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The following pages profile five distinguished entrepreneurs who
have found personal, professional, and financial satisfaction through business
ownership. Although each of these individuals experiences a disability, they
are–first and foremost–entrepreneurs.
Eagle
Communications
Fort Dodge, IA
Owner:
Gene Van Grevenhof
Initial Capitalization:
$30,000
Sources of Capital:
• Iowa's Entrepreneurs with
Disabilities Program
• Commercial lender
Revenues:
$187,000 gross sales
Number of Employees:
9 (7 full-time, 2 part-
time)–all individuals with disabilities.
Future Goals:
Expand opportunities to employ more
people with disabilities.
Eagle Communications
115 S. 21st
Fort Dodge, IA 50501
Phone: 515-955-8744
Toll Free: 800-488-6805
Eagle Communications, Inc. remanufactures used printer cartridges
for laser and inkjet printers. This Fort Dodge, Iowa-based firm is also an
authorized sales and service center for Hewlett Packard and other major brand
printers. Products and services, however, are not this business' only focus.
Owner Gene Van Grevenhof, who is disabled, also sees the business as a platform
for providing employment opportunities for other people with disabilities. In
fact, the company employs a staff of nine–all individuals with
disabilities.
Following three years of military service inVietnam, Van Grevenhof
spent ten years as a truck driver. When a back injury coupled with arthritis
prevented him from continuing in this line of work, he found himself collecting
cans along the roadside for income. Too stubborn and proud to apply for
government assistance, Van Grevenhof was determined to find a career that would
accommodate his disability. This desire to be productive again led him to Iowa
Central Community College in Fort Dodge where he studied electronics and
computers.
In 1995, Van Grevenhof enlisted the assistance of Iowa's
Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program with the goal of developing his
business idea and creating a financing plan. As a result, he launched Eagle
Communications with an initial capitalization of $30,000–including an
equity grant of $15,000 from the Entrepreneurs with Disabilities Program which
leveraged an additional $15,000 from a local bank. Since that time, he has
leveraged an additional $30,000 from his bank and a statewide non-bank lender
to expand the business.
In 1999, Eagle Communications had gross sales of $187,000. The
company now serves a regional market, with clients in eleven states. Van
Grevenhof recently bought out his competition, acquiring two additional
businesses in the region. He intends to continue to grow the business with the
goal of hiring more people with disabilities. Van Grevenhof is proud to have
created "a business where people with disabilities can work and become part of
society again."
Eagle Communications was named Rookie Business of the Year by the
Fort Dodge Chamber of Commerce and was awarded the Small Employer of the Year
Award by the Iowa Commission on Persons with Disabilities. In May 2000, Aida
Alvarez, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, presented Van
Grevenhof with the prestigious Evan Kemp Entrepreneurial Award.
Totalily Water
Gardens
Spencer, NY
Owner:
Tim Schwender
Initial Capitalization:
$31,000
Sources of Capital:
• New York State Vocational
and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities
•
Commercial lender
Revenues:
$78,000 gross sales
Number of Employees:
1 part-time employee
Future Goals:
Development of a Web site,
construction of additional display gardens, expansion of greenhouses, and the
addition of a full-time employee.
Totalily Water Gardens
591 Candor Road
Spencer, NY
14883
Phone: 607-589-7956
Totalily Water Gardens creates and sells ornamental water gardens.
This Spencer, New York-based firm offers a full line of supplies, including
eight species of fish, pond liners, and over 150 varieties of water plants.
Totalily offers seminars for professionals and do-it-yourselfers and has
subcontractors available to install water gardens. Owner Tim Schwender's work
experience and love of the outdoors provided the perfect background for
establishing this venture.
A lifetime outdoorsman, Schwender worked in landscaping as a young
man. As a landscaper, he became fond of planning and installing water
gardens–something that he continued to do on a part-time basis even after
he went to college and embarked on a career as a fish and wildlife technician.
As a fish and wildlife technician, Schwender tested lakes, ponds, and streams
and conducted hatchery studies. It was this active outdoor life that
contributed to his disability. In 1995, Schwender contracted Lyme disease and,
within a year, was unable to continue in his chosen profession.
Schwender performed a market analysis and determined that there
was sufficient demand in Spencer, New York, to sustain a water garden supply
store. He approached New York State Vocational and Educational Services for
Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) after finding a property that included
both a residence and outbuildings. With an $11,000 grant from VESID that
leveraged a $20,000 bank loan, Schwender was able to convert the outbuildings
into greenhouses and retail space, purchase needed equipment, and launch his
business. Schwender has never collected government benefits.
Since its inception, Totalily Water Gardens has experienced steady
growth. In the first year of operation, the business grossed $7,800; in year
two, gross revenues increased to $43,000; this past year, that figure almost
doubled to $78,000. Schwender has hired a part-time retail salesperson and
plans to add a full-time employee. Schwender's short-term plans include the
development of a Web site, the construction of additional display gardens, and
the expansion of the greenhouses so that more plants can be grown on-site.
Totalily attracts customers from Buffalo, Ithaca, Binghamton, and
Elmira, New York, and from Wilkes Barre and Scranton, Pennsylvania. Schwender's
water gardens are featured in a local tourism brochure, and he was voted
Entrepreneur of the Year by VESID in 1998.
Universal Low Vision
Aids
Columbus, OH
Owner:
Dessie Page
Initial Capitalization:
$10,000
Sources of Capital:
Ohio State Bureau of Services
for the Visually Impaired
Revenues:
Annual gross sales in excess of
$500,000
Number of Employees:
6 full-time employees– many
of whom have vision disabilities
Future Goals:
Page is intent on continuing to meet
his customers' needs.
Universal Low Vision Aids, Inc.
8 East Long Street, Suite
210
Columbus, OH 43215
Phone: 614-224-6465
Fax: 614-224-2258
Universal Low Vision Aids, Inc. (ULVA) is a Columbus, Ohio-based
firm specializing in assistive devices and software for people with print
impairments (such as blindness, low vision, and learning disabilities). In
addition to product sales, ULVA offers optional on-site installation, system
orientation, and technical support. Owner Dessie Page, who has a visual
impairment, knows first-hand how crucial these devices are to those who need
them.
Page was employed in research and development at a major
university until progressive blindness forced him to leave the workforce. After
five years of unemployment, Page recognized that the proper assistive devices
would enable him to continue working. Realizing that this represented a
promising market opportunity, Page founded ULVA.
As one of the first participants in the Ohio Rehabilitation
Services Commission's (RSC) Project BOSS (Business Opportunity Success System),
Page started ULVA with a $10,000 equipment grant from Ohio RSC's Bureau of
Services for the Visually Impaired. The equipment enabled him to offer product
demonstrations, leading to his initial sales. After that, Page says, "it was
sink or swim time." He sought no additional help for the business and has never
collected Social Security benefits.
This firm that once operated out of a fledgling office on Page's
side porch, now has an accessible office in downtown Columbus where customers
can browse the latest equipment. Today, ULVA enjoys gross sales in excess of
$500,000 annually. The company serves the entire state of Ohio and has a staff
of six–many of whom are people with vision disabilities. While the
business has experienced steady growth over the years, Page's focus hasn't
changed–he still gets great personal satisfaction from meeting his
customers' needs.
Henter-Joyce, Inc. (producer of JAWS for Windows) recognized ULVA
as their Best All Around Dealer. ULVA has also received recognition from
Arkenstone, an equipment and software manufacturer, for outstanding sales
achievements.
Access Travel
Columbia, Maryland
Owner:
Tim Daly
Initial Capitalization:
$27,000
Sources of Capital:
• Maryland Division of
Rehabilitation Services
• Commercial lender
• Owner
investment
Revenues:
$56,000 gross in year 1, with projected
revenues of $250,000 for 2000.
Number of Employees:
2 part-time employees
Future Goals:
Publishing a book on accessible travel
and eliminating dependence on public assistance.
Access Travel, Inc.
5404 Storm Drift
Columbia, MD
21045
Phone: 410-715-1241
Toll Free: 888-342-5315
Fax: 410-715-0957
Access Travel is a Columbia, Maryland-based travel agency
specializing in vacations and tours for travelers with disabilities. Owner Tim
Daly recognized the need for a travel agency focusing on the unique needs of
travelers with disabilities after he was diagnosed with Friedreich's
Ataxia–a disability that causes poor coordination and balance.
Prior to the onset of his disability, Daly spent twenty-six years
in sales and marketing. His occupation required extensive travel–an
activity that became increasingly difficult as his disability progressed. This
was complicated by a heart-attack and open-heart surgery. Reflecting on his own
traveling difficulties, Daly recognized the market potential for a travel
agency that was both sensitive and responsive to the needs of travelers with
disabilities.
Working closely with the Central Maryland Small Business
Development Center and Maryland's RISE (Reach Independence through
Self-Employment) Program, Daly crafted a business plan and secured financing
for his venture. Daly started Access Travel with an initial capitalization of
$27,000–including $16,500 from the Maryland Division of Rehabilitation
Services, a $2,000 bank loan, and a personal investment of $8,500. During its
first full year of operation, Access Travel grossed $56,000; projected revenues
for 2000 are $250,000. Although Daly continues to receive Social Security
Disability Insurance (SSDI), he estimates that within twenty-four months he
will no longer require those benefits.
Access Travel has organized special tours for the Multiple
Sclerosis Society, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and others. Daly is
currently negotiating a contract with the U.S. Army. In addition to making
travel arrangements, Daly and his two part-time employees are in high demand as
public speakers throughout the region.
Daly is the recent recipient of the Outstanding Achievement Award
from the Economic Development Commission of Howard County, Maryland, and the
Muscular Dystrophy Association's Outstanding Individual Achievement Award for
the state of Maryland. Daly is currently working on a book on accessible travel
for people with disabilities and seniors and is a columnist on the same topic
for halftheplanet.com, a disability-related Web site.
Eaton Equestrian Centre
Anchorage, AK
Owner:
Julie Eaton
Initial Capitalization:
Alaska Department of
Vocational Rehabilitation
Revenues:
$270,000 gross in 1999
Number of Employees:
One
Future Goals:
Establishing a business presence on
the Internet and making her barn and horses even more accessible to people with
disabilities.
Eaton Equestrian Centre
5801 Moose Meadow Lane Circle
Anchorage, AK 99516
Phone: 907-346-3745
Eaton Equestrian Centre is an Anchorage, Alaska-based business
that trains horses and riders in show-ring jumping and dressage. The Centre
also offers equestrian therapy, with a focus on individuals with paralysis.
Owner Julie Eaton, who uses a wheelchair, has trained a number of riders who
have gone on to compete in local, state, and national competitions. In fact,
she has three National Championships to her credit.
Eaton sustained a spinal cord injury while training a horse in
1984. The accident left her paralyzed, with no movement below her chest and
little movement in her arms and hands. Following her injury, Eaton's 10,500
square-foot, heated Equestrian Centre was no longer accessible to her. Unable
to continue in that line of work without significant accommodations, Eaton
approached the Alaska Department of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) to develop
a plan for rejoining the workforce. According to Duane French, Director of DVR,
the decision was whether to send Eaton to school to obtain an advanced degree
in a new profession or to assist her in continuing to operate an existing and
successful business. The answer was obvious.
Alaska DVR accommodated Eaton by providing $180,000 to install
covered walkways and ramps connecting her house and the ring so that she could
work year round. The grant also enabled the construction of a raised walkway
around the perimeter of the ring, giving Eaton the proper vantage point from
her wheelchair. Eaton has never received government benefits such as Social
Security.
In 1999, Eaton Equestrian Centre enjoyed gross revenues of
$270,000. Eaton currently employs her daughter, Britta, who helps with heavy
lifting. She plans to continue her work as a trainer and horse boarder, and
also plans to continue assisting other people with disabilities by making her
barn and horses even more accessible. She looks forward to technology playing
an increasing role in her daily life and the efficient operation of her
business. Toward that end, Eaton's short-term goals include establishing a
business presence on the Internet.
In 1983-84 Eaton was a finalist for Business Woman of the
Year.
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