May 2020
Join Us! Community Entrepreneurship Hour
Wednesday, May 13 at 9am via Zoom

Small business owners and entrepreneur join us for a virtual meetup the second Wednesday of each month as featured entrepreneur guest speakers pitch their business. This will be an interactive event where participants are encouraged to engage in conversation and productive feedback. The goal of the Community Entrepreneurship Hour is to provide a platform for aspiring and current entrepreneurs to share their business ideas, receive feedback and connect with like-minded members of the community who support new businesses.

Featured Entrepreneurs:
  • Allison Poe with Poe Prepping LLC
Poe Prepping is a food truck that promotes healthy living by offering an intentionally curated menu of healthy food options and to-go meals at a reasonable price. Allison won 1st place in the Revenue Generating category during Big Pitch Ada 2019.

  • Cullen Edens with Eco-Snap Tiles
Eco-Snap Tiles is an environmentally friendly company that creates snap-together flooring tiles out of recycled plastic. For every square foot of tile sold, another square foot is donated to a household in Uganda to eradicate preventable foot diseases caused by poor sanitation. Eco-Snap Tiles are affordable, easy to clean and replace, durable, self-installing, and have an aesthetic look. Cullen is an ECU student and recently competed in the Love's Cup competition.
ECU Teams Dominate at 2020 Love's Cup
PICTURED: ECU Love’s Entrepreneur’s Cup competitor Casey Black, upper left, celebrates after hearing her name announced, with (top right) her mentor, Dr. Stacey Bolin, and (below) Wendell Godwin, dean of ECU’s Stonecipher School of Business.
The Ada Jobs Foundation proudly sponsored this Year's Love's Cup, which is a collegiate business plan competition where teams pitch their concepts to a panel of potential investors, much like the popular television series “Shark Tank.”

All four of ECU’s Love’s Cup teams claimed prize money at the 2020 competition. In fact, ECU brought home seven separate awards, more than any other university in the state, with total combined winnings of $27,000.

“We are incredibly proud of our students and love that their hard work and entrepreneurial spirit are being recognized by the state’s business leaders,”
- ECU President Katricia Pierson
Congratulations to:
  • Casey Black for "WhiCount", a device that monitors white blood cell counts. Winning 2nd prize overall in Graduate High Growth Division, 1st place in Pitch Competition and being ECU's first -ever entry into the graduate level competition.
  • Cullen Edens for "Eco-Snap Tiles", which are flooring tiles made of recycled plastic. Winning the Paulsen Scholarship, Best Interview in the Product category.
  • Chris McMahan for "Crop Cut", a program that raises hemp on under-utilized farmland while sharing profits with the landowner. Winning 3rd place in Undergrad Small Business division, Best Interview in the IT/App category.
  • Tanner Jack and Halen Ogles for "UBrew", which invites customers to use the team’s brew canvas to design custom beers complete with custom labels. Winning Best Pitch in the Undergrad Small Business division.
COVID-19 Ada Business Resource Portal
A web portal complete with resources on the local, state, and national level to support Ada businesses and individuals.
Federal support still available through the SBA: Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
The Paycheck Protection Program is a loan backed by the Small Business Administration and small businesses can now apply. The loan is designed to cover 8 weeks of payroll expense, rent, and utilities for businesses with under 500 employees. The loan can be forgiven at the end of the 8 week period if it is used to cover the expenses mentioned above. This program can offer crucial support to small businesses in this time, and can ensure that businesses have the staff they need when it is possible to recover in the future. We are encouraging businesses in Ada to apply for this program quickly.
View the links and contact your lender to partner on making the right choice for your needs.

Paycheck Protection Program:
While the PPP program is open until June 30, 2020, the government is advising borrowers to apply as soon as possible given the loan cap on the program.
DART IS HIRING!
Dart is seeking highly motivated dependable individuals who are interested in a career opportunity. 

Anyone interested may apply online at www.dart.biz or the Human Resources office located at 401 NE J.A. Richardson Loop in Ada.

Dart Container is a drug free workplace and an equal opportunity employer.

Ada Jobs Foundation
580-235-0070
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