REI Women’s Business Center (WBC) is celebrating a milestone of assisting more than 20,000 entrepreneurs with training, workshops, business counseling and networking opportunities in its 11-year history. REI Oklahoma’s WBC is the only one in the state and is the result of a cooperative agreement with the SBA Office of Women’s Business Ownership.  Its mission is to assist women entrepreneurs and small businesses wanting to explore the opportunities of starting or expanding a business.  WBC services are available from three locations, Durant, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Some of the most popular workshops include QuickBooks,  iPad and iPhone training, Pinterest,  website … Continue reading →

Diamonds and Dreams is an evening focused on the accomplishments of Oklahoma’s outstanding and talented women.  The event, co-hosted by REI Oklahoma and Dress for Success Tulsa, will be held at the Oklahoma Aquarium, Jenks, OK on June 14, 2012, with festivities beginning at 6:00 p.m. Featured dinner guest and speaker is Jim Stovall, author of the best-selling book, The Ultimate Gift.  In his late teens, Stovall woke one morning and couldn’t see.  His physicians said someday he would be totally blind.  His dream to become a professional football player crashed.  Today, Stovall is a highly sought-after speaker.  His remarkable testimony of … Continue reading →

Sitting at her dining room table with a laptop, telephone and a big vision, Leah Wietholter founded Workman Forensics, a company specializing in forensic accounting, fraud investigation, and expert witness testimony. Wietholter’s passion for forensics began during her internship with the Federal Bureau of Investigation followed by a career in public accounting, serving as Senior Certified Fraud Examiner.  With no capital but unquenchable determination and entrepreneurial spirit, she developed the concept for Workman Forensics.  Within three months, she moved from her dining room table to an office in midtown Tulsa at 2105 E.  15th Street.   During the three-month development phase, she … Continue reading →

Loave Affair, LLC, Henryetta, Oklahoma, is serving up dates but not the kind that normally come to mind.  This start-up company specializes in making date loaf candy from the 50s, a confection of chopped dates and pecans in a sweet loaf rolled in pecan meal. Loave Affair owner, Marsha Smith left her professional careers as realtor and stock broker to bring back to life her grandma’s date loaf candy.  Known to her grandchildren as Gma T, she made this Christmas treasure every year for 40 years.  “When the batter would become too stiff, she would call on Uncle Red to … Continue reading →

“Hope for Homes” is a project to assist the elderly, low-income and disabled with needed home repairs.  Applications are being accepted by Big Five Community Services, limited to the first 100 applications.    Applicants must own their home and have a household income at or below $39,600.   Applications must be returned with all required documentation no later than January 25, 2012. The project is in partnership with The Group Cares Mission Trips of Loveland, Colorado, who have coordinated short-term youth mission trips to conduct hands-on home repair projects for qualifying families or individuals.  Eligible home repair projects may include porch and … Continue reading →

Bacon drippings gained a lot of credibility as a food seasoning when Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings placed in the SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition. Jan Laub, owner of Twin Foods, Inc., took home a $5,000 prize.  Narrowed down from nearly 100 applicants, finalists spent the last six months pitching their business models while receiving coaching from Tulsa business leaders during four rounds of judging. Laub said the idea for the product came to her after a gumbo recipe called for a cup of bacon grease.  “I didn’t have bacon grease and I sure didn’t want to … Continue reading →

Former University of Oklahoma basketball player, Renzi C. Stone, is now in center court of the communications and public relations industry.  Stone has grown his business from a one-person start-up in 2003 to a team of more than 25 full-time professionals headquartered in Oklahoma City with a satellite office in Tulsa.  Saxum Strategic Communications, LLC develops and executes integrated communications strategies with a focus on public relations, marketing, social media and strategic business counseling. Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) and Quail Creek Bank, NA, Oklahoma City, assisted Stone with financing through the SBA 504 program when the company saw … Continue reading →

Greta J. Stewart, Executive Director, Oklahoma Primary Care Association (OKPCA) has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc., (REI)  a statewide economic development organization. OKPCA’s mission is to strengthen access to affordable community-based health care and Stewart has served as Executive Director of the organization since its inception in 1993.  In her position, she is responsible for program administration, grants management, acquisition of funding, public relations, marketing and all member services. Stewart was instrumental in the development of the Learning Eliminates Child Abuse Program and Women’s Caring Connection Mentor Program at Mary Mahoney Memorial … Continue reading →

A family fun park, eye care service and home health agency all knew exactly where to go when they needed financing the second-time-around to expand their businesses.  Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) provided financial assistance the first time for capital so when it was time to expand their businesses they again called on REI. “There’s nothing we like better than hearing from our clients a second time, when they have a need to expand,” Tom Seth Smith, President/CEO said.  “We value the confidence our repeat clients have in us to help them to expand their businesses and create jobs.” … Continue reading →

The Women’s Business Center (WBC) of Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) was invited by the U.S. Small Business Administration and Association of Women’s Business Centers to participate in the recent WBC training conference in Washington, D.C.  Participants were Dr. Barbara Rackley, Coordinator, Lori Smith, WBC Assistant, Shannon Mulkey, Human Resources Manager, Durant and Jennifer Edwards, Oklahoma City WBC Coordinator. The annual training is hosted by SBA’s Office of Women Business Ownership and mandated by Congress.  The goal of the conference is to train all SBA-funded women’s business center directors on program requirements.   According to the SBA, there are 75,053 … Continue reading →