"Dedicated to creating a culture of entrepreneurship in Rooks County"
2021 Rooks County Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge small but successful!
Three teams were able to compete in this year’s Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge (YEC) hosted by Rooks County E-Community and Economic Development. After having to compete virtually last year, it was good to have the teams meet personally with the judges and the competition open to the public.

This year’s winning concept was presented by Kate Hansen, a Plainville 7th grade student. Kate’s business, Spread Kindness, makes bath bombs and shower steamers with kind messages on each one. Kate donated $310 from sales so far to the Rooks County EMS. Kate also won the Marketing Award for the best display.
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Second place went to Solarwire. Bryan Garvert’s idea focused on the use of solar cells to store and provide electrical energy. Besides winning second place, Bryan’s idea also earned him the Best Use of Technology award. Bryan is a Plainville 8th grader.

The third place winning team was Don’t Blink Photography, with Ashlynn Stamper and Brooke Nuss as the entrepreneurs. Both are Plainville High School seniors. They have been operating their photography business over the last year, and for that reason, they were awarded the Ready to Go Award as well.

Cash prizes of nearly $1,300 were awarded to the winning teams as part of sponsorships by Rooks County Economic Development, Rooks County E-Community, and NetWork Kansas.

UPDATE - Solarwire, along with our YEC winner Spread Kindness, both competed virtually at the State YEC. Neither were selected as semi-finalist, but both represented Rooks County well.
The Daily Grind opens in Stockton
Officially opening on Monday, March 29, Stockton's newest business, The Daily Grind, is off to a fast start. Customers were flocking inside on opening Monday to order lattes, mocha, cappuccinos, espressos, or just plain ole coffee, Homemade cinnamon rolls were sold out early. Owner Chelsey Peterson was appreciative of all the support from the community. "The support from my community blows me away" Peterson stated. Find The Daily Grind on Facebook.

Rooks County E-Community loan funds were used to help The Daily Grind get started.
Destination Creation class coming
Stockton Chamber Director Jayne Prockish attended the Destination Train-the-Trainer class in January (virtually) and we are now working on setting up a Destination Creation class that will be offered to all businesses that are interested in making their business a destination for customers. We are working on some of the details, such as cost, location, dates, etc., but hopefully over the next month or so we can release some details for the business community. Stay tuned.
Rural E-Launch program offered by NetWork Kansas
NetWork Kansas announced in March of their intention to offer a Rural E-Launch program through Wichita State University to help entrepreneurs working on product development or pivoting. According to Erik Pederson, NetWork KS VP, "This is extremely beneficial to entrepreneurs who have not yet tested their assumptions about the customer problem and target market." Rooks County has had at least one business register for the virtual class.
Next E-Community Team meeting May 24
Our next E-Community Team meeting is scheduled for Monday, May 24 at noon. The meeting will be held in the Conference Room (old Law Library) on the first floor of the Rooks County Courthouse. The meeting will also be offered virtually by Zoom. Details and links will be sent out in May.
115 N. Walnut
Stockton, KS 67669
Phone: 785-425-6881
Email: roger@rookscounty.net