The Catalyst
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Josh Silldorff personally experienced the frustrations of not being able to visit with a loved one in a senior living community. He couldn't stop thinking about all of the families that were facing this same problem, so he set out on a mission to solve it.
That's why in 2012, Josh started BrightLife Innovations and created EasyConnect HD,  the first and only video conferencing solution for senior living communities. The initial focus was to connect senior residents face-to-face with their families, allowing them to be together even when they can't be. He was able to successfully sell the solution to numerous senior communities of all types, from independent living retirement communities, to assisted living and nursing home facilities.
 Looking at the bigger picture, senior living communities must effectively communicate with many different groups of people outside of their community walls, and face-to-face communication is often times impossible. Video conferencing technology has the power to overcome the obstacles and connect people face-to-face, but the available options are not designed to meet the unique needs of senior communities. Video chat programs like Skype and FaceTime do not meet their needs of simplicity, security, and support and is exactly why communities are not utilizing these programs today.
In 2013 Mark Thompson joined the company to help with strategic growth initiatives as well as product innovation. Josh and Mark worked closely with their customers to discover additional problems senior communities experience which video conferencing could address. This "learning phase" was absolutely critical to developing the next generation EasyConnect HD solution, which they have just launched this year. The new and improved solution combines an easy-to-use touchscreen, HIPAA compliant infrastructure, and live support. It's a turnkey offering that is provided to customers as a subscription model, and includes telehealth capabilities to capitalize on the increasing demand for connected health across the care continuum. Wasting no time, they secured paying pilot opportunities at customer communities and are in talks with some of the largest organizations in senior living for larger deployments. BrightLife Innovations has the right solution, at the right time. Their next step is seeking a seed round of funding to support their aggressive growth plan and become the industry platform for face-to-face connections.
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BizStarts Professional Program
Join us on June 17th as Kaarin Long, Assistant Vice President, Treasury Management Specialist at U.S. Bank discuss
es
:
- Business Banking Accounts
- Relationship with a banker and loan processor
- Step-by-step with examples and forms
Click here to register
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BizStarts intern, Rebecca Perl, takes second place in annual 'Wisconsin YES!' youth biz plan contest.
Elizabeth Hlavacka, of Aquinas Middle School in La Crosse won the grand prize in the Wisconsin YES!, youth business plan contest. Her idea is
Stuff'n with Noth'n
, a container with uniquely designed compartments that eliminate the need for plastic bags and folds out as a placemat allowing the user to eat almost anywhere.
She will present her idea on June 3rd at the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs Conference.
BizStarts intern
Rebecca Perl
from Nicolet High School took second place for her idea for
DiabeTECH, an implant, app and insulin pup connected by low-energy Bluetooth technology to make managing diabetes easier.
Third place was tied between
Colin Gray-Hoehn
with the idea for an app called
Eat Out
designed to allow community reviews of local, independent restaurants and R
enee Kar-Johnson
with an idea for
Eco-Bandage
, an eco-friendly bandage made from banana leaves.
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BizStarts Featured Mentor: Representative Dale Kooyenga
Representative Dale Kooyenga became involved with BizStarts about a year ago after expressing his interest in helping small companies. Since then, he has worked with a handful of companies in various industries. He is especially excited about a healthcare IT software startup company he's been working with, which he believes is starting to gain a lot of momentum.
 Dale provides mentoring to startups in the areas of accounting and finance, as he started his career working as a Certified Public Accountant at KPMG for ten years. In 2005 he enlisted in the United States Army alongside his two brothers. Dale was called to serve in Iraq in 2008 and was awarded the Bronze Star for his service.
His first mentoring experience was actually during his tour in Iraq. In Baghdad, he worked with individuals that wanted to begin businesses and existing business, even facilitating introductions to foreign investors.
Since returning to the United States, he owns a small business that does financial and accounting consulting and remains a Captain in the United States Army Reserve. He is also a Representative of District 14 in the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Dale takes the time out to help small companies because he believes that the success of small businesses is vital for our region's economy. From his personal experience, he's noticed startups require a distinct personality and energy level; this creates an environment he truly enjoys being a part of.
At BizStarts we sincerely appreciate his help - thank you for all you do, Dale!
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BizStarts Featured Sponsor: Top Floor
Top Floor is an experienced, award-winning team of marketing professionals. Valuing the spirit of  partnership with their clients, this company believes in open and honest dialogue throughout the working process. Top Floor exists to serve organizations that view marketing as an investment, not an expense. They employ a rigorous process of continuous improvement to create and execute strategic integrated marketing plans that support their clients' long-term business goals.
Their marketing services can best be described in four categories: branding and positioning; web design and developments; search marketing; and content marketing. These services must be treated as interrelated tactics that are part of a long-term marketing strategy. Specializing in helping organizations succeed through elevating their digital marketing results, Top Floor can build and monitor effective projects within a range of timelines and budgets.
Top floor is committed to providing their clients the highest deliverables within their approved budgets while promoting an atmosphere of collaborative idea generation. They find this as the most effective way to truly elevate results.
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4th Annual Fast Pitch Competition
The fourth Annual FastPitch Competition is your chance to prove the potential of your
 business idea...meet people who can help you succeed...maybe even win a cash prize! Competitors will have three minutes max to
hit it out of the park
before a panel of judges from the business and investment community.
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What's Happening?
Event Announcements for Entrepreneurs
M-WERC Announces New Business Start-Up Initiative - WERCBench Labs
W
ERCBench Labs seeks makers, entrepreneurs, scientists and programmers who share a passion for making things to join an immersive program led by a team of world-class mentors from June 8 to August 27. The program driven by M-WERC will take place at the Energy Innovation Center in the Century City Tower.
Applications due May 29. Learn more and apply on-line at:
Milwaukee Small Business Week - June 1 -5
Join Scale Up Milwaukee for the launch of Meet the Masters, a conversation series with prominent entrepreneurs talking about growing big businesses. On June 4, Dan Isenberg, leader of Scale Up Milwaukee, will lead an intimate conversation with Sheldon Lubar, founder and chair of Lubar & Co. about his 50 years of expereince growing large companies.
Launch Box Growth Accelerator Super Sendoff - June 4 
Meet the accelerator teams and see what they have been working on for the last 12 weeks. Keynote speaker Jennifer Dooley of Dooley & Associates.
Get more information here.
BizStarts Professional Program with U.S. Bank - June 17
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Used by BizStarts, created by Bill Aulet, Managing Director of the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship
Here are 10 of the best digital tools to help you launch and grow your startup
A networking site for entrepreneurs, designed to help connect startups
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BizStarts Executive Team
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President
Dan Steininger
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Executive Director
Jacquin Davidson
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Recognition for
BizStarts' Sponsors
As the region's premier resource for entrepreneurs and emerging companies, BizStarts draws expertise from a wide range of service and professional specialties that collectively foster
Wisconsin's entrepreneurial spirit.
The BizStarts Program enlists these experts to provide unique opportunities for training and development, market and/or product assessments, leadership planning and other consultations or services...available only to BizStarts engaged entrepreneurs and their businesses. Why is this model important? More innovation, more successful launches and more jobs in our community.
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Founder Level Sponsors
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Frederick E. Beals Fund
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Executive Level Sponsors
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| Director Level Sponsors |
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Anon Charitable Trust Foundation
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George and Julie
Mosher Family
Foundation
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Manager Level Sponsors
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Daniel Hoan Foundation
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