[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 44 (Tuesday, April 15, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3230-S3231]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         TRIBUTE TO THE TOP 10 SMALL BUSINESSES IN KANSAS CITY

 Mr. BOND. Mr. President, on Monday, April 21, 1997, the Kansas 
City MO Chamber of Commerce will honor the 1997 Top 10 Small Businesses 
of the Greater Kansas City area. The Chamber is an association of 
almost 3,000 businesses across the 10-county bistate area whose members 
employ approximately 240,000 people in the Greater

[[Page S3231]]

Kansas City area. This honor is part of the Chamber's award-winning 
Small Business Week activities, which are among the country's largest 
Small Business Week celebrations.
  The Top 10 Awards are given in recognition of the economic 
contributions of small businesses which make up more than 90 percent of 
the Greater Kansas City metropolitan area. These 10 businesses alone 
contributed $104 million in annual sales and employed more than 840 
people in 1996. Nearly 700 companies were nominated, but only 10 can 
earn the honor of small business of the year. Of the 10, the Greater 
Kansas City Chamber will select its 11th annual Small Business of the 
Year, at its luncheon on April 25, 1997. The Small Business of the Year 
will receive the ``Mr. K'' award, named for Ewing Marion Kauffman, one 
of the country's best entrepreneurs.
  This year's Top 10 recipients are, Accommodations by Apple, Inc., 
Gould Evans Affiliates, Hermes Landscaping, Inc., Arthur Clark Holding 
Inc., Boulevard Brewing Co., The Corridor Group, Inc., Courtney Day 
Inc., DARCA Inc., Data Systems International Inc., and Galvmet Inc.
  When Ewing Kauffman observed that, ``Surprisingly, of all of the 
motivational aspects that there are, once a person has food, clothing, 
and shelter, the most motivating force in the world is appreciation. * 
* * we don't express appreciation as much as we should.'' I can only 
speculate that he was thinking of businesses such as these. As the 
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business, it gives me great 
satisfaction to see my home State thriving in the small business 
community and I would like each honoree to know how much I appreciate 
their hard work and commitment to excellence. I congratulate these 
companies not only for this honor, but also for the outstanding 
community service they provide to the Greater Kansas City area. They 
are an inspiration to all small businesses not only in this area, but 
around the country, and I applaud them.

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