News

Founder of fitness company gets nod

by: LAURIE WINSLOW World Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
11/16/2011 2:29:06 AM

For the first time in five years, women swept the SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition, walking away with all three cash prizes.

Women take top Spirit Award spots

By D. Ray Tuttle
The Journal Record
Posted: 07:03 PM Tuesday, November 15, 2011

TULSA – Kristen Ross was named grand prize winner of the SpiritBank/Tulsa
Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition on Tuesday. Ross
received a $30,000 check from SpiritBank.

And, for the first in the five years of the competition, the top three
winners were women.

Jan Laub, owner of Twin Foods Inc., placed second.

Cathy Fox, owner of Enclosables LLC, finished third in the competition.

Winner named in 2011 SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 
November 16, 2011

CONTACT:
Leah Harper
TCC Media Relations Specialist 
Office- (918) 595-7966
Cell - (918) 409-3217

(Tulsa, Okla.) – The wait is over for the seven finalists in the SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition. Narrowed down from nearly 100 applicants, finalists spent the past six months pitching their business models while receiving coaching from Tulsa business leaders during four rounds of judging.  The competition culminated in a celebration at TCC’s Center for Creativity Tuesday during Tulsa Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Spirit Award finalists give last presentation

by: LAURIE WINSLOW World Staff Writer
Friday, November 04, 2011
11/4/2011 5:09:20 AM


For Garrett Blackwood, the most difficult thing about the SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition was trying to trim his speech to two minutes because he could easily talk about his website, ValueMyStock.com, for 30 minutes or more. 

Spirit Award finalists make last pitches

By D. Ray Tuttle
The Journal Record
Posted: 08:10 PM Thursday, November 3, 2011

TULSA – Jan Laub had no customers when she first entered this year’s
SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award six months
ago.

But when Laub, the owner of Granny’s Good Ol’ Fashion Bacon Drippings,
walked into the 10th-floor boardroom of SpiritBank Thursday, she had sold
82 cases and signed an agreement to place her product in all 15 Reasor’s
Foods sites across northeast Oklahoma.

Finalists Announced for 2011 SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award

(Tulsa, Okla.) – From nearly 100 original entries, seven finalists have been named in the 2011 SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award.

Semi-finalists compete for Entrepreneurial Spirit Award

by: LAURIE WINSLOW World Staff Writer
Friday, September 16, 2011
9/16/2011 4:32:44 AM

They say necessity is the mother of invention, and that certainly appears to be the case for Lisa Pinnell, mother of two, who has invented a patent-pending portable infant seat for use in a shopping cart. 

Top 12 entrepreneurs pitch their ideas to Spirit Award judges

By D. Ray Tuttle The Journal Record
Posted: 08:45 PM Thursday, September 15, 2011 

 
TULSA – Jan Laub was surprised how comfortable she was with the judges during the second round of interviews for the SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award. 

Spirit Award Judges Announce Top 12 Finalists

TULSA (July 14, 2011)—Twelve Oklahoma startups are one step closer to being named the next SpiritBank / Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award winner. Judges named the semi-finalists after 25 local business owners spent two days pitching their business plans.

Those selected to advance in the competition are:

99 For 1, LLC - produces Cling To The Word motivational static clings to replace handwritten sticky notes.

Babychub - The Babychub Shopping Seat is a patent-pending, portable infant seat for use inside a shopping cart.

Spirit Award’s top 25 finalists named

 

By D. Ray Tuttle
The Journal Record
Posted: 08:20 PM Tuesday, June 7, 2011

TULSA – Tulsa continues to produce some of the most inventive and impressive entrepreneurs in the nation, said Ted Cundiff, president of SpiritBank and Entrepreneurial Spirit Award chairman.

“Entrepreneurship is so strong,” Cundiff said. “Tulsa has created an ecosystem to support entrepreneurs.”

After reviewing nearly 100 business proposals, the top 25 models have been selected to move on to the next round of the fifth SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award competition.

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About the Entrepreneurial Spirit Award

The SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award carries on Tulsa’s Spirit Award tradition: to inspire an increase in entrepreneurial endeavors in Tulsa. Entrepreneurial and small business ventures account for 82 percent of Tulsa’s business community and generate $3.1 billion in Tulsa’s economy each year.

Get involved in Tulsa’s growth! The SpiritBank/Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award process also makes a wealth of resources available to entrepreneurs as they grow their business: cash, prizes and invaluable services from some of Tulsa’ s best business minds.

Make 2010 the year you unleash your big idea for Tulsa’s future.

We’d like to thank our strategic partner Tulsa Business Journal

Our thanks also to the Tulsa Metro Chamber and Entrepreneurs of Tulsa for their support.

Judges

Greg Forrest
Greg Forrest is CEO of XETA Technologies. Greg has been Chief Executive Officer since June 2007 and President since July 2005. He also served as...
Darren Fuqua
Darren Fuqua is a Senior Partner with HRB. Darren received his BS in Cellular Biology from the University of Kansas. After graduation Darren...
Ted Cundiff – Co-Chair, SpiritBank / Tulsa Community College Entrepreneurial Spirit Award
Ted Cundiff is President of SpiritBank where he oversees all the branches in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metro markets, manages the Business Resource...
Kathy Taylor
Kathy Taylor began working in the public sector in 2003 with Gov. Brad Henry as Secretary of Commerce, Tourism and Workforce Development. She led the...
John Bumgarner
Mr. Bumgarner is currently the managing member of Utica Plaza Company, LLC, a family-owned real estate company, serving in this capacity since his...