July/August 2017 by Connect Business Magazine

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Contents

THE MAGAZINE FOR GROWING BUSINESSES IN SOUTHERN MINNESOTA

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS Publisher: Concept & Design Incorporated

COVER STORY

Editor: Lisa Cownie

Doing Well at Doing Good

Art Director/Staff Photographer: Kris Kathmann

Contributing Photographers: Art Sidner

Nancy Zallek’s family legacy of giving has landed her in a position to truly impact the community. It’s a role she embraces and has allowed her to grow the Mankato Area Foundation from $2 million to $12 million in the last five years.

Contributing Writers: Steven D. Anseth, Kurk Kramer, Anna Vangsness Production: Becky Wagner Circulation: Becky Wagner Printing: Corporate Graphics, N. Mankato

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Jilliann Klooster is growing her business by looking beyond the numbers on her ledger. She gets to know the people behind the numbers and she credits those relationships to the growth of Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka.

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ABOUT CONNECT

Locally owned Connect Business Magazine has ‘connected’ southern Minnesota businesses since 1994 through features, interviews, news and advertising. Connect Business Magazine is a publication of Concept & Design Incorporated, a graphic design firm offering print design, web design, illustration and photography. conceptanddesign.com

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One year after the official launch, we take a look not at what’s been accomplished, but what’s in store.

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GreenSeam

Cover Photo: Kris Kathmann

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Celebrating Our Generous Community It’s no secret that we live, work and play in a very generous community. Whether it is giving of time, talent or treasure, this region is hard to beat. We help celebrate that philanthropic nature with our cover story this issue, Nancy Zallek of the Mankato Area Foundation (MAF). Nancy is continuing a long-standing family legacy of caring for this community. When you read about the growing impact the MAF is having on our community, it will astound you. Many of the things that add to your quality of life every day were probably touched by funds going through MAF. And very gently and genuinely guided by Nancy. And can you believe it was one year ago that we were talking about this new thing called the GreenSeam? Yep, 12 months later we check in with this nonprofit to see how the last year has gone and more importantly, what’s in store for the future. I, also, am hitting a milestone with this issue. July 2016 was my first issue as Editor of Connect Business Magazine. Words can not describe how proud I am to be a part of this locally-owned publication that strives to go in depth and give readers a true understanding of the people behind the businesses that make southern Minnesota so great. I am grateful to the publishers who are hands down some of the best people you will ever meet! As I enter year two, please don’t hesitate to reach out with ideas or comments. I can be reached at editor@connectbiz.com. Cheers to another year of learning! Lisa Cownie Editor

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By Lisa Cownie Photo by Kris Kathmann

Nancy Zallek’s deep roots have helped her grow Mankato Area Foundation’s endowment and guide it’s philanthropy. Businesses play a vital role in cultivating a good quality of life in our communities; they provide jobs, economic stability, and charitable support for initiatives that can enrich our lives. It’s that last one that is sometimes easier said, than done. “Business owners are often so focused on running their company that they often don’t have the time or resources to dedicate to overseeing their charitable giving,” says Nancy Zallek, Director of the Mankato Area Foundation. “We have so many businesses in this area that generously support our local nonprofit organizations because of their commitment to strengthening and enhancing this community. But we’re seeing that increasing importance for companies to align themselves with initiatives that complement their values and passion.” That’s where Zallek and the Mankato Area Foundation (MAF) can help. “While this region is full of incredibly generous people, that’s not their business,” she continues. “It is not their responsibility to know the nonprofit community or to have a working knowledge of projects and programs that enrich our community. We can be a resource for them while helping to focus their giving to have the greatest impact in areas that are important to them.” It’s clear when speaking to Zallek that working alongside of nonprofits every day, figuring out how to align a company’s resources with its charitable desires, is a joy for her. A passion that has catapulted the MAF from a $2 million foundation five years ago, to a $12 million one today. “To give you an idea of why that growth from $2 million to $12 million is important,” she explains. “When we were at $2 million we were granting about $50,000 a year. The last three years we have averaged half a million and we are on pace this year to grant about $700,000. So by growing our assets we can really make a difference in the community.” A community in which Zallek’s roots run deep. continued > JULY/AUGUST 2017

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Doing Well at Doing Good

“I am fifth generation Mankato,” Zallek reflects. “My family started Brett’s Department Stores in 1868. That’s what makes this job really fun. It’s a community my family and I care about deeply. If I can help in any way move the dial on Mankato and make it a better place to live and work and raise a family, then that’s a win for me.” Philanthropy is defined as giving of time, talent or treasure. Zallek says all three of those happened in her household. “I was raised in a household where giving back was just a way of life,” she says. “So I just thought that’s the way everyone was. My parents set an absolutely wonderful example and always showed us a real commitment to giving back to a community they felt had been very good to them. So I hope to follow their legacy and the tradition they have established. For my brothers and I, it’s just part of our DNA. “I’m grateful to the example my parents provided for our entire family,” Zallek continues. “My brother Mark, is a physician

“Given our family’s ties to both the community and the Foundation, I thought it would be fun to fulfill that role and do something really impactful with it.” – Nancy Zallek in Mankato and I know how many boards and committees he serves on – because we often cross paths! Even though he has an incredibly active practice, he is very generous with his time. My other brother, Scott, now lives in the cities but he also remains very involved in causes he cares deeply about. What’s really fun is to watch my three children, now in their 20’s, begin to emulate the example set by Grandma and Grandpa. That’s when you understand the true impact of philanthropy.” Her parents, Brett and Gretchen Taylor, are still active philanthropists at ages 88 and 86. Brett took part this year in the Dancing with the Mankato Stars fundraiser with her

brother and her daughter. Gretchen is still on the board of the YWCA and, in fact, was the first board president of the Mankato Area Foundation in the 1970s. “That’s one of the reasons why when the Executive Director’s position was advertised, I jumped at it. Given our family’s ties to both the community and the Foundation, I thought it would be fun to fulfill that role and do something really impactful with it.” And indeed she has made an impact since taking over the helm at MAF in 2009. In this interview, Zallek talks about how the volunteer board orchestrated the incredible growth of MAF and what’s next for the organization that is widening its footprint each year.

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Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

So what happened in the last five years to spur the incredible growth MAF has experienced? In the late 2000s the board started putting together the pieces to facilitate growth. Hiring an executive director gave the Foundation someone dedicated to working with the Board to create the necessary infrastructure while spending the time to facilitate local philanthropy in this community – matching donors with projects and programs critical to this area. We also increased the size and scope of our Board of Directors. We did that very purposefully by identifying who needed to be on the board in terms of what skills and talents were necessary to enable our growth. In addition to our board, we recruited a number of community members who champion the role of a community foundation, to serve on a variety of our committees. I am incredibly grateful for the support I receive from our volunteers and I feel very fortunate that in 2007 our board raised the funds to hire the first executive director. They knew the Foundation could be more impactful in the community if we could dedicate staff to help move it forward, and I believe we’ve proven that was a good decision! Mankato Area Foundation was formed in 1974. So why did they feel the time was right to finally take that step? For decades the board operated the foundation following a “community chest” model. What that means is they would identify a project, and then raise money for that specific project. Then they would identify the next project, and raise money for it. Some examples of projects funded at that time were the fountain in the library, the Red Jacket Trail and Williams Nature Center. So the Foundation was giving away hundreds of thousands dollars – to support some amazing initiatives, but consequently never accumulated assets. It wasn’t until the ‘90s when O.P. Confer, who had been one of the first board members, passed away and left an endowed fund to the Foundation, that the board decided to change their approach. An endowed fund is invested and granting is provided from the income from that fund. That, actually, is more typical of how community foundations generally function. So really the board started working toward

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Doing Well at Doing Good

that model in the ‘90’s–hoping to create a philanthropic vehicle that would support our community for decades to come. But in order to sustain their granting and commitment to philanthropy, they needed to keep growing. Consequently, it was important to grow our donor base as well. If you are responsible for individuals who want to leave a legacy to this community you need to be a trusted resource. So we needed to have all our infrastructure in place–including the right staff and volunteers, as well as the appropriate policies and procedures to perform our role as the local advocate for philanthropy. We wanted to do our job in a superior manner so that individuals would want to partner with us to facilitate their philanthropic efforts. As you are a resource, it looks like you can provide several different types of funding. We can do any number of things. That’s what I love about a community foundation because everyone’s philanthropy is different and we accommodate all their different styles of giving. People give for different reasons as well. In addition to wanting to be philanthropic, there is often a tax benefit that drives their desire to work with the Foundation. For instance, the most popular philanthropic vehicle is a donor-advised fund. A donor-advised fund allows individuals, families or corporations to play an active role in their philanthropy. Their fund can be established and built up over a number of years or a life-event may be the impetus for creating a fund and then granting from it over time. The advantage is that a donor-advised fund allows our donors to be very thoughtful about the process while determining how they want to leave their legacy. It is during that process that the Foundation can be a resource for our donors. We like to get to know their passions and match those to the right nonprofit and the right projects and programs in the area. Also, some

Doing Well at Doing Good

Zallek’s Personal Philanthropy Zallek generously offers her time, talents and treasures to many area causes including the Mankato Clinic Foundation, Gustavus Adolphus College, Twin Rivers Council for the Arts, E2020, the St. Peter School District and First Presbyterian Church. 10

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Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

Doing Well at Doing Good

End of an Era Zallek’s family legacy goes beyond their volunteer work. Her family started the famed Brett’s Department Stores in 1868. Growing up she always thought running that retail operation was her destiny. She attended Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter graduating with a business degree and promptly went to work for the department store. “I just thought I’d work there for the rest of my life,” says Zallek. “At least that was the plan in my head.” It was a good plan for a while. In the early 90s her father was Chairman of the Board, her brother was president, and she was vice president, when faced with a hard reality. “We realized that family-owned department stores just weren’t going to exist anymore,” says Zallek. “We had to make the very, very difficult decision to close the stores. Believe me, that is not the legacy you want to leave, that your generation is the one that closed the store that was 128 years old.” Zallek and her brother Scott were young enough to reinvent themselves, and their dad could retire. But it was their other family they were worried about. “It was hard because the employees are like your family. We had 300 employees and that was tough, so tough,” reflects Zallek. “I was eight and a half months pregnant when it happened, so I decided to stay home with my kids for a while. When my youngest went off to kindergarten, I decided it was time I could go back to work. Mankato Ballet Company was looking for an Executive Director. I had danced all the way through college and have always loved that art form. So I was fortunate to match my business pursuits with something I really enjoy. So I did that for about 5 years. But then wanted a new challenge so I became the Executive Director of the United Way in St. Peter and was with them for about 5 years when this position became available. It’s already been 8 years, but I feel like we’re just getting started!”

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Doing Well at Doing Good

donors choose to give it all away during their lifetime and others choose to grant from the income allowing their fund to impact the community into perpetuity. It’s important that we spend the time getting to know our donors and how they want to personalize their giving. Donor-advised funds also give us the opportunity to work with more than one generation. When we’re working with a fund that has long-term goals, we often get to work with the children (and hopefully someday) the grandchildren of the original donors. It is a wonderful way for donors to teach the next generation about philanthropy. It’s also very rewarding to watch the intent of those original benefactors be carried out by their heirs. I love hearing ‘mom and dad would have loved this project!’ Would you say that’s your biggest role, helping those donors find the right way and place for their funds? What I love is when I have a donor in my office and we are trying to figure out what really makes them excited about philanthropy

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Doing Well at Doing Good

Paving Its Own Philanthropic Way In addition to dispersing funds for others, semi-annually, the Mankato Area Foundation makes its own grants from its Community Fund. As part of the framework for our community granting, Mankato Area Foundation funds projects and programs that foster livability in the Mankato area and focuses on four areas: arts and culture projects that enrich or strengthen infrastructure and opportunities for arts and culture offerings in Mankato area communities; recreational activities or visible and useful enhancements to area parks; education and community development programs, projects or initiatives that educate area citizens of any age in ways that help shape the Mankato area; and aesthetics endeavors such as landscaping, restoration, remodeling or other improvements to a community site.

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Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

“I am always very honored when someone chooses to have the Foundation administer their philanthropy. It’s a big responsibility and one that we take very seriously.” - Nancy Zallek and about giving back to the community. I remember I hadn’t been doing this very long when Max Heintz Senior came in to see me. His wife had passed away recently and he knew he wanted to do something to honor her memory – but he wasn’t sure what that was. We weren’t quite hitting it at first when suddenly he said, ‘you know what Nancy, she was never able to go to college. They educated her brothers, but girls didn’t get to go to college back then. And she always wanted to.’ So we established a scholarship fund for girls in the Mankato area and in Watertown, South Dakota because they had lived there at one time also. Every spring when we would tell him about the amazing women who had been awarded the Marlyn R Heintz scholarship, he would say ‘Marlyn would be so proud of me’ and he would get teary eyed. That’s why my job is so great – because we get to do that. We get to match the kind of philanthropy and the kind of difference people want to make in the community with a very personal style of charitable giving. Community foundations have a significant amount of flexibility. We can receive many kinds of gifts, including unique assets such as gifts of grain, land and stock. And then we can work to develop a plan that matches one’s financial needs with their charitable intentions – now and in the future. Donor-advised funds have the greatest degree of flexibility and are a very popular choice for many of our donors. However, we also offer scholarship funds, as I just described, as well as funds designated to support a specific nonprofit organization or a specific initiative important to our donors. Many individuals and families we have worked with have left bequests in which they leave funds to the Foundation in their will. It is then our role to ensure that their charitable wishes are carried out and charitable intent is honored. It is very common for us to work with those individuals or families as they are doing their estate planning so that we can better understand what they hope to achieve through their legacy. I am always very honored when someone chooses to have the Foundation administer their philanthropy. It’s a big responsibility and one that we take very seriously. Do you have an example of that in our community? Al and Erla Fallenstein are a great example of a local couple who chose the Foundation to administer their charitable giving after they passed away. When they created their wills, they picked specific areas they wanted to impact through their bequest to the Foundation. They chose parks in Mankato and North Mankato, and projects/programs in Mankato and North Mankato. So we had four areas to impact through their fund. So far, the Fallenstein’s fund has granted to several projects within Sibley Park including Kiwanis Holiday Lights. In North Mankato we have supported wonderful projects like the Fallenstein Field – a barrier free handicapped accessible ball field. We also partnered with

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Doing Well at Doing Good

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Along with individual donors, I understand corporate giving is also a big push for MAF. That is our role too, and a part of our growth from that 2 to 12 million. Consolidated Communications, which has gone through some ownership changes recently, had their own foundation starting back in the ‘60s when it was Mankato Citizen’s Telephone Company (MCTC). Many people remember HickoryTech and then Enventis and the generous support to our community through that foundation. When they were bought out by Consolidated Communications they wanted to make sure the legacy of their foundation continued in this community. The management and board of MCTC had dedicated stock and resources to fund their foundation so they wanted to make sure those dollars stayed local and supported local nonprofit programs and initiatives. Since they couldn’t see into the future, they wanted to bring those dollars from their foundation to MAF when they sold. So we now manage that for them but it is very much a partnership between our two

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Anthony Ford Pond Hockey Tournament for renovations to Spring Lake Park, and are now supporting efforts to create Fallenstein playground – an all inclusive playground. These are all projects Al and Erla couldn’t have anticipated in their lifetime but we feel would be thrilled we have been able to support. In fact, through the administration of the Fallenstein’s fund, I have gotten to know their son, John, very well. He told me Sibley Park was Erla’s pet project and, because of that knowledge, much of their fund has helped with park improvements. When I approached John about the concept of helping sponsor Kiwanis Holiday Lights so that the project could get some traction in the community, he explained that they had lived on Mary Circle and that Christmas lights were very important to Erla. So if there are Christmas lights in Sibley Park, John told me it just couldn’t get any better than that! Again, this feels so good. Especially in the example like the Fallensteins when it is a total win: the community benefits, the local Kiwanis club benefits, everyone that visits Mankato benefits and the Fallensteins hopefully know we are doing really cool things with their planned giving.

JULY/AUGUST 2017

Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

“Corporate philanthropy has become a recent focus area for us. Our growth has come quickly enough that we were working mostly with individuals and families. It is very clear that this is just an incredibly generous community.” – Nancy Zallek organizations. Because it is a donor-advised fund, they have an advisory committee that is actively involved in the granting process. They are the most structured partnership that we have in the sense that they take grant applications once a year, we vet and review the proposals and present those that qualify and are aligned with their focus areas. They review the requests and make recommendations regarding their granting. In addition to providing their group with knowledge of the nonprofit community, we provide their back office support as well. Is that one area your foundation can grow even more, through corporate giving programs? Corporate philanthropy has become a recent focus area for us. Our growth has come quickly enough that we were working mostly with individuals and families. It is very clear that this is just an incredibly generous community. I get to work with a number of directors of community foundations around the state and I leave every meeting grateful I get to do this in Mankato because the individuals and businesses we have in this community overwhelmingly believe in giving back. But what we have also realized is that the businesses contribute a great deal but they don’t always get the recognition that maybe they should. So, we’ve been focusing more on our corporate giving program. We’ve been meeting with various businesses to discuss how we can help them coordinate their philanthropy. Because we want to make it easy, we want to make it rewarding and, of

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Doing Well at Doing Good

“I like to think of the Mankato Area Foundation as a philanthropy hub. By being that hub of philanthropy I can work with several donors when I find out about projects that may need some collaboration.” – Nancy Zallek course, impactful. And once we match their charitable giving to the right program or project, we can then draw attention to what can be accomplished through corporate philanthropy. Mankato Area Foundation would like to start telling the community how generous these businesses are being. I honestly don’t think they get the credit they deserve because it’s hard to pat yourself on the back if you make a contribution. They can’t just put out a press release saying ‘look how wonderful we are!’ So it’s our role to shine a spotlight on philanthropy and show people all the things that have been accomplished through the generosity of this sector. Because what we have realized is that philanthropy becomes contagious and once you do it and once you see the impact it creates, it becomes very rewarding and you want to do it some more. I noticed that at times you bring several donors together for a project. Yes, I like to think of the Mankato Area Foundation as a phi-

lanthropy hub. By being that hub of philanthropy I can work with several donors when I find out about projects that may need some collaboration. It gets back to understanding the goals of our donors and their philanthropic passion so I can alert them to something they may not have been aware of. And I might have two or three that I can bring together to help fund a project that needs greater monetary support. It makes it easier for the nonprofits too. Speaking of other nonprofits, we are sitting here in the midst of many of them. This Shared Spaces building is just beautiful. The concept of a nonprofit center had been on the community’s bucket list for nearly 40 years. Denny Dotson told me he remembers very clearly sitting in meetings ages ago and talking about a nonprofit center where we could share resources, collaborate, just be together. Everybody would get very excited about the concept, but then go back to their real lives and busy worlds and nothing would

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Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

happen. It really just needed someone or some group to take the lead. So in about 2013, our board had a strategic planning meeting and actually just said, we would like to lead the charge to create a nonprofit center. But then came the ifs. If we can find the right building of 10,000sf, if it’s in the right location downtown, if there’s enough parking and storage. I remember sitting there wondering what building would possibly fit all of that! But a couple years later I found out the Blethen, Gage & Krause law office was coming up for sale, its 9,700sf, it’s in downtown, it has 37 parking spots and 6,000sf in the basement for storage...so wow! What’s really cool about this project, what I am most proud of, is I went to Denny Dotson and I said ‘what do you think of this opportunity, do you think this will resonate with our community?’...and he said I don’t know, but let’s start calling and we’ll know after we talk to four or five people if it is going to work or not. Lisa, we called on 11 people and nine of them believed in the concept so fully that they donated the funds to allow the Foundation to purchase the building. So we raised $750,000 in a very short amount of time – it was amazing! So that answered my questions, yes, it resonated with the community! So you got the building, what were the next steps in truly making it a nonprofit center? Then it needed about a half million dollars worth of renovations! We needed multiple meeting spaces. It needed to be made more

accessible, so we put in an elevator. We needed amenities that would allow us to do our work – a phone system, technology for the meeting rooms as well as general upgrades to the interior. Foundations at both the regional and state level stepped and supported us hugely. So the foundations really saw the value in what we were trying to accomplish. It’s just been a really neat area. Now six incredibly robust nonprofits are in this building: Greater Mankato Diversity Council, Greater Mankato Area United Way, Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, Miracle League of North Mankato, YWCA of Mankato and the Foundation. But we also encourage other nonprofits that aren’t in this space to use the building, use our conference rooms, use the technology, use our common area and take advantage of other services such as our copy machines. So this truly is a hub for nonprofits. It is just a hoppin place! The activity that happens in this building on a daily basis blows my mind. The ability to just walk down the hall and talk to the director of the United Way or up the stairs to the director of the YWCA is awesome. We are supporting the missions of nonprofits in and out of this building. There are great resources right here in one spot, it’s just really helpful to have the knowledge base that comes with daily interaction. It’s a very entrepreneurial concept to create this and a very unique concept in the state. I’ve had numerous groups contact me or come tour the building in hopes of replicating this model. It certainly helps that it has been so well received. Our

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“We also encourage other nonprofits that aren’t in this space to use the building, use our conference rooms, use the technology, use our common area and take advantage of other services such as our copy machines.” – Nancy Zallek on Shared Spaces biggest issue now is that our nonprofit partners all need more space. I see that as a good problem. This growth of MAF has also meant growth in staff? When I first started it was just me in the basement of Midtown Square with the assistance of a very part time accountant. Now we have three and one half staff and are hoping to add another one. I have a personal assistant, Tricia, who is committed to making this organization run smoothly. She is the main point of contact for our board and our volunteers – it’s a big job. Sarah is dedicated to overseeing our grant-

ing and scholarship awards. Her job really is to understand what our local nonprofits are accomplishing in the community. She is my boots on the ground and lets me know who is doing what, who is helping who, and who might need our support. Our region has a very robust nonprofit community so she is very busy. We are also very dependent on the skills of our accountant. Joan and I started together in 2009 and her job has increased significantly. She makes this organization tick and allows me to focus on our donors and the nonprofit community. It is quite an amazing team who focuses daily on our role as the voice of philanthropy.

And I know the MAF board is very involved in the operations. Yes, my board is incredibly involved in setting the overall vision for the Foundation as well as the oversight of operations. We have committees comprised of both our board members and community volunteers and they are all very active. Committees include finance, investment, philanthropy, marketing, structure and governance, and granting. So, even though our staff is really relatively small, I still have an amazing amount of talent to draw upon. But they are all volunteers and I have to be respectful of the fact that they have a number of commitments.

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Mankato Area Foundation | Mankato

Although I work for my board, I like to think I work with them. We have a fantastic group and I look forward to the day when I can ask them to do less – but right now – they’re busy! The good news is, they believe so completely in the role of this organization to promote and facilitate philanthropy that, I believe, they get a lot of satisfaction from volunteering with our organization. So you have staff, your board, the other nonprofits...how does the business community in general fit in? One of my priorities is to work closely with advisors in the community. Those individuals include attorneys, CPAs, and financial advisors because they are on the front lines with their clients’ and may be the first to realize when someone has a philanthropic need or desire. One reason the advisor community likes working with the Foundation in regards to their clients philanthropic needs is that we are neutral.

As I said, everyone’s philanthropy is different and we can help him or her determine what that means. We want their giving to be impactful but we also want to make sure they get the genuine “feel good” that one should get when being philanthropic. So the advisors we partner with realize what we provide and what we can do for their clients so they often refer them to us. Much of our growth has been because of those partnerships in the community so we’re glad they see the value in our work and how we can be a resource for them. What’s your biggest challenge? I want to stress that when people hear the word philanthropy they think they have to have great wealth. Although I do get to work with people with vast resources, we also really like to work with people who are just trying to figure out what their charitable giving can look like and how to just get started. You don’t have to have lots of wealth to get started

THE ESSENTIALS

Mankato Area Foundation Address: 127 South Second Street #100 Mankato, Minnesota Phone: (507) 389-4583 Web: mankatoareafoundation.com

with our foundation and you can make a difference in a lot of ways. To many organizations, a thousand dollar gift is a big deal! It doesn’t need to be a million dollar gift. We encourage people to start with us when you are younger and let it grow. Too many people think they have to wait until they retire but we encourage to start giving back in whatever way you can, in say, your 40s because I’ll tell you, it’s contagious! Once you start, you’ll wish you would have started sooner! Editor Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.

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By Lisa Cownie Photo by Kris Kathmann

Jilliann Klooster, owner of Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka, looks beyond the dollar signs on the ledger. It used to be that for many individuals and businesses, an accountant was only thought about during tax time. And then, depending on the tax circumstances, not always a pleasant thought. But in this day and age, with each new president and each new year bringing new tax laws, it’s really become a year-round relationship. That’s the basic premise of Jill Klooster’s business plan. As majority owner of Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka, her firm emphasizes the relationship part of the business. “We are lucky that we get to help people work through some of the greatest times of their lives; getting married, buying a home, having a baby, going to college, planning for graduation and then retirement,” Klooster says. “But we also help clients work through sad times from divorce or loss of a family member to some other catastrophic events like fire or illness. “We are lucky and proud to be able to work through the financial end of these special times in our clients’ lives. And that’s why we build strong relationships so we can give the best advice possible for each individual situation and can help them plan for those times.” Though she is a Certified Public Accountant, a Quickbooks Pro Advisor, a successful business owner; Klooster is not your typical number cruncher. “The clients are more than just a dollar sign to me,” says Klooster. “They are my friends and my family. I really strive to build relationships with all the clients we work with. There are a million places out there to get your tax return prepared. But we are about more than just putting a number on a line. We build value while building a relationship.” It’s those relationships that have kept her going throughout her career. She joined what was at that time, Kitchenmaster and Company in 2004 after working in banking and at another accounting firm in Mankato. She had heard about the value Bob Kitchenmaster placed on relationships built with trust and integrity. She knew she wanted that to be the foundation of her work. She wanted to put her expertise to work helping others succeed. So once she joined his staff, she started learning all she could from him. continued > 20

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continues > Jilliann Klooster (right) with a business partner, Kelly Begalka, in their North Mankato Office.

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“Bob has been an awesome mentor. I couldn’t ask for anyone better to work for or with. He is passionate about what he does, cares for our clients, and is a great teacher,” says Klooster. In 2009, Klooster bought in to the business and in 2013, became majority owner, taking on another partner, Kelly Begalka, and formed Kitchenmaster, Klooster and Begalka. KKB is an accounting, consulting and tax compliance firm that strives to make the most of a person’s assets by looking at not only the business but also the individuals behind the business. Although in a limited capacity, Kitchenmaster still has a role in the firm advising clients and

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Outside the office Jill enjoys volunteering, traveling, reading and family time with her husband and two sons, Chandler and Cameron. Chandler will attend Minnesota State University–Moorhead in the Fall and Cameron will be a senior Mankato West High School. It was her son Chandler’s love of the sport lacrosse that spurred Klooster into community action in the last few years. She was instrumental in getting lacrosse in to Mankato schools as a recognized sport. “I had a son playing lacrosse. It was one of the fastest growing club sports in the United States for many years. Then two years ago, a lot of the club teams in the state were all going to high school. So if Mankato hadn’t started the process our club team here would have had no one else to play! So it was important to get that done so lacrosse could grow in stride in Mankato. It has been very popular in the school system here and offers something to kids in high school that weren’t being serviced by other activities.” Klooster also loves to travel and feels fortunate she’s been able to visit many spots around the globe. Her favorite: Iceland. “It’s just very natural there. In the United States if there’s a beautiful waterfall you walk on a cement walkway with railing on both sides and stand 50 feet away and look at it. In Iceland you can walk as close as you want. There’s nothing there to stop you from falling over. It’s just a very natural and beautiful place.”

Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka | Mankato

Klooster strives to follow in her mentor’s footsteps. She has always credited Kitchenmaster with being a pioneer in accounting by being among the first to start offering financial services. assisting with buying and selling of businesses. Klooster strives to follow in her mentor’s footsteps. She has always credited Kitchenmaster with being a pioneer in accounting by being among the first to start offering financial services. KKB’s offerings go beyond tax returns as they also offer business consulting, entity formation, estate planning and succession planning. The industry trend now is for businesses to outsource their accounting department. “Many businesses are finding that it is much more cost effective to outsource some or all of their accounting and bookkeeping functions,” says Klooster. “Whether it is reconciling your month end, playing a part to enhance your internal controls, mentoring your controller, or stepping in as a part-time CFO, we can offer the right amount of support a growing company needs.”

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Klooster’s Core Values KKB has established core values, which Klooster says drives every business decision she makes. They are: Excellence – reliable solutions and quality service second to none. Accountability – we stand behind our commitments and are willing to be judged by our performance Innovation – bringing insightful ideas to complex areas Integrity – saying what we believe, to our clients, our staff, and ourselves Caring – about our client’s success and the growth of our people JULY/AUGUST 2017

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Inspirational quotes adorn the back hallway of KBB’s office.

Kitchenmaster, Klooster and Begalka have a staff of 12 and cater to small and mid-size businesses. Their clientele is a diverse mix of young entrepreneurs, business owners and retirees. Start-up businesses are becoming a specialty. “Structuring a start up from the very beginning is so important because that is going to dictate how you are taxed going forward and it’s just much easier to set it up correctly from the beginning then to fix it down the road,” says Klooster. “So we like to be in on

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those decisions: what structure a business will take, how to form it, and develop a tax plan as the business grows.” Growth is something Klooster has experienced since taking the helm of KKB. She has invested greatly in her own business, initially on technology. “There was a time when records were just kept in filing cabinets in the back room of accounting offices,” Klooster says. “But from my perspective that just doesn’t offer enough protection of information. As a small CPA firm in North Mankato I can’t spend enough money to safeguard those assets as well as a virtual system can. Tons of information and returns can be stored safely in a virtual office. We place major value on safeguarding people’s privacy. So we put in place a cloud-based system because we were concerned about the protection of people’s identities and social security numbers and personal information. It is more expensive, but we downsized our brick and mortar to compensate for that. We no longer need space to store physical files.” To reduce the brick and mortar, in 2015 Klooster built a new office building on Commerce Drive in North Mankato. “Our building is wonderful,” Klooster beams. She does have one tenant to share the 4,300sf building, her husband Kenny Klooster who is an Edward Jones financial advisor. She says she intentionally designed a rental bay in the building because it would then cover some of the costs. It also offers some efficiencies as it is designed to help utilize shared spaces such

Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka | Mankato

Number Cruncher, Relationship Builder

All About Community Outside the office, Klooster has volunteered her time with Greater Mankato Rotary, Mankato Moondogs host family for 10 years, Rotary Foreign Exchange Student host family, Leave a Legacy, Salvation Army, Mankato Area United Way, March of Dimes, American Heart Association and numerous youth sports teams. She also served on the Board of Directors of One Bright Star. It’s a giving attitude she passes down to her staff as well. All of the team members at Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka give back to their community in one way or another either through financial contributions, resources or volunteerism. Some organizations they support include:

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as a conference room, bathrooms and a lunchroom. A bigger area than either one of them could have afforded on their own. “We are substantially smaller than at our previous location, but we were able to design a building around our workflow that meets our needs. In the past we had substantial area dedicated to storage of tax returns because of retention guidelines. But we are 100 percent paperless storage now, so we don’t have to have that dedicated physical storage space.” Besides security, technology has other benefits for KKB as well. “We try to make sure our employees are not overworked during tax season,” she says. “We don’t have them working 90 to 100 hours a week. We’ve leveraged technology so that we can do more in a more efficient manner so that we don’t have to work all those hours during tax season. Plus the efficiencies are good for the client’s rates too.” Klooster is known to be nontraditional in her workflow and her approach with

employees. “We are different,” Klooster admits. “I am passionate that as a firm we care about our employees. That means I am not necessarily traditional in how I use the employees. We try to make sure that KKB is a big family. If there is a special need for an employee we help them work through that. Because we care about the employees, the employees care about the firm and do all they can to make sure we succeed.” She is also nontraditional in her billing. “We help our clients in need,” Klooster says. “If they are having a situation and are struggling to pay our fees, we accommodate that. But we are not traditional in our billing methods for tax returns. It’s not just about time or complexity of forms. The bottom line is we make sure there is value for the client. So our prices are very competitive. We work with clients in that regard.” Now fully settled into their new building, I asked Klooster what’s next for KKB? “I think my business partner would like

THE ESSENTIALS

Kitchenmaster, Klooster & Begalka CPAs Phone: (507) 625-4910 Address: 1660 Commerce Drive, Suite 1 North Mankato, Minnesota Web: kloosterbegalka.com

to know that as well!” laughs Klooster. “Because the last few summers we’ve been busy buying the business and building the building so she, too, is wondering what I want to do next! I don’t like to sit still for long. We are looking at expanding our business, whether that be within the Mankato area or potentially to surrounding communities. Maybe we’ll take our awesome service to St. Peter or a community like that with a satellite office.” Editor Lisa Cownie writes from Mankato.

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United Prairie Bank not only provides exceptional financial support to the IBE program but also professional mentorship to students. Dale says the school’s partnership with United Prairie Bank is critical to the success of the program. United Prairie Bank staff are actively involved in reviewing business plans, critiquing product and service pitches and attending College of Business networking events. Bradley says, “These students really get what I’d call a ‘backstage pass’ that many other business owners do not get. After they present their business plans to us as a class, we discuss their plans and deliberate just as our loan committee

Corrigan, who was the leader of one of the companies, Northern Exposure Outfitters (NEO), in Spring 2017 agrees; the challenges are what make the program work. “We had to work through adversity,” says Corrigan. “We had some disagreements within the company. But I learned to manage that to make sure everyone felt they were being heard. We had a setback with a fourth product we were excited about, but they expected us to have a brick and mortar store and the fact that we didn’t meant they wouldn’t sell to us. So we had a setback there but we went forward with three products and people like them. So when things

“The program presents a great opportunity for us to guide future entrepreneurs beyond just the classroom setting. They get to see things from the bank’s perspective, and get a real world sense of how a business works from the get-go” - Market President Doug Lago

would typically behind closed doors. Instead they get direct access to hear those key points we are discussing, and have the opportunity to address them as a group. It’s not just their CEO or CFO with us, it’s the whole class learning from the experience. If we can inject some values of earning trust and working through tough times into these young people through our interactions, we feel we are doing our part.” Formed through a generous gift from United Prairie Bank, the initial pilot program in Spring 2012 included 16 students per semester and increased to 51 students by Spring 2016. “The program presents a great opportunity for us to guide future entrepreneurs beyond just the classroom setting. They get to see things from the bank’s perspective, and get a real world sense of how a business works from the get-go,” says Market President Doug Lago. “When I work with the students, it is fun and challenging to be able to engage with them on a professional level considering I have children of that same age. I really enjoy that interaction when I ask them those tough questions that they may not have considered like, ‘how will you handle it if your product has a defect?’ When the problems come up that they need to work through, that is when the best learning happens.”

LEARN MORE:

cob.mnsu.edu/ibe/

go wrong with business, what do you do? Panic? Throw in the towel? In that moment, you learn a lot about yourself and who you are and you figure out how to solve the problem and move on. Having those moments where you put what you learned into practice has been an awesome, exciting and terrifying experience!” And everyone involved notes, it’s a rewarding experience too. Once the student-run businesses make enough to pay back their loan, all other earnings are distributed to a charity of choice. Since its inception, the IBE program has donated more than $40,000 to local charities including NEO’s picks, the BackPack Food Program and The Reach Drop In Center. “It has been incredibly rewarding to watch this program grow from that first, small class of around a dozen students to the successful program it has become. It is very rewarding when I get the chance to talk to the students on a one-on-one basis to find out what they’ve learned as a result of taking part in these business ventures. We have also been lucky enough to have made connections with some talented young people that have taken part in the program and are now part of our staff here at United Prairie,” says Bradley.

Locally-owned Connect Business Magazine is proud to partner with Radio Mankato’s KTOE to present this ongoing series.

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Greater Mankato Growth announces (what used to be known as) the Business Showcase has been officially renamed as Prime Your Business. Prime Your Business will be held at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel & Event Center, 901 Raintree Road, Mankato on Monday, September 25, 2017 from 4 – 7 pm and presented by KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato. The redesigned format will have a greater focus on stimulating business to business interactions while incorporating concepts for further attendee engagement. The name, date and location have all changed and in addition, the maximum number of exhibitors allowed will be set at fifty. For more information and to register to exhibit a booth, please visit greatermankato.com/prime. The annual ranking of the Top 500 Engineering Design Firms was released by Engineering News-Record, and this year Bolton & Menk, Inc. climbed 18 spots to #161. Since 1996, Bolton & Menk has consistently increased in ranking each year. The Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota Board has named Deb Newman as the new Executive Director.

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iSpace Environments, a full-service furniture and technology dealership headquartered in Minneapolis, opens a showroom in Mankato that serves as a shared workspace with corporate real estate tenant, Tailwind Group. The working showroom officially opened its doors on May 2. Dan White will be Market Manager for Mankato. More information about iSpace Environments can be found at www.iSpaceEnvironments.com. Robert Chesley and Lisa Chesley have recently started the Chesley Law Firm. They practice in areas of Estate Planning, Elder Law, and Family Law. YWCA Mankato is receiving $4,000 from the Mankato Clinic Foundation to be used for programming focused on increasing self-esteem and building capacity in girls ages 8-18. “We are incredibly grateful for the support from Mankato Clinic Foundation. These funds will allow us to continue to serve girls with empowering programs such as Girls on the Run, Heart & Sole, Girls Inc., and Surge,” said Amy Jordan, YWCA Director of Programs for Women and Girls. “Their investment in our programming is an investment in the healthy development of the youth in our community.” The Mankato Clinic Foundation provides resources to organizations and endeavors that effectively promote and improve community health and wellness.

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William A. Bassett, Mankato has been named the 2017 Minnesota City Manager’s Association (MCMA) President’s Award winner for his extraordinary service to the profession over the past five decades. Bassett served as City Manager of Mankato, retiring in 1996 after 28 years of service. ISG was recently recognized, again, as one of the country’s leading design firms by Engineering News-Record (ENR) magazine’s annual industry rankings moving up over 100 spots from last year, earning the position of #349. Two southern Minnesota natives have been named the 2016 Outstanding Alumni for South Central College (SCC). The recipient of the SCC Faribault Campus Outstanding Alumni Award is Marty Benes, Vice President, Business Relationship Manager in the Metro MN Business Banking Group for Wells Fargo. The SCC North Mankato Campus Outstanding Alumni honoree is Brian Stark, owner of B.Stark & Co.

New Ulm NU-Telecom was recently named one of the “Honor Roll” companies in The 2016 Minnesota Census of Women in Corporate Leadership conducted by St. Catherine University, in collaboration with Twin Cities Business. This elite group of Minnesota companies were recognized for 20 percent or more women corporate directors and executive directors. Board Member Colleen Skillings accepted the award on NU-Telecom’s behalf at the Women in Leadership Forum. Alex Resner is the newest Field Engineer at Thriveon, a Managed IT Services Company headquartered in New Ulm.

Mike Wise has joined the Thriveon team as a Sales Executive.

Bavarian Blast, New Ulm’s German American Music Festival, announces a new look to their organization and event. 2017 marks the 12th year of Bavarian Blast. The new logo features a jolly musician and in the background are simple renditions of some of the notable architecture in New Ulm: Glockenspiel, Hermann the German Monument and others. The festival, July 14-16, 2017, features a variety of local and nationally-known German and American music entertainment, great food, and fun German-themed activities during the weekend celebrating the German heritage in the community. www.bavarianblast.com

Kiwanis Holiday Lights announces the addition of two new board members: Jon Guentzel and Scott Nelsen. Both are members of the Mankato Downtown Kiwanis Club and have been active volunteers for Kiwanis Holiday Lights.

Patrick Spaude has been named vCIO at Thriveon. The job title of vCIO (Virtual Chief Information Officer) might be relatively new, but the practice of connecting technology with business strategy is anything but novel. With degrees in Information

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and Technology, Computer Programming, Business Management, and Marketing, and certification as a Professional Project Manager (PMP), Patrick is well qualified to consult with businesses about developing and implementing IT strategy.

St. James Century 21 Northland Realty recognized St. James Agent Paul Nordstrom as a Masters Ruby Producer for 2016. The award represents the hard work and commitment from Paul for his focus on the real estate needs of the community. Matt Wolle is a new member to the First National Bank Board. The Super 8 of St. James announced that it has once again been recognized for outstanding quality and service by the Super 8 hotel brand, receiving the “Pride of Super 8” award, which distinguishes it as one of the very best within the brand’s portfolio.

St. Peter River’s Edge Hospital & Clinic has been recognized as a DNV GL Healthcare certified Hip & Knee Replacement Center. The DNV GL Healthcare Hip and Knee Replacement

Certification, based on standards set forth by DNV GL Healthcare and considering the guidelines of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, recognizes program excellence in patient care and outcomes. DNV GL Healthcare certification as a Hip & Knee Replacement Center validates the hospital’s excellence across the spectrum of hip and knee replacement care, from diagnosis to treatment, rehabilitation, education and outcomes. “This certification tells our community that we have the resources and commitment to provide the best possible care for Hip and Knee replacement,” says George Rohrich, CEO at River’s Edge. “It’s a combination of the right equipment, personnel and training to exhibit excellence in orthopedic surgery within the scope of Hip and Knee Replacement and related procedures. Achieving certification validates all the effort we have put into this program to ensure the health and safety of our patients.”

winning the Minnesota’s Governor’s Cup for their 2015 La Crescent last year. “I can’t believe that we are celebrating our 5 year anniversary. It truly seems like yesterday. We are so grateful for everyone involved in our great adventure; staff, investors, growers, vendors and of course our faithful customers and our new friends we meet daily. We celebrate all of you!” says General Manager Jane Schwickert.

Chankaska Creek Ranch and Winery celebrated their fifth year in business in May. Chankaska began with a vision from its proprietor Kent Schwickert, and was supported by Chankaska’s investors, that laid the roots for the first grape vine to be planted in 2008. In 2010, construction began on the 11,000 square foot tasting room and production space. In the short five years, Chankaska has flourished with many milestones including

Winnebago

Marco, a leading technology services provider in the United States, announced today that it has assumed responsibility for the copier/printer sales and service previously provided by Dakota Business Center, a Rapid City, South Dakota based company. The 15 employees that previously supported Dakota’s copier/printer solutions have joined the Marco team. This is the 16th acquisition the company has completed over the past three years. They have six locations throughout South Dakota.

The Winnebago Area Museum is celebrating its 40-year anniversary this year. The museum has one of the largest privately owned Native American Artifacts displays in Minnesota. Their genealogy volunteers are excellent sources of finding your “roots”. Visit www.winnebagoareamuseum.org.

Pioneer Bank Your Business Bank

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Mike KUNKEL

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Denise NIENOW

HARRINGTON

Mike

Exceeding Expectations. www.bankwithpioneer.com

Lewisville • Madelia • Mankato • Mapleton • North Mankato • St. James • Lake Crystal Loan Production Office 507-625-3268

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Catch the new Hometown Business Connection on KEYC News 12! KEYC News 12 and Connect Business Magazine editor Lisa Cownie will bring you the stories of area local businesses and how they impact Southern Minnesota. • First Wednesday of the month on KEYC News 12 at 6 • Repeats Thursday on KEYC News 12 Midday • See all previous episodes on keyc.com

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Eide Bailly Celebrates A Century For Eide Bailly LLP, a regional certified public accounting and business advisory firm, 2017 marks its 100th anniversary. Founded in Fargo, the firm’s 29 offices in 13 states will be commemorating the centennial with events in their communities throughout the year. Since its beginning in 1917, a culture of service, commitment to community and fun work environment have shaped Eide Bailly’s personality. “We’re proud to be celebrating our 100th anniversary as a firm. It’s quite a milestone, and we’ve grown to be extremely successful and a top 25 firm in the country,” said Dave Stende, managing partner/CEO of Eide Bailly. “There are many reasons for the successes we’ve had—we have built a great culture and spirit, and that’s the foundation of who we are. And we have remarkable clients who appreciate the service and value we bring to them and their business each and every day. We are fortunate to live and work in some incredible communities where we help each other out.”

Minnesota-based MyPillow Announces Expansion According to Twin Cities Business, the pillow manufacturer plans to consolidate four of its facilities, but at the same time expanding operations into a new facility in Shakopee. The 374,700sf warehouse is still under construction in the Gateway South Industrial Park off Highway 101. Construction is expected to be complete in October. MyPillow will occupy about

Picnic Table Rentals

173,000sf in the facility. MyPillow will neighbor Amazon’s Fulfillment Center, ValleyFair, Canterbury Park and other manufacturing companies. MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell will reportedly maintain a 125,000sf factory it opened last summer on Valley Industrial Boulevard in Shakopee.

GMG Launches New Tool Geared for Promoting Community Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. Board of Directors recently approved an innovative plan to promote our community in a new and immersive way. Development of a virtual tours website will engage local vendors and utilize marketing efforts focused on how this community is a great place to live, work and play. The website will be geared primarily toward talent attraction, with the added benefit of promoting our community to prospective visitors. For businesses or organizations interested in talent attraction and retention, this virtual tour will allow them to immerse their prospects into our vibrant community. For those interested only in the advertising opportunity, it will also help place their business in front of potential customers and drive traffic to their business. The marketing campaign will reach a broad audience that will fuel businesses with a community focus and a measurable return on investment. Anna Thill, President of Visit Mankato said “Our design team has spent months working on a strategy that will be the go-to hub for our community. We are proud to announce this product will be locally produced and will be

Try something new for your next outing and rent one of our picnic table areas. There are two areas to rent picnic tables at Chankaska Creek Ranch and Winery. Both areas hold a maximum of 40 guests and are perfect for work outings or casual gathering. Please email Kelsey at kelseyl@chankaskawines.com to reserve your picnic area space today! www.ChankaskaWines.com

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supported by a marketing campaign that has the potential to reach five million viewers. There’s a lot of work to do yet, but we hope to have a soft launch in early October.” Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. President and CEO, Jonathan Zierdt said “This tool is a game changer – something nobody else is doing to position their community for talent recruitment and to drive customer and visitor traffic.” He went on to say, “We are positive all businesses will benefit from the product and the marketing campaign, regardless of their engagement level.”

Minnesota Cities Left Off List of Best Cities to Start Business WalletHub names best cities to start a business and not one Minnesota city made the top 20. WalletHub’s analysts compared the 150 most populated U.S. cities across 18 key indicators of startup viability. The data set ranges from five-year business-survival rate to office-space affordability. 1. Oklahoma City, OK 2. Salt Lake City, UT 3. Charlotte, NC 4. Tulsa, OK 5. Grand Rapids, MI 6. Durham, NC 7. St. Louis, MO 8. Austin, TX 9. Amarillo, TX 10. Sioux Falls, SD 11. Springfield, MO 12. Raleigh, NC 13. Lubbock, TX 14. Port St. Lucie, FL 15. Laredo, TX 16. Lincoln, NE 17. Winston-Salem, NC 18. Houston, TX 19. Orlando, FL 20. Fort Worth, TX The following is a breakdown of key data according to WalletHub: • Toledo, Ohio, has the lowest average annual rent for office space, $12 per square foot, which is 6.7 times cheaper than in San Francisco, the city with the highest at $80 per square foot.

• Detroit has the lowest labor costs (median annual income), $25,764, which is 4.1 times lower than in Fremont, Calif., the city with the highest at $105,355. • Brownsville, Texas, has the lowest costof-living index, 79, which is 2.5 times lower than in New York, the city with the highest at 201. • Irvine, Calif., has the highest share of the college-educated population, 66.4 percent, which is 5.8 times higher than in San Bernardino, Calif., the city with the lowest at 11.5 percent. • Miami has the most startups per 100,000 residents, 237, which is 12.5 times more than in Columbus, Ga., the city with the fewest at 19.

Chris Hoffman, Financial Advisor for Edward Jones, has received the CFP® certification after completing the financial planning coursework and passing a comprehensive examination.

Chris Hoffman, CFP® Financial Advisor 340 Belgrade Avenue North Mankato, MN 56003 507-388-7786

His personal commitment to his clients is to always strive to increase his knowledge of finances, investment strategies and the economic environment. Edward Jones, a Fortune 500 company, provides financial services for individual investors in the United States and, through its affiliate, in Canada. Member SIPC.

To view the full report, please visit: wallethub. com/edu/best-cities-to-start-a-business/2281/

Explore Minnesota Forecasts Strong Summer Travel Season Minnesota Tourism Industry Forecasts Strong Summer Travel Season/Explore Minnesota Lodging Survey Shows Positive Outlook. With a start like Minnesota’s picture-perfect fishing opener weekend, the summer travel season is shaping up to be a strong one for the state’s tourism industry. According to a press release from Explore Minnesota, a presummer survey of Minnesota lodging businesses revealed a positive outlook for summer travel statewide, continuing an upward trend over the past several years. Close to half of respondents expect summer revenue to be up, and 41% predict increased occupancy compared to the already strong summer of 2016. By contrast, only 11% of respondents expect decreased occupancy, and 12% expect revenue to be down. Overall, 84% of respondents rated their current financial health as growing (25%) or stable, but positive (59%). Respondents cited various reasons for their positive outlook including: the number of reservations already on the books for this summer; a good economy; their own advertising efforts (particularly online via social media and online booking engines); and new or renovated rooms or facilities. “We are very pleased, but not surprised, to hear that Minnesota’s lodging industry

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St. Peter Area Market President

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is expecting another strong summer,” said John Edman, director of Explore Minnesota. “Successful marketing, increased social engagement and high-quality customer service are leaving a lasting impression on visitors. Combined with a good economy, we expect these trends to continue throughout the summer.” The survey was completed by 234 Minnesota lodging businesses, including hotels and motels, resorts, bed-and-breakfasts, campgrounds and vacation home rentals. This positive outlook for Minnesota is in line with national trends. AAA projects more than 39 million Americans will travel over Memorial Day weekend alone, the highest travel volume since 2005, with higher confidence and more consumer spending as driving factors. While road trips will account for 88% of travel this weekend, the number of airplane, train/bus and cruise vacations are all up over last year.

Cities for Best Staycations, Minnesota Cities Not On List WalletHub predicts that only 35 percent of Americans plan to take a family vacation away from home this year, so the personalfinance website released its report on 2017’s Best & Worst Cities for Staycations. To identify the best spots for staying local, WalletHubs number crunchers compared the 150 largest cities across 36 key indicators of a fun-filled yet wallet-friendly staycation. The data ranges from movie and bowling costs to spas and wellness centers per capita to cost of house-cleaning services.

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Best Cities for Staycations: 1. Orlando, FL 2. Chicago, IL 3. San Diego, CA 4. Seattle, WA 5. Tampa, FL 6. Las Vegas, NV 7. Atlanta, GA 8. Portland, OR 9. San Francisco, CA 10. New York, NY Worst Cities for Staycations: 141. North Las Vegas, NV 142. Oakland, CA 143. Port St. Lucie, FL 144. Hialeah, FL 145. Newark, NJ 146. Fremont, CA 147. Santa Ana, CA 148. Oxnard, CA 149. Yonkers, NY 150. Chula Vista, CA Best vs. Worst: New Orleans has the most museums per capita, 92 times more than in Aurora, Colo., the city with the fewest. New York has the most parks per capita, 13.5 times more than in Hialeah, Fla., the city with the fewest. Orlando, Fla., has the most ice cream and frozen yogurt shops per capita, 28 times more than in Greensboro, N.C., the city with the fewest. Chicago has the most tennis courts per capita, 26 times more than in Gilbert, Ariz., the city with the fewest. Chicago has the lowest cost of housecleaning services, 3.5 times less expensive

than in Port St. Lucie, Fla., the city with the highest. For more information go to wallethub.com.

Women Presidents Organization Recognizes Two MN Businesses Two Minneapolis area businesses are on the list of the 50-fastest-growing womenowned or led companies, cosponsored by the Women Presidents Organization, a national nonprofit. Morning Sun Financial Services in Golden Valley ranked No. 4 on the list. Morning Sun founder Dr. Rebecca Thomley saw her 11-year old financial management firms gross revenue grow from $44.2 million to $66.7 million in just two years time. Innovative Office Solutions in Burnsville ranked No. 32. CEO Jennifer Smith increased her 16-year-old company’s gross revenue from $56.4 million in 2014 to $104.6 million last year and hired 100 employees in that time. The firm provides workplace solutions in the areas of office consumables, office furnishings and corporate branding. The companies were ranked according to a sales growth formula that combines percentage and absolute growth.

Renewable Energy Surging Nearly 7% of the total produced electricity in the United States now comes from renewable energy, up from just 1% a decade ago, and the numbers just keep climbing. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), power generation through wind, solar, and geothermal continues to grow, and is now up to 280,656 GWh nationwide. That number is 7 times than what it was just 10 years ago when the U.S. produced 41,664 GWh of renewable energy, with the biggest gains coming in just the last couple of years. Minnesota is helping to lead the way, coming in 4th highest for wind capacity in the nation, behind Iowa, Kansas, and Illinois. Wind generated energy will continue to grow in Minnesota with Xcel Energy planning to build at least 3 more large wind farms in the state before the end of the decade.

CONNECTING BACK

5 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2012 Five years ago our cover featured top tier marketing and PR executive Marcia Bahr. Now with Mankato Clinic, Bahr continues to make her mark in our community. Profiles that issue were L & S Electric in Springfield and Jarraff Industries in St. Peter. 10 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2007 A decade ago, in a unique move for Connect, we featured photojournalist Flip Schulke as he talked about some of his favorite memories in his years of capturing the lives of others through his lens. Other profiles were Professional Cleaning Services in Le Sueur and Bolton & Menk in Mankato. 15 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 2002 Fifteen years ago a business icon graced our cover, Lowell Andreas of Archer Daniels Midland Co. The 80-year old shared with us how he helped cultivate Archer Daniels Midland into a $22 billion corporate wonder. Coughlan Companies headquartered in Mankato and Nicollet Bike Shop were other profiled busiensses that issue. 20 YEARS AGO

JULY/AUGUST 1997 Twenty years ago the owner of Equity Supply in Mankato, Karl Johnson was featured in our pages. Also profiled were Russell Associates. At that time, in July of 1997, sixty percent of American workers said they lacked adequate training to properly do their jobs. Russell Associates, a corporate training company, worked to change that stat. Also featured was Arneson Distributing in New Ulm. Al and Rae Ann Arneson talked about finding their vision of the future where others rarely look â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in the past.

Read the entire articles at connectbiz.com

CHAMBER CONNECTION

Mankato

Le Sueur

Rosi Back, Greater Mankato Growth

Julie Boyland, Le Sueur Chamber

Greater Mankato Growth announces Prime Your Business, formerly known as the Business Showcase. Prime Your Business will be held at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel & Event Center, on Monday, September 25, 2017 from 4 – 7 pm and is presented by KEYC News 12 and FOX 12 Mankato. The redesigned format will have a greater focus on stimulating business to business interactions while incorporating concepts for further attendee engagement.

The three day Giant Celebration in Le Sueur will be held August 4, 5, & 6 at Legion Park next to the Bruce Frank Field. Friday night at 8 pm RHINO Band will be playing and Saturday night Blue Ringers. Sunday crowds will line the streets to watch the 90-plus parade units starting at 1:00 pm. After the parade is the Giant Corn Feed.

Blue Earth Cindy Lyon, Blue Earth Chamber We are looking forward to a giant summer in B.E.-utiful Blue Earth! Giant Days Festival is July 7–9. Check the website for the complete schedule! The Red Barn is open for tourism in Giant Park. Visitors come from all over the world and every state! Stop by and purchase Green Giant & Blue Earth souvenirs and more…the TIC in the Red Barn has guides from all over Minnesota! Check out our Bike-4-2 for a spin on our trails!

Gaylord Elizabeth Reishus, Gaylord Chamber The 2017 Music on Main program is under way for the summer. The music is from 5 to 7 p.m. in the city parking lot just east of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church. Other activities include the Farmers Market starting at 4 p.m., drawings for Gaylord Green, and a food vendor. The Music on Main committee invites you to mark your calendars and come on out and enjoy the fun.

Fairmont Stephanie Busiahn, Fairmont CVB Enjoy the best in entertainment at Minnesota’s Other Big Fair, August 14-20 in Fairmont! Experience musical performances by Hitchville, Hairball, Gear Daddies, Holy Rocka Rollaz and critically acclaimed country music star William Michael Morgan. Take a hypnotic journey through the subconscious with Lizzy the Dream Girl. Whatever your flavor, the entertainment at this year’s Martin County Fair will leave you begging for more! Entertainment is FREE with gate admission. Find out more at VisitFairmontMN.com!

Madelia Karla Angus, Madelia Area Chamber Madelia Park Days will be held July 7-9. Friday features a grand parade followed by Switchroad Band and fireworks. Saturday features the Rivers Edge Art & More Fair featuring 70-plus crafters/vendors 42

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and the Watona Park Blues Festival with The Everette Smithson Band, Sweet Papa Dave, Billy and the Bangers, Lisa Wenger & Her Mean Mean Men and INDIGENOUS. There will also be a kids carnival. It wraps up Sunday with a Pancake Breakfast, Golf Tournament, Gospel Music, 3 on 3 Basketball. www.visitmadelia.com.

Mankato Julie Nelson, Small Business Development Center “It can’t happen to me.” Threatening incidents are often unpredictable and evolve quickly. However, in the midst of the chaos anyone can play an integral role in mitigating the impacts of an active shooter or other menace in the workplace. Join us on Thursday, August 17, 1pm to 2:30 pm, for our Active Threat Awareness and Preparedness Workshop. Presenter: Mike Christianson from the Department of Homeland Security. Cost: $20. Register at: mnsbdc.ecenterdirect.com/events?centerid=12.

Nicollet Alesia Slater, Nicollet Chamber If you have a classic car, truck, motorcycle, or specialty vehicle, attend the Cruisin’ on Pine and 99. This classic roll-in in Nicollet starts at 5 pm and goes until 8 pm every other Thursday through October 5th – rain or shine! We want to thank our sponsors for this event, without them it wouldn’t be possible! For more information, find Cruisin’ on Pine & 99 on Facebook at “Cruisinpineand99.”

New Ulm Sarah Warmka, New Ulm Chamber/CVB The New Ulm Area Chamber of Commerce welcomes new members: New Ulm’s Own, Big Ideas Inc., 8th & Ash Marketing and Corner Home Medical. The New Ulm Car Hop & Shop Classic Car Cruise-ins are off to a good start in 2017. They are held the second Thursday of the month through September. Upcoming events include: Bavarian Blast, July 14-16; Crazy Days, July 28-29; Brown County Free Fair, Aug 9-13; USDakota War Commemoration, Aug 21-27 and HermannFest, Sept 9.

Local Chamber & Economic Development News

Region Nine

Fairmont

Nicole Griensewic-Mickelson, Development Commission

Margaret Dillard, Fairmont Area Chamber

Region Nine has partnered with Otto Media Group and the Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship to launch Social Media Breakfast - Mankato. These events bring together social media practitioners to network and learn about social media. The next event is July 14th from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. at the Center of Excellence and Innovation, 424 North Riverfront Drive, Mankato. To learn about this free event, follow Social Media Breakfast - Mankato’s Facebook page.

The 20th annual Martin County Blue Ribbon Pork Cook Off will take place August 16 at the Martin County Fairgrounds. Seven area businesses will compete for the coveted People’s Choice and Connoisseur awards with mouth-watering pork cuisine. This collaboration between the Martin County Pork Producers and the Agri-Business Committee of the Fairmont Area Chamber helps to fund Ag Scholarships for Martin County students. Our 2017 scholarship recipients are Leyton Becker (Fairmont) and Sierra Williamson (MCW).

Sleepy Eye Kurk Kramer, Sleepy Eye EDA The EDA Board continues its focus on the downtown district. They are seeing grassroots efforts by local leaders in planning downtown activities and revitalization efforts along Main Street. There are also continued efforts on a number of business expansions on the Snow Addition. The hotel in Sleepy Eye has new ownership and has undergone a 1.5 million dollar renovation and is now AmericInn Hotel and Suites. The construction of the Sleepy Eye Event Center is hoping for a mid-summer opening

St. James Jamie Scheffer, St. James EDA The St. James EDA congratulates DODA on the completion of their 31,000 square foot expansion here in St. James. This brand new facility will allow DODA to manufacture parts here in St. James that were previously manufactured by their parent company in Italy.

St. James Joe McCabe, St. James Area Chamber The Art Walk Project has placed 30 flower pots in the business district to complement the hanging baskets to beautify the business district in St. James. Reconstruction of Highway 4 through the city is progressing, along with the upgrade of the high school track and football field and the major storm sewer project on the south side of the city. We would like to welcome a new business, Bakken Repair and Sales, LLC.

St. Peter Emily Peck, St. Peter Chamber Plans are underway for the 47th Annual Old-Fashioned Fourth of July Parade and Picnic in the Park in St. Peter. The Chamber’s annual golf tournament was June 21 at Shoreland Country Club, followed by Business After Hours at The Woods. Recent ribbon cuttings celebrated the opening of Century 21 Atwood Realty,

Atwood Property Management, Diamond Dust Bakery and Harmon Agency – American Family Insurance.

Sibley County Amy Newsom, Community Development Sibley County has received a $12,500 continuation grant from Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation to collaborate with communities in and around Sibley County and provide a countywide website to promote businesses and growth in Sibley County. Sibley County was also chosen by First Children’s Finance to be part of the Rural Child Care Innovation program. That will allow the county to address the child care challenges impacting economic development in Sibley County.

Waseca Gary Sandholm, Waseca EDA Increasing capacity is the word in Waseca. Community and human capacity is being built with the community visioning project as Waseca’s future is planned. Infrastructure capacity is being expanded with the reconstruction of Business Hwy 14. Underground infrastructure will be replaced, along with a new road surface. Recreational capacity is being restored with the rebuilding of the grandstand at Tink Larson Field which was destroyed by fire last year. Progress is happening in Waseca.

Waseca Gary Sandholm, Discover Waseca Tourism Lakefest fills July 4th with music, food, and fun in Clear Lake Park. Fireworks fired over Clear Lake cap the evening with colorful splendor. The entire family can find entertainment and lots of things to do at the Waseca County Free Fair July 12-16. In early August, swim, bike, and run the Waseca Sprint Triathlon August 5, and follow the Garden Walk August 6. Feast on Farmamerica’s Meat-a-palooza August 12th. Have fun in Waseca. JULY/AUGUST 2017

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Art is a sometimes fragile endeavor, but Kasotaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mark Hall has fashioned a durable business out of experimenting with glass and iron, crafting commissioned artwork and teaching others.

By Anna Vangsness Photo by Kris Kathmann

If people are lucky, they’ll land in a job at least once in their life that they enjoy doing. One that they head to each day eager for what awaits them and ready to face the challenges that lie ahead. Owner of Hallmark Glass in Kasota, Mark Hall knows all about facing adversity and challenges in his profession of fabrication, design and installation of art glass and specialty forged iron. To say it’s been an interesting ride of 35 years would be an

understatement, but Hall will also tell you that he can’t imagine himself doing anything else. “Sometimes you have to have faith that the universe will provide and what happens is I have become different than everyone else,” Hall says. “People may call me an artist, but what I really, truly am is a craftsman.” continued > JULY/AUGUST 2017

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Glass Master

One of Mark Hall’s personal stained glass artworks.

Some would say that glass craftsmanship is a niche so unique that surely you’d have to have your eye on it since you were old enough to understand the beauty of stained glass but that wasn’t exactly the case for Hall. “When I was 20, I had no idea that I was going to do glass for all of my career,” Hall confides as he sips tea out of a handmade blown glass tumbler. “Without me knowing it, my brother got a tax identification number to do a glass business and it was in partnership with me. He informed me of this and I said, ‘what the heck are you talking about? What’s our business? What are we even doing?’ I knew nothing about stained glass.” A Newport, Minnesota native, Hall knew he had a decision to make. At the same time he was approached by his brother, Hall had another job offer to go to Florida to work in the marinas installing equipment. In the midst of a decision that would change the course of his life, a friend of his stopped by for a visit, telling Hall that he was about to hike to the Grand Teton Mountains. “I was just joking around when I said, ‘can I come along?’ but my friend said, ‘sure!’” Hall says. “I was working as a handyman and told them that I had some things that I needed to iron out because I didn’t know what to do. I thought, ‘gee, maybe I should go hitchhiking out west.’” On the way to Wyoming, Hall made it his mission to familiarize himself with stained glass and made stops at major art studios, visiting with craftsmen who explained to him the intensity of the job. “I got to the bottom of what it would be like to be a stained glass worker,” he says. “Not the fun part; the real part about all of the time it takes. When you make new installations on a church, you have to go there and come all the way back. Sometimes it’s a whole church and sometimes it’s taking out the old panes, putting in new frames, installing thermo panes and then the stained glass.

Glass Master

The Importance of Giving Back Throughout the years, Hall has worked hard to share his knowledge with school children around the area. On numerous occasions he has helped elementary school students make stained glass windows that are as unique as the students making them. “The kids cut out designs on linoleum blocks with their art teacher so they look like big stamps,” explains Hall. “Then, I come in right after and give each student pieces of glass with the edges rounded off so they don’t get hurt. They use glass paint on the linoleum which is then transferred onto the glass.” 46

It doesn’t stop there, though. Hall brings the pieces of glass back to his shop and fires them in his kiln. The heating process fuses the paint to the glass, giving the illusion of stained glass. The individual pieces of glass now adorn the entrance of an elementary school in North Mankato. Hall has done the same with students in Montgomery, St. Peter and the Minnesota New Country School. “Giving back is what it’s all about,” he says on the experience of being able to share his art with younger generations. “Especially as I get older. It’s kind of like passing the hammer.”

Hallmark Glass | Kasota

Sometimes you’re at the church for weeks. So, I had to decide what it was that I wanted to do. I didn’t trust myself at 20 years old to go to Fort Lauderdale. I didn’t know if I could do that.” The defining moment for Hall came in Durango, Colorado. He was at a church when he saw a brightly colored piece of stained glass that depicted Jesus walking in stride. The stained glass was so ornately beautiful that it appeared as if Jesus was coming right out of the window. “That picture really did it,” Hall says. “I had been leaning in that

Going Going the Beyond Beyond the Numbers Numbers

Glass Master

Blacksmith Shop to Hallmark Glass With a deed that dates back to the incorporation of Kasota in 1855, the Hallmark Glass building was originally a blacksmith shop and the first structure in town. Though the first building burned down, a second blacksmith shop was erected in its place, which is today’s Hallmark Glass. “Way back when the town began, people wanted the blacksmith shop to be the center of the village,” Hall says. “St. Peter was supposed to be the capital of Minnesota, so when Kasota originated, they thought it would be a metropolis. If you notice, that’s why the streets are so wide – we were supposed to be a big city.” Hall has owned the building since 1988. Prior to his ownership, it was used primarily as storage. Situated diagonally from his home, the blacksmith shop turned Hallmark Glass is now where Hall’s visions, and the visions of his clients, come to life.

SummerSummer to-do list: to-do list: Visit theVisit lakes. the at Great Minnesota Get-Together. theChow lakes. down Chow at down the Great Minnesota Get-Together. Relax atRelax the cabin. thefor next year. (That’s our job.) at the Plan cabin.for Plan thetax next tax year. (That’s our job.) www.aemcpas.com www.aemcpas.com

Since 1883 Nicollet County Bank

220 South Third Street St. Peter, Minnesota Phone: 931-3310 nicolletcountybank.com

JULY/AUGUST 2017

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Glass Master

direction, but that window certainly cemented it.” Hall returned to Minnesota where he agreed to be in partnership with his brother. However, now that he decided to go into the stained glass business, just one thing was missing: Hall still had to learn how to execute his newly formed career path. “Well, I had to be instructed on how to do it, but I’m a quick learner,” Hall says. “I’ve been fortunate that my education has come from the field. The best way to learn about it is to go to a specialized workshop or seminar. My first window was a mermaid leaning on a shell. It was complex, but not very big. It had 42 pieces in one square foot. The next thing I worked on was a series of windows that were four feet by eight feet. Why? I mean,

I’ve never done little things. I fell into work with bigger scaled projects right away.” Shortly after he learned the craft, the Hall brothers’ business ran its course and Hall moved on, spending the next eight years working with various glass studios. It was during that time that he met his mentor and fellow glass craftsman, Warren Olson, an American who was educated in Europe. “I got laid off from another job and I heard that he was hiring,” Hall recalls fondly, a smile lighting up his face. “Warren said to me, ‘I know that you know how to make stained glass windows, but I want you to forget all of that. I want to show you a new way to make stained glass window art and that’s the way we’re going to do it.”

Mark Hall’s latest major work, currently on display in Bemidji, started with a sketch in his notebook.

Glass Master

The Equipment If you’re a stained glass and glass blowing professional like Hall, you can purchase the equipment you need from specialty shops. Or, even better, you can make it. Since the beginning of his career, Hall has crafted specialized equipment called a kiln and a glory hole to make his custom stained glass and blown glass works of art. Stained glass is made by breaking glass sheets into a sand-like texture called fret. The fret is placed between panes of glass and then heated in a kiln, creating stained glass. The glory hole, which heats to 2,300 degrees, is used to reheat pieces of 48

glass in between steps of working with it. “If you want something really bad, there’s two ways to get it. One is to get money and buy it and the other is to figure out how to make it,” Hall says. By embarking on a kiln and glory hole scavenger hunt, as he calls it, Hall has saved himself thousands of dollars by researching and learning how to make the equipment necessary for his trade. “I made my kiln and I’ve had it for all of my career,” he says. “It’s lasted me a lifetime so far. You just have to have the desire for it to happen. If you want it bad enough, you’ll figure out how to do it – you’ll build it.”

Hallmark Glass | Kasota

“It’s like the dime turned,” Mark Hall remembers. “All of a sudden there wasn’t money anymore. It just dried up. And who needs stained glass anyway? You don’t need it to survive.” Under Olson’s guidance, Hall learned the more than 400-year-old way Germans made stained glass windows, a design concept that makes windows stronger and better, says Hall. “Knowing both methods, I’ll never go back to the way most people make stained glass windows today,” he says. “Here I am now, on a beaten path. I’m a stained glass guy making stained glass completely different than most people. Talk about the road less traveled – I’m way out in left field somewhere.” After honing in on his skills while studying in New York, Germany and Washington, Hall went on his own way and laid roots in Kasota, where he has owned and operated Hallmark Glass since 1988. He’s quick to credit Olson with teaching him more about life than just how to make a sturdy stained glass window. He says his mentor has taught him about attitudes in life, which has become especially handy for someone who relies solely on commission from glass work as the family’s only income. “I asked Warren to give me advice and he said, ‘be careful because

you have to know what you want to do, because it could change and soon you’re a businessman in a Rotary club and you’re jet setting around,’” Hall remembers. “I thought that was very good advice. What I’ve always wanted was to stay on the bench and make stuff.” Since a priority in Hall’s life was to continue to make pieces of glasswork, he knew that in order to do that, he needed to learn to be comfortable with uncertainty. Hall says he had to train himself to be OK with not having a steady income and to wait for commissioned work to come in. “I custom make whatever you want me to,” he says. “I found that works really well for me. If you ask me about marketing, I’m dead in the water. I’m the worst person for marketing. Word of mouth was huge. I relied on it.” The life of a craftsman isn’t always easy when you work on commission; it’s common to have months when you’re more than making ends meet and other months where you’re just getting by. Hall says he experienced the latter after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on America.

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Glass Master

“It’s like the dime turned,” he remembers. “All of a sudden there wasn’t money anymore. It just dried up. And who needs stained glass anyway? You don’t need it to survive. I’d be in the middle of talking about a restoration with a church and they would say, ‘let’s stop that project. We’ll have to continue that at a later date. Our funds are gone.’ It really had an effect on me.” With a wife and two daughters to support, Hall did the one thing that he knew would work.

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“Well, it sounds a little overly simple, but you don’t need to make money if you don’t spend money,” Hall confides. “That’s the secret right there. All of a sudden, if I was having a really good year, what we would do is put that money aside instead of saying, ‘oh, we can get a new car!’ Instead, we would live on the money that we had previously put away until my next job came in. You just have to be real steady.” Hall and his wife own their Kasota home, as well as their cars and the building that houses Hallmark Glass, all of which has

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helped during times when work hasn’t been as steady as Hall would like. “We might not have much money, but we don’t have any debt,” he says. “You just need however much money to spend on insurance and food, and so I grow a lot of my own food – I also just like to know where it comes from.” Hall isn’t in stained glass for the money. In fact, he’ll be the first to tell you that you won’t get rich on the trade. “I don’t believe that success is about being judged on the money that you

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Hallmark Glass | Kasota

THE ESSENTIALS

Hallmark Glass Mankato: 130 North Webster Street Kasota, Minnesota Phone: (507) 931-9489 Web: hallmarkglass.com Facebook: Hallmark Glass

make,” Hall says. “If I can keep doing glass, that’s my mark of success. I come over to the shop and I do what I want to do. How good is that? Sometimes I have to pinch myself because I have it so nice. I don’t have to get up unless I wake up. That was extremely important to me – that I don’t have any alarm clock telling me what to do.” From large stained glass windows to bowls, vases, lamps, bird baths, statues, jewelry and fused railings, Hall has made it all. He encourages customers to come

to him with whatever visions they have in mind and says he’s always up for a challenge. “My approach comes from my clients unless I’m making something for myself,” he says. “My job is to make what they want. I like creating my client’s ideas. I try to pull it out of people unless they don’t want me to. My best work has come from collaboration.” Now that Hall has been making stained glass windows and collaborating with client’s visions for more than three decades, he says that his priorities have begun to change ever so slightly. “I kind of switched around so that glass isn’t my main focus right now,” he says. “It’s about my family.” Hall enjoys spending time with his wife Leslie and their two adult daughters and five grandchildren. He says it’s Leslie who’s kept him grounded over the course of his career. And since they’re celebrating their 35 wedding anniversary later this year that

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means Leslie has been around since nearly the beginning of Hall’s fateful trek to the Grand Tetons. “Leslie is the greatest,” Hall says. “You have to have someone on board with you – you have to be a team. You can’t do it by yourself. If it weren’t for Leslie, I wouldn’t be here right now, seriously. She’s a really big part of everything.” Though Hall doesn’t have plans to retire anytime soon, he said he’s more than happy to pass the torch to someone who has the same passion that he has. After all, no one knows the importance of learning this unique trade hands-on more than him. “I feel like a dinosaur sometimes,” he admits. “Now you can go to big box stores for everything, even stained glass, but I have a lot of knowledge I can share with people about it. All you need is one person who cares.” Anna Vangsness writes from New Ulm.

2017 Minnesota Rising Stars: Jeff Grace, Beth Serrill, Kevin Velasquez

L I T I G AT I O N • B U S I N E S S • F A R M • P E R S O N A L

Super Lawyers. Superb Results. Congratulations to the seven Blethen attorneys selected for 2017 Super Lawyer and Rising Star designations. Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations. Congratulations to each of the attorneys selected for this honor.

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COLLABORATION CONNECTION: SPECIAL REPORT

A Year After the Official Launch GreenSeam Digging Deep to Grow Regionally By Lisa Cownie They’ve spent the last year cultivating awareness and sowing the seeds for the future. In this next year, the key players in the GreenSeam hope to harvest even greater results than what’s already been accomplished. “We’ve been quietly active, diligently working, meeting with businesses and trying to find out their needs so we know best how to align GreenSeam with the needs of the region,” says Sam Ziegler, director of GreenSeam. It was two years ago that Greater Mankato Growth hired Ziegler to lead the regional initiative; an initiative based on the fact that agriculture is the foundation of our region’s economy. Ziegler was tasked with leading the charge in developing this natural industry cluster into an agricultural epicenter. After laying the groundwork with a steering committee, GreenSeam officially launched last June. “We’ve spent the year since the launch really trying to help people connect the dots in the ag industry,” says Ziegler. And connect the dollar signs, as GreenSeam estimates the economic activity in our region from agriculture production has a ripple effect of $14.8 billion on other industries and all-in represents 58% of the regional economy. Now that awareness is raised, this next year, Ziegler hopes to take GreenSeam to the next level and make it more regional. From the beginning, Greater Mankato Growth has said it would fully fund GreenSeam for three years. Now entering the third year, Ziegler will be moving the initiative to more of an investor model. “We’ll be forming an LLC,” he explains. “We’ll restructure the current board of directors and go to a board of governors rather than a steering committee. Since we launched people have been asking how they can get involved at a bigger and a more significant level. While we were still building we didn’t want to throw new people into the mix, we wanted to lay the strong foundation and do the legwork first. But now the time is right. So we are looking to build the board with representatives from different locations, with different skills, and make sure different industries are represented. All of that is important as we launch our investor model.” Bringing those myriad of people to the table is a priority for the GreenSeam moving forward. He wants to establish it as more than a Mankato-focused program. “Bringing in more communities will be an action item in this next year,” Ziegler says. “Bringing insights from other organizations and economic groups. We want to be more proactive in bringing them in and giving them an opportunity to be at the table.” To aid in moving that piece forward, GreenSeam will be coming 52

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out with its first annual stakeholders report. “Having an annual stakeholders report will provide a comprehensive look at the previous year’s activities. In this first report, we’ll recap the last three years since Greater Mankato Growth, Inc. first launched the ag initiative initially referred to as Project ABE,” says GMG Director of Marketing and Sam Ziegler Communications Bridget Norland. “This report will shed further light on WHY GreenSeam, WHAT is GreenSeam doing and WHERE GreenSeam is going.” Ziegler points out the groundwork laid over the past year is already paying off. “Potential businesses are being channeled to the GreenSeam that may have located somewhere else. We provide them information to try to help them decide to locate here versus another location. Plus, media attention is growing. Really just awareness in general is growing. People across the country are now saying ‘Hey! Here is this trusted resource and they are talking about this region called the GreenSeam!’ So people are now having the conversations they weren’t having before. It’s being talked about at all levels.” Ziegler admits, so far it’s been hard to quantify the work being done by the GreenSeam organization, but says the fruits of its labor are starting to show. “We have lots of innovation and inventors in the region, from tech you will find AKER in Winnebago and Aglytix in Mankato continuing to grow. In the manufacturing side you may have heard about Ag Storm in St. Peter. You cannot overlook the growth of major food companies like All American Foods or Angie’s Kettle Corn,” says Ziegler. “And we can’t forget about the growth of Ridley/ Alltech in research and services to the farm and human companion animal industry. There are so many wins to talk about them all, but let me end on this one. Fafinski Mark and Johnson law firm has recently opened up an office in New Ulm. When asked why, Jared Peterson commented that they wanted to expand their ag practice and GreenSeam is the destination for ag businesses.” Ziegler says while this is all happening locally, GreenSeam is also reaching international fields. He says, “We are having meetings discussing FDI (Foreign Direct Investments) with Australia, Brazil and Canada. These are countries

that have a lot in common with us and are interested in the businesses we have here and they have businesses that are interested in being a part of the GreenSeam.” Ziegler says it’s not only about growing, but also retaining the businesses we have here. “I know there were businesses within the GreenSeam that were thinking of moving out of it, so retention of businesses is important to us,” he continues. “Those usually aren’t a public thing, but one in particular I am thinking about was considering moving out because they didn’t think they could fulfill the jobs. So we started looking at options and through conversations with them they decided to stay. I want to say we had a part in the decision to stay here. I can’t tell you the names, but can tell you it’s real. So it’s not just growing, it’s also not losing.” To assist with job retention and growth the GreenSeam Talent Exchange (greenseam.org/jobs) was launched in June. The exchange strives to align talents with opportunity by utilizing questions about interests, preferences, desired workplace environment and priority

needs. Job seekers and employers are then matched based on their answers, skills and resume. This process provides optimal matches, reducing time and cost. Another initiative in the next year, a complete business listing. “We have more than 800 ag businesses in our area so we want to have one resource, one place people can go to search and find by category. What do you want or need? Well, you can find it here. It’s not just the little niche industry. Ag drives our economy. So we have to continue to try to connect people and allow them to see how they all impact each other.” Indeed, a lot has happened in the first three years of GreenSeam, and with excitement building, Visit Mankato plans to hold a celebration of harvest this fall dubbed “Gather in the GreenSeam.” “Three years ago there was very little buzz about the growth and strength of the economy that was related to agribusiness. Today the buzz is about the future of agribusiness and the growth of our economy due to it.”

GreenSeam

Partnering with Education Ziegler says community awareness is just part of the plan for the future of GreenSeam. He knows targeting students early will be a key in helping sustain the ag epicenter. “One win we have had is within education,” he says. “First, Distruct 77 now has ag as one of its four career pathways along with manufacturing, health and education. So they are developing a program there. “Also, the St Peter school district is adding another ag teacher because their program is full. So that’s been a win. Did we control it? No, but it’s evidence that people are starting to catch on to what we are here.” And Ziegler says that plays right into what is going on at the next level as well. “We are in the middle of numerous quality institutions of higher education,” he says. “So we are continuing to strengthen our relationships with the colleges. One example, we just met with the College of Business at Minnesota State Mankato. Just talking about what can be done in their top degree programs. For instance, analysts, well there is a lot of need for analysts in ag. Another top major, computer science, perfect we need that, too! Rasmussen College has a supply chain management program and the people teaching it do talk about ag. So there will be some movement in partnerships with education systems and conversations with colleges happening in second year of initiative.

GreenSeam Stat Sheet So what makes GreenSeam truly the “epicenter” of agriculture? Statistics gathered by the GreenSeam show the following: • The region boasts more than 800 ag-related businesses. • Live stock production has sales of more than $4.7 billion coming from 9,500 operations. • Crop sales are at $7.1 billion from nearly 20,000 operations. • In recent years GreenSeam has produced more than 4.7 million hogs, 107 million bushels of soybeans and 511 million bushels of corn. • 8 of the top 10 soybean producing counties in Minnesota • 7 out of the top 10 hog producing counties in Minnesota (including the top 4) • 6 out of the top 10 corn grain producing counties in Minnesota (including the top 4) • Minnesota ranks 4th in the U.S. in ethanol production because of the agriculture cluster in GreenSeam. To read more please visit greenseam.org. 53

OPINION

Creating Pathways to Employment and Careers An On the Job Training (OJT) Program has been developed by the business leaders and high schools of Sleepy Eye. The goal is to help create pathways to employment and careers which exist within Sleepy Eye. The program has been designed to combine both school and work-based learning by involving the participating student classroom instruction and actual work experience, training and mentoring. Acceptance into this program is based more on work readiness than on academic performance. The program will assist the students in developing skills they will need for the competitive job market. The program follows a consistent schedule that is developed a year prior to implementation. This enables students to have the program fit in to their class schedules for the upcoming school year. They receive one credit per semester for participating in the program. To participate in this program, the students take part in a local job fair in which all businesses provide the introductory information and insight as to what their company offers. The students then attend a 3-hour classroom training session designed

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to help prepare them with the necessary skills for interviewing for and obtaining a job. This program consists of instruction on how to fill out an application, how to prepare for an interview as well as businessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; expectations of employees. Following the classroom training, the student will interview with the actual businesses which they would like to learn more about by participating in the job shadow/intern program. This program is not designed as a guarantee to students, but rather as a tool to assist in preparing students for life after high school. This program is also designed to bring an awareness of the career opportunities which exist today in Sleepy Eye and the surrounding area. Upon graduation from high school, students can look within their own community for career opportunities for their future. These opportunities may be needed right out of high school or after for those who have completed their college degree and wish to return. Whatever the individualâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s situation is, the Business Leaders of Sleepy Eye want their students to know they have a place to go for a career. The program began in 2012 with four local

businesses and eight high school students. It is now completing its fifth year with nearly thirty students and twenty businesses involved. The success of the program has Kurk Kramer been measured by not only the growth of the program, but also by the fact that there are students that have completed the program during their high school years, have received a post-secondary education, returned to Sleepy Eye, and have been hired by the business in which they participated in this program while they were attending high school. Work continues by the OJT Committee, the two high schools, students, and local businesses to continue to improve and expand this program each year. This is being accomplished by annual input and feedback provided by the students and businesses as they complete their experiences each year and then spend time discussing their experience at a final meeting that follows the completion of the program. Kurk Kramer is the Economic Development Coordinator for the City of Sleepy Eye. He has twenty five years of education and administration experience, and has been the EDA Coordinator for the City of Sleepy Eye for the past eight years. He is also closely involved in the EDA, Chamber, CVB, Sleepy Eye Area Foundation, and Sleepy Eye Ambassadorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Boards.

HOT STARTZ!

Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area

SPRINGFIELD

Competition Target Systems

ART SIDNER

Although Matt Teske grew up in his family business, steel utility trailer manufacturer Teske Manufacturing, it wasn’t until recently he was able to put his own twist on the business. “I have always had a love for shooting sports and hunting, being surrounded by steel it was only a matter of time before I started playing around making some small target stands,” Teske says. “I created Competition Target Systems and in a few months we landed our first major contract. We haven’t looked back since.” Competition Target Systems (CTS) now has over 60 different products with more on the way. CTS currently provides targets and accessories for independent gun stores, public ranges, online retailers, and several chain stores who carry their product line. Their best selling products are the Laser Cut AR500 steel targets and hangers. “In 2016 we purchased our first CNC Laser and entered the world of “custom targets.” We have a full time marketing agency helping to promote our brand in magazines, TV and social media. We currently have four independent rep agencies across the country with a sales force of over 30 individuals representing our target line. Using reps and marketing agents outside of the company has been a huge change for Teske, but it has also been a great learning experience that we are excited about,” he says.

Based in Springfield, Teske says they are proud to be American made. “We want the customers, who are willing to spend money on something we designed and built, to have a great time out at the range,” Teske says. And Teske is quick to credit those around him for the success. “We have a great team and without them all of this wouldn’t have been possible,” he says. “Our main focus is to design innovative, cost effective and safe target systems. Our core values are ‘innovative design, superior quality and exceptional value.’ If a target doesn’t fall into these categories we will not put our name on it.” COMPETITION TARGET SYSTEMS (CTS) Telephone: (507) 723-4160 Website: CTSTargets.com

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HOT STARTZ!

Adult, Child & Family Services Owning her own practice was never really in Jessy DavidShouler’s plans so she marvels now as her life has always been full of surprises. “Had you asked me five years ago if I thought I would ever go into private practice and own my own mental health agency, I would have probably chuckled and made a sideways comment about your judgement in thinking I could pull something like that off,” she chuckles. “But, here I am. The opportunity arose and for some reason, I just couldn’t shake the possibility that I could do what I love, therapy, help others, and become an independent business owner to boot. I am a ‘let’s dive in’ sort of person.” After interning at Adult, Child and Family Services in Mankato, David-Shouler bought the practice. ACFS is a mental health agency offering comprehensive services to children, adults, and families struggling with mental illness as well as difficulties within family dynamics, parenting issues, relationship struggles, abuse and trauma, life direction, etc. It is located in the Madison East Center. ACFS has four full-time therapists, three part-time therapists, a full-time mental health practitioner, many part-time mental health practitioners, and two full-time non-clinical staff. She also credits her husband to helping her practice succeed. “My husband has graciously adjusted over the last year to the innate learning curve of business ownership, the risk taken in making something like this work, and the sacrifice of long

hours and increased stress that comes along with business growth and change. I am humbled by the fact that I am here.” ACFS serves children and adults, families, couples, and individuals, from all walks of life. “We also try to utilize each opportunity to work with other helping professional organizations in the community, so working with counties, other mental health and medical professionals, and now most currently, the REACH, which is a drop-in center for homeless youth. Lastly, we offer rehabilitative programming to adult men who have committed offenses and are required to attend treatment.” The office in Mankato services Blue Earth, Nicollet, Brown, Waseca and Le Sueur counties. David-Shouler also plans to open a satellite space in New Ulm in order to better serve the Brown County area. ADULT, CHILD & FAMILY SERVICES (ACFS) Address: 1400 Madison Avenue, Suite 610 Telephone: (507) 387-3777 Website: acfsmankato.org

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Very New or Re-formed Businesses or Professionals New To Our Reading Area

BRICELYN

Salon Lab Professional LLC

ART SIDNER

The “farm to table” movement has been popular in the last few years, and now one local woman is taking it a step further with her Farm to Fashion™ line of hair products. “One of the key point of differences in Lis’n, is the Farm to Fashion™ ingredients. The key active ingredients are naturally farm derived. Protein from sheep wool, corn, soy, macadamia seed oil and the scent is derived from ruby red grapefruit. I grew up on a farm and still live on a farm to this day. I have spent my entire career in the beauty industry traveling the USA and Canada working for major manufacturers. So the marriage between Farm and Fashion is a natural step for me” says Paulette Legred. She launched her company, Salon Lab Professional LLC, in September of 2016. But it had been in the works for a couple of years prior to that, as she met with a chemist and a creative director to make sure she was getting just the product she wanted. “I met with my chemist friend and she asked me what I envisioned in my line and I replied, “I want it straight-forward and honest. Don’t put any ingredients in there that aren’t doing anything. And she did. “My next meeting was with my Director of Creative. I didn’t know where to begin when it came to bottles, labels, barcodes, a logo…. Any of it. She guided me completely and could put my vision into design and print. What a talent. I firmly believe

without either of these two people, I couldn’t have gotten off the ground.” She predominately sells directly to professional beauty salons that sell to the consumer. She sells to distributors in Michigan and Texas and through her website can sell in 9 states and growing daily. Lis’n Premium Professional hair care currently has five products, Shampagne Fresh Shampoo, Shampagne Clean Conditioner, All. U (need) Styling Elixir, Restyle Flexible Styling Mist, and Perfect Finish Hair and Body Oil. She plans to launch two more products yet this year and is working on 2018 launch of a new one as well. SALON LAB PROFESSIONAL LLC Address: 8067 510th Avenue Phone: (844) 688-0692 Web: lisnbeauty.com

To be considered for one of three spots in the September Hot Startz!, email the editor at editor@connectbiz.com. Businesses considered must have started—or changed greatly in form—within one year of our publishing date. Professionals chosen must be new to our reading area.

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ASK A PROFESSIONAL

Steven D. Anseth CPA Abdo, Eick & Meyers

In Minnesota, there are hundreds of nonprofit organizations—and no two are exactly alike. With missions that run the gamut from hunger relief to environmental conservation, they range in size from a few thousand dollars to over $100 million in revenue. Some have more than 100 employees, while others are 100 percent volunteer-run. The size and diversity of the nonprofit world can make it difficult to compare one organization to another. But if you’re thinking of partnering with or supporting a nonprofit organization, it’s important to know how it stacks up, particularly in terms of governance and finances. Thankfully, IRS Form 990 gives you a way to “look under the hood.” Virtually any nonprofit organization in the U.S. with more than $200,000 in annual revenue is required to file Form 990 with the IRS each year. (Churches and churchrelated organizations are exempt from this requirement.) The form is meant to justify the organization’s tax-exempt status, and includes, among other information, an overview of its activities, governance, and finances. Unlike tax returns, Form 990s are public information; several websites make them available. I generally use Guidestar (www.guidestar.org), which requires a free and quick registration to view Form 990s. While obtaining a Form 990 is relatively

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What To Look For In A Nonprofit’s IRS Form 990 straightforward, reading it can be quite daunting as they often reach 40-50 pages in length. But do not fear—the “good stuff ” is mostly in the first 12 pages. Here’s what you should look for: Page 1– Pay close attention to Line 1 and Line 6. Line 1 is generally a narrative about the key thing the organization has done or aspires to do. Line 6 shows the number of volunteers that have helped the organization throughout the year. The latter can be a good indicator of the degree to which the community is involved in the organization’s work, as well as how heavily the organization relies on volunteers. Page 2 – The organization’s mission statement should appear at the top of page 2. While this statement should reflect the one displayed on its website, it’s not uncommon for an organization to forget this update. Line 4 describes the major programs or activities the organization accomplished in the past year. Pages 3 and 5 – There isn’t much in the way of valuable information here. I like to say reading these three pages is helpful if you’re having trouble dozing off at night. Page 6 – Line 1 is arguably the most important item on this page, as it indicates the number and type (independent or

non-independent) of board members serving the organization. Most organizations will have at least six to 10 board members. While a larger board isn’t necessarily a better board, one with fewer than five members is unusual and may warrant an inquiry about its small size. Aside from charter schools and a few other exceptions, boards generally should not have more than 1-2 nonindependent members. Line 12 asks about the organization’s conflict of interest policy and procedures. Nearly every nonprofit has a formal conflict of interest policy. If an organization’s Form 990 is missing this piece, it is likely an oversight than an indication of a poorly run organization. The same is true for lines 13 and 14, which ask about the organization’s whistleblower and document retention policies. The states listed on line 20 can indicate the extent to which an organization is involved in raising money outside of Minnesota. Pages 7 and 8 – Here you’ll find a listing of board members (voting members only), officers and highly paid staff. You’ll also find the executive director’s salary and benefits, as well as how many (if any) of the organization’s employees make over $100,000. When reviewing salary levels it is important to think about them in