[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 74 (Tuesday, June 3, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1093]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               ARIZONA SMALL BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN B. SHADEGG

                               of arizona

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 3, 1997

  Mr. SHADEGG. Mr. Speaker, this week Arizona celebrates Small Business 
Week and honors one of its outstanding performers in the small business 
area. On June 6, Rhonda McKenzie, president and CEO of McKenzie 
Telecommunications Group, Inc. [MTG] will be honored as the SBA 1997 
Arizona Small Business Person of the Year at the Small Business Week 
Awards Luncheon at La Posada Resort in Scottsdale.
  Rhonda used her 20 years of technical, managerial, and sales 
experience in the telecommunications industry to build a company which 
generated over $8.3 million in revenues last year. Founded in 1993 with 
McKenzie as the sole employee, MTG, Inc., provides total turnkey site 
development services to telecommunications companies throughout the 
Nation. Today, MTG has 125 employees in five States--California, 
Florida, Colorado, Nevada, and two locations in Arizona.
  The primary services MTG provides include identification of suitable 
real estate for the construction of client systems; representing 
clients at zoning hearings and community meetings; coordination of all 
geotechnical and environmental studies; development of construction 
feasibility studies; and construction and management services.
  MTG is recognized as fourth in the Nation among site development 
companies. Its clients are among the industry giants: AT&T Wireless, 
Sprint Spectrum, PCS PrimeCo, Pacific Bell Mobile Services, and Nextel.
  Small Business Week is celebrated annually throughout the Nation by 
Presidential proclamation. Each year, SBA names one outstanding 
entrepreneur in each State and territory: from this group the national 
Small Business Person of the Year is chosen.
  Selection criteria for Small Business Persons of the Year are: First, 
staying power--a substantial history as an established business; 
second, growth in number of employees--a benchmark to judge the impact 
of the business on the job market; third, increase in sales and/or unit 
volume--an indication of continued growth; fourth, current and past 
financial reports substantiating the improved financial position of the 
business; fifth, innovativeness of product or service offered; sixth, 
response to adversity; and seventh, evidence of contributions by the 
nominee to aid community-oriented projects through the use of personal 
time and resources.
  Small business is the backbone of the American economy. In Arizona, 
99.5 percent of our over 407,000 businesses have fewer than 100 
employees. These are the companies that provide the growth in jobs and 
the vitality for our State. It is in these places of work where 
American dreams are made. I congratulate Rhonda McKenzie for making her 
American dream come true and for her well-deserved accomplishment in 
achieving Arizona's Small Business Person of the Year.

                          ____________________