[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 17740-17741]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                RECOGNIZING WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. LEE TERRY

                              of nebraska

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 18, 2012

  Mr. TERRY. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to recognize twelve women who 
are making a difference in the Second Congressional District and--in 
fact--all of Nebraska.
  Small businesses are the life blood of our economy. They provide 
about 55 percent of all jobs in the private sector, and create about 
two of every three net new jobs in the United States. In 2007, women 
owned 7.8 million businesses.
  On Friday, I will be honoring the achievements of some of the women 
business owners throughout the Second Congressional District. Through 
their hard work and dedication, they have created opportunities and 
made a difference in our community. As we work to strengthen our 
economy, women business owners will continue to play an important role 
in that recovery.
  I also ask all of my colleagues to join me in celebrating the 
important contributions women continue to make in support of our 
economy.


                                BC Clark

       BC Clark was recognized as the Women in Business Spotlight 
     for January 2012. She is the co-founder and President of the 
     Metro Omaha Women's Business Center (MOWBC) which was founded 
     in 2007. MOWBC hosts monthly business forums on the third 
     Friday of each month. The mission of the organization is to 
     empower women to become economically self-sufficient by 
     providing target education in business, professional and 
     personal growth. As President, Clark has recently instituted 
     the MOWBC ``Start-up Award Grant'' awarded annually to women 
     entrepreneurs for their initial start-up costs. In addition 
     to being the President of MOWBC, Clark is a Counselor at 
     SCORE, serves on the Board of Directors for the Ralston Area 
     Chamber of Commerce, Midlands Latino Community Development 
     Corporation and the Nebraska Business Development Center 
     Advisory Board.


                              Diane Bruce

       Diane Bruce was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for February 2012. She is the cofounder of Charv's 
     Contracting, Inc. which was founded in 2009. Charv's 
     Contracting is a woman-owned and managed small business 
     certified by the SBA and is also approved by the City of 
     Omaha as a Tier H Emerging Small Business. Charv's 
     Contracting focuses on small to medium sized new construction 
     and remodeling services for commercial and residential 
     properties. Bruce has played a vital role in improving the 
     overall company with her 20 year background in sales, 
     marketing and office management. Various residential as well 
     as government customers have worked with Charv's Contracting, 
     like, City of Lincoln, State of Nebraska, Omaha Housing 
     Authority and the Buland Group.


                              Nancy Sempek

       Nancy Sempek was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for March 2012. She is the current owner of 
     Christensen Drywall Construction, Inc. which was founded in 
     1949. Christensen Drywall is a woman-owned and managed small 
     business certified by the SBA as well as certified as a Tier 
     II Emerging Small Business with the City of Omaha. The 
     company specializes in residential, both new and remodel, and 
     commercial finishes. They provide a wide variety of 
     construction and drywall services for all construction or 
     remodeling needs ranging from acoustical ceilings to water 
     damage. Some of the projects that Christensen Drywall has 
     worked on are the Hummel Park Nature Camp Center, commercial 
     tenant finishes and low income housing.


                              Shayne Fili

       Shayne Fili was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for April 2012. She is the President and Owner of 
     Auction Solutions, Inc. which was founded in 1999. Auction 
     Solutions is an SBA certified Woman-Owned Small Business and 
     a Tier II Emerging Small Business with the City of Omaha. The 
     Auction Solution team primarily focuses on Real Estate and 
     Personal Property Auctions, but also focuses on Estates, 
     Collections, Collector Vehicles and more. As the owner, Fili 
     has played a vital role in improving the overall company by 
     becoming a CAGA Appraiser and CAI certified, obtaining her 
     Real Estate Salesperson License, as well as becoming a Real 
     Estate Broker and BAS certified.


                               Julie Kaup

       Julie Kaup was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for May 2012. She is the current President and 
     Owner of Boss Electric LLC, which was founded in 2010 and is 
     quickly being recognized as an up-and-coming electrical 
     contracting company in Eastern Nebraska. Boss Electric is an 
     SBA certified Woman Owned Small Business, a Tier II Emerging 
     Small Business with the City of Omaha and a Registered 
     Apprenticeship Sponsor with the U.S. Department of Labor. The 
     team at Boss Electric handles multiple areas of expertise 
     which range from new construction to remodeling, build outs 
     and commercial projects. As the owner, Kaup has brought a 
     unique aspect to the company with her background as a 
     pharmaceutical representative. This sales and marketing 
     background has allowed Boss Electric to market and sell their 
     brand of electrical contracting in a fresh way to commercial, 
     residential and government customers. The Army and Air 
     National Guard, VA Hospital, and GSA contracts are just a few 
     of the government contracts that Boss Electric has been 
     awarded.


                              Lisa Wolford

       Lisa Wolford was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for June 2012. She is the founder and current CEO 
     of CSSS.NET which was founded in 1997. CSSS.NET is certified 
     with the SBA as an 8(a) Small Disadvantaged Business, 8(m) 
     Woman Owned Small Business and a Service Disabled Veteran 
     Owned Business. The company specializes in providing high 
     quality IT services and solutions to federal, state, and 
     commercial customers. As CEO, Wolford has played a vital role 
     in improving the overall company by steering the company 
     firmly and fully into the federal marketplace, contracting 
     with U.S. Strategic Command, (USSTRATCOM), Centers for 
     Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the National 
     Aeronautics and Space Administration. CSSS.NET was named 2011 
     SBA Nebraska Veteran Services Champion of the Year, 2010 
     Vetrepreneur of the Year (NaVOBA) for exceptional Government 
     service, won the Nunn-Perry Award in 2009 in recognition of 
     CSSS.NET's work in GIS.


                              Danielle Zoz

       Danielle Zoz was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for July, 2012. She took the position of CEO of the 
     GovDirect organization, and she is part owner of both 
     GovDirect and Bizco Technologies. GovDirect is a Woman Owned 
     Business, is HUBZone Certified, and located in downtown 
     Lincoln, Nebraska. GovDirect's focus is to provide superior 
     consulting, services and product procurement to the federal, 
     state and local government markets as well as education 
     customers. Zoz and her team pride themselves on assisting 
     customers with building the right technology solutions and 
     delivering them on time and within budget.


                             Lee Pankowski

       Lee Pankowski was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for August 2012. She started LP Custodial & Supply 
     LLC in July 2005, with only two employees. She began to build 
     a client list by knocking on doors, chasing down leads, and 
     contacting people she knew. Her company is certified as an 
     SBA 8(a) Business and SBA Small Disadvantaged Business. Some 
     of her past and current contracts have been with the US 
     Customs Office at Eppley, LAX Air Traffic Control Tower, the 
     10 Omaha Public Libraries, Union Pacific in Nebraska and 
     Kansas, and the Omaha Fire and Police Training Center. LP 
     Custodial & Supply takes pride in what they do; helping 
     businesses grow by impressing clients with a sanitary 
     environment and keeping employees work space clean and 
     healthy. Their goal is to maintain an environment where a 
     business can focus on their growth.


                             Tracie Malesa

       Tracie Malesa was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for September 2012. Du-Rite Electric was founded in 
     1958 by Tracie's maternal grandparents, Roger and Marlene 
     Charbonneau. The company has been in its Elkhorn, Nebraska 
     location since 1977. After helping the company out on an 
     occasional basis over the years, Tracie formally joined Du-
     Rite in December of 2005 as

[[Page 17741]]

     an owner and Vice-President. Trade's partners in Du-Rite 
     include her mother, Valerie Malesa, and her father, Edward 
     Malesa. Du-Rite is registered as a Tier 2 company with the 
     City of Omaha, and has obtained a Woman Owned Small Business 
     certification. Du-Rite Electric is licensed in Nebraska and 
     Iowa and has proudly served local metropolitan homeowners, 
     builders and contractors for their residential and commercial 
     electrical needs. Du-Rite prides itself on providing quality 
     products and services for fair and competitive prices.


                             Connie Martin

       Connie Martin was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for October 2012. She started SpecPro, Inc. with 
     two employees and an idea of providing exemplary maintenance, 
     repair and replacement services to owners of commercial 
     skylights and windows. With their expertise and experience, 
     SpecPro, Inc. currently offers services across the country 
     with the majority of services offered in 12 Midwestern 
     states. SpecPro, Inc. is now the largest maintenance and 
     repair company specializing in composite commercial 
     translucent skylights in the United States. SpecPro, Inc. is 
     certified as a Woman-Owned Small Business.


                          Tina Diaz-Ciechomski

       Tina Diaz-Ciechomski was recognized as the Women in 
     Business Spotlight for November 2012. Since a young girl, she 
     has always wanted to own her own business; due to 
     circumstances, she had to give up that dream to raise her two 
     young boys as a single mom. She eventually started Future 
     Construction Specialties in June of 2000, with only one 
     employee. Now Tina has thirteen employees including 
     subcontractors. Future Construction Specialties is a City of 
     Omaha Tier H Small Emerging and Hispanic Woman Owned 
     Business.
       The company offers complete home improvement and remodeling 
     to Omaha and surrounding areas. They are a full-service 
     contractor specializing in concrete work, masonry, siding and 
     roofing. They also offer flooring and tile installation, 
     drywall and painting, framing, finishing and much more. Diaz-
     Ciechomski believes that giving customers the best skilled 
     craftsmanship shows the type of pride they take into their 
     work.


                            Jennifer Maassen

       Jennifer Maassen was recognized as the Women in Business 
     Spotlight for the month of December 2012. She is the current 
     CEO of McCallie Associates Incorporated which was founded in 
     1982. McCallie is a woman-owned and managed small business 
     certified by the National Women Business Owners Corporation. 
     The McCallie team delivers high quality contract mission and 
     systems support for the Department of Defense and Public 
     Health customers. As CEO, Maassen has played a vital role in 
     improving the overall company. Since then, McCallie has been 
     recognized as one of the Top 500 Woman Owned Businesses in 
     the United States, and in 2011, Maassen was honored as the 
     Bellevue Business Woman of the Year by the Bellevue Chamber 
     of Commerce for her ``unwavering commitment, leadership and 
     dedication to the Bellevue-Offutt Community.'' McCallie was 
     also the State of Nebraska nominee for the Secretary of 
     Defense Employer Support Freedom Award, and in 2012, McCallie 
     received the Bronze Award of Merit for Business Integrity 
     from the Better Business Bureau.

                          ____________________