Author Archives: gurustu

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 →

Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) is calling on all Oklahoma manufacturers to contact them about growing their business and expanding their markets.  The statewide economic development firm is strengthening its renewed focus to serve Oklahoma manufacturers regardless of their size or location. According to Tom Seth Smith, President & CEO, the amount of capital needed is not an issue because REI has flexible programs with lending capabilities ranging from $1,500 to over $10 million.  Loan funds can be utilized for purchase of real estate, equipment, working capital, furniture, fixtures and other business needs. REI has nearly 30 years of … Continue reading →

Oklahoma looks forward to new capital investments and the creation of jobs through the recent award received by Rural Enterprises of Oklahoma, Inc. (REI) to administer New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) totaling $39 million.  REI has been authorized by the U. S. Treasury Department to administer the NMTC program which provides a 39 percent federal income tax credit for investments into qualifying businesses in low income communities. Over 250 applications for the NMTC incentive were submitted from across the nation and REI was the only Oklahoma organization successful in receiving authorization.  Previously, the organization received $136 million in tax credit … Continue reading →

For more than 20 years, the New Products Fair, founded by former Congressman Wes Watkins, has been inspiring the creativity of young and old alike. This year’s Fair was no exception with a total of $9,150 awarded to winners in the various divisions. Fair Grand Prize Winners were Paul Conrady, small business division, Edmond; Brian Burcham, open class, Yukon; and Kenneth McAfee, open class, Madill, OK. Conrady’s entry, Crimeseen.com is a crime solving social network that delivers e-mail notification of events reported in a specified area. A hardware and software system was Burcham’s winning entry. The MultiSensory Techynology Assisted Reader … Continue reading →