RiverBender.com, EdGlenToday.com welcomes new additions to sales, design and tech center staff

Nov 28, 2016 9:00 AM Nov 29, 2016 9:04 AM

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ALTON – RiverBender.com and EdGlenToday.com are proud to announce the new additions to our sales, design and RiverBender.com Tech Center staff. Amy Schaake, Johnny Aguirre, Alison Godar, Ashley Hentrich and Dan Gonzalez are excited to join the team and contribute to the #1 Source for Everything Local.

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Amy Schaake and Johnny Aguirre have joined the Sales Department as Sr. Advertising and Marketing Consultants. With decades of advertising and marketing expertise under their belts along with their strong commitment to customer service, there is no question that they will be great assets to the team.

Amy Schaake’s advertising career began in 1999 at the Alton Telegraph as the Advertising Administrative Assistant. Her sales abilities were directly influenced by the direct management of Johnny Aguirre as well as Jim Shrader. Her position moved quickly to an outside sales consultant handling the automotive and real estate industry of the Riverbend community. Over the last five-plus years, Schaake served as the Director of Advertising at The Edwardsville Intelligencer.

“I truly enjoyed that opportunity and the ability to expand my professional relationships into the Ed/Glen community,” Schaake said.

“Witnessing advertisers shift their investment to digital media for the last several years, made the opportunity to join RiverBender.com very inviting,” she said. “Being under the same roof once again as Johnny and [editor] Dan Brannan influenced my decision to make this transition. The staff here at RiverBender.com has been very welcoming and relationships have quickly developed. I am very excited for a successful 2017!”

Johnny Aguirre brings several decades of experience to RiverBender.com and EdGlenToday.com, having held sales management positions at The Telegraph and Advatage News. In 2015, Aguirre served as the Key Accounts Manager for the St. Louis Post Dispatch and helped accounts develop print and digital marketing plans. In 2016, Aguirre joined Missouri Lawyers Media, owned by Gatehouse Publications, as the Advertising Director.

“This highly-respected publication was the go-to paper for all things legal and coordinated four yearly events that had honorees for young lawyers, Lawyer of the Year and Woman of the Year in Missouri,” Aguirre said.

As many news organizations began the transition into digital media, Aguirre has experienced this transition first hand.

Johnny Aguirre “With papers moving to digital, this was the next step in my career,” Aguirre said. “I’ve always been with print products that are transitioning to digital. Now, I’m with the most respected hyper-local news company in the Riverbend area that is purely digital and mobile.”

To Aguirre, the family atmosphere at RiverBender.com and EdGlenToday.com, as well as the innovative thinking of the team, were the keys to his move to the web-based media source.

“Everyone has input on ideas and are here to help each other make the product better for our clients,” Aguirre said. “I hope to bring knowledge of our digital products to our current and potential clients. I want to make sure that we provide the best products and customer service to each business we partner with. If we don’t help them create new business and become successful, we haven’t done our job.”

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Alison Godar is excited to be joining the RiverBender.com team as a Web Designer. Godar graduated from William Woods University in May 2016 and previously held an internship with the Regional Justice Information Service and worked with a volunteer web design group at her alma mater called S.W.A.T. (Student Website Advancement Team).

“My favorite thing about working for RiverBender.com is the fact that I feel like I’m right where I belong,” she said. “I knew from when I was a little kid that I wanted to stay in small and local business. Corporate work never really called to me and when this opportunity showed up, I couldn’t pass it by.”

Using the latest website tools and technologies to build great responsive, mobile friendly websites, Godar hopes to bring all her web clients a product that they and their customers are sure to love.

In her spare time, Godar is a member of the Calhoun Entertainment Company community theater and works at her parents’ grocery store. She also participates in a bowling league and does yoga and cross fit.

“I also enjoy taking photos for RiverBender.com and doing marathons — on Netflix, of course!”

Ashley Hentrich has joined the family business as a Graphic Designer. A recent graduate of Columbia College Chicago, her in-depth studies of typography, publication design, branding identity, advertising and packaging design has assisted her as both an artist and an employee.

Prior to officially joining the RiverBender.com and EdGlenToday.com team, she served as a Candy Specialist at Dylan’s Candy Bar in Chicago.

“The best part about working at RiverBender.com so far is the endless amount of opportunity,” Hentrich said. “I have worked with a countless number of clients already since signing on here and I am getting a ton of experience. This is a very fast paced environment and there is never a shortage of work, that’s for sure!”

Hentrich hopes to bring the Riverbend some of the best designs they have ever seen as well as improve client/company partnerships so they can continue to grow. She also hopes to assist small businesses in developing their brand and help to better communicate the quality of services they provide.

“Additionally, I would like to say that I love Chinese food,” she joked. “Feel free to drop off some crab rangoon to 200 W 3^rd St. any time!”

Dan Gonzales has returned to the RiverBender.com Tech Center as a repair technician. Previously having worked at Ace Tech Computer Services, Gonzales spends his days repairing personal computers, laptops, phones, tablets and more.

“The best part about working at the Tech Center is working with all of the people that come in,” he said. “It’s also nice to work with honest hardworking people as I continue to learn my craft. I hope to make a big difference in running an efficient shop while making sure everyone who walks out that door leaves with a positive experience. I'm also looking forward to servicing more of Riverbender's on-site clients. Networking, Server Support, Phone Systems, and Video Survellance, are all areas I find challenging and fun!”

In his spare time, he loves spending time with his wonderful and supportive wife and two kids, doing video work and playing his Xbox and PC games.

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