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Openers
Robert J. Khoury, 53, succeeded his brother, Amin J. Khoury, 57, as chief executive officer of Palm Beach County's BE Aerospace Inc., a designer and manufacturer of commercial aircraft cabin interior products. The brothers co-founded the company in 1987. Robert Khoury, also named to the new position of vice chairman, relinquished the titles of president and chief operating officer to Paul E. Fulchino, 49, who had been president and vice chairman of Mercer Management Consulting Inc. Amin Khoury will remain BE's chairman.
Aerosonic Corp., a Clearwater maker of aircraft instruments, named J. Mervyn Nabors, 52, as chairman, CEO and president. He replaces company founder Herbert J. Frank who died at age 74 on April 18. Nabors, who joined the company's board last year, worked at Aerosonic from 1962 to 1984.
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Banking
First Equity Corp. of Florida, a 25-year-old Miami securities firm, has long sold brokerage and investment banking services to wealthy individuals and companies in South Florida. Now, under the management of Wilbert O. Bascom, the company is trying to build a customer base in Latin America and the Caribbean. Bascom, 58, joined First Equity as a senior vice president in mid-1995 and was promoted to president and CEO this year. Previously, he spent 14 years as chief of the Office of the Florida Comptroller's Bureau of International Banking, then quit after his longtime boss, five-term incumbent Gerald Lewis, lost the 1994 election for state comptroller to Robert Milligan.
SunTrust Banks of Florida is shuffling the top management at three of its largest banks. Robert H. Coords, 53, becomes chairman and CEO of SunTrust Bank, South Florida, replacing retiring Robert B. Malone, 56. John P. Hashagen, 50, will replace Coords as chairman and CEO of SunTrust Bank, Miami. Replacing Hashagen as chairman and CEO of SunTrust Bank, Gulf Coast, is William R. Klich, 51. The changes take effect July 1.
Donna L. Terry, 45, was tapped as Barnett Banks Inc.'s chief investment officer, responsible for all institutional and retail portfolio management and trading activities. She previously was vice president and institutional equity portfolio manager for the Boston Company Asset Management Inc.
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Entertainment
Disney veteran Al Weiss, 42, takes the title of president of Walt Disney World Resort, overseeing three theme parks, five gated resort attractions, five tournament golf courses and twenty-three themed resort properties.
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Manufacturing
Windmere Corp. President and CEO David M. Friedson, 40, was named to the additional post of chairman, succeeding his father, company founder Belvin Friedson, 71. Miami Lakes-based Windmere makes hair dryers, curling irons and other personal care products.
Roger W. Schipke, 59, chairman and CEO of Fort Lauderdale-based Sunbeam Corp., will leave the household and outdoor products company when his contract expires at the end of the year or earlier if a successor is found. A search is underway. Struggling Sunbeam's net income dropped to $50.5 million in 1995, down from $107 million in 1994. Problems are continuing in 1996, with first quarter earnings off 42% from 1995. Schipke joined Sunbeam in 1993 at an annual salary of $1 million.
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Real Estate
Denny O'Shea, 44, takes over as president of Stiles Development Co., a division of Fort Lauderdale's Stiles Corp. He replaces Ken Simback, who joined Pizzuti Development Inc. in Orlando as a regional vice president. At Stiles, O'Shea will direct development of more than 664,000 square feet of retail, office and industrial projects that are planned or underway. O'Shea was vice president of development for Blockbuster Entertainment Group.
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Obituary
One of food retailing's most innovative and respected leaders, Publix Super Markets Inc. Founder and Chairman Emeritus George W. Jenkins, died in Lakeland on April 8. He was 88. In 1930, Jenkins opened his first grocery store in Winter Haven. Publix now has 514 stores in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Jenkins, known by Publix employees as "Mr. George," suffered a stroke in 1989 but remained involved in the company, visiting several Publix stores just days before his death.
