Chicago-based Kivvit added former White House digital practitioner Thomas Kelley and former U.S. Department of Energy and Obama Administration official Damian Bednarz to the firm’s D.C. office. Kelley will serve as digital and social advocacy coordinator, and Bednarz will serve as director. Prior to joining Kivvit, Kelley served nearly five years in the Obama Administration as a member of the White House’s first-ever Office of Digital Strategy. Bednarz most recently served as a senior official with the U.S. Department of Energy.

Banner Public Affairs in D.C. added Tiffany Lindemann, a former U.S. Air Force weapons technician and current USAF Public Affairs Reservist. Lindemann, stated the agency, has extensive knowledge in aviation weapons systems, undersea communications and government acquisition. She previously managed external communications for the U.S. Navy’s PEO C4I Undersea Integration Program Office.

Crimson Fly, Inc. based in Leesburg, Va, has partnered with Smashing Walnuts, a Loudoun-based nonprofit focused on “cracking” the cure for childhood brain cancer. Crimson Fly will serve as the organization’s agency of record and lead the marketing, digital and social media, event promotion and brand strategy for Smashing Walnuts as the nonprofit focuses on support and funding for childhood cancer research and treatment going into 2016.