[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 79 (Monday, June 3, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S5693]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO WILLIAM BRUCE JOHNSON

 Mr. BUMPERS. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to a 
fellow Arkansan, William Bruce Johnson. Bruce is the president of White 
River Hardwoods and Woodworks, Inc., in Fayetteville, AR. Because of 
his outstanding contribution to the business community, Bruce has been 
selected by the U.S. Small Business Administration as the 1996 Arkansas 
Small Business Person of the Year. I am convinced that this is an honor 
richly deserved.
  Bruce Johnson and his wife Joan have pioneered new and innovative 
approaches to their business, and in the process, propelled White River 
Hardwoods into a nationally known company. In 1979, Bruce's company 
mainly sold premium hardwood lumber, but with an entrepreneurial 
spirit, Bruce entered the finishing market with a full line of 
architectural moldings and interior hardwood products. He and his wife 
proudly built a business that has become synonymous with superior 
quality and customer satisfaction. Incidentally, their children play a 
very active role as well, making White River Hardwoods truly a family-
owned small business.
  Mr. President, I have said many times that small business is the 
backbone of this country, and White River is the perfect example of 
that statement. As many of you here know, owning your own business 
gives new meaning to full-time employment. That kind of dedication is 
precisely the reason why I think SBA is such a vital program to this 
country. Bruce got his first SBA loan in 1983 and then his second in 
1992. Because of the availability of those SBA loans, White River 
Hardwoods expanded warehouse space, purchased equipment, hired new 
employees, and bettered the small business community--not only for 
Arkansas, but for the whole country. Outside of their Fayetteville 
base, White River operates a combination showroom and warehouse in 
Springfield, MO. They are partnered with 28 independent manufacturing 
representatives across the United States, and each day they effect a 
network of 32 stocking distributors and 314 dealers. The company's 
sales in 1995 reached nearly $5.5 million, which is no insignificant 
contribution to our economy.
  We need more people like Bruce and Joan Johnson in this country. 
Together they work hard every day along side their children to ensure 
the futures of their employees and the community around them. Mr. 
President, I hope you will join me in congratulating William Bruce 
Johnson as the 1996 Arkansas Small Business Person of the Year.

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