extensive leadership experience with Latter & Blum.
