THATCHER — The Small Business Development Center at Eastern Arizona College is asking for the public’s help in identifying female business owners deserving of recognition.
Nominations are now being accepted for Small Business Woman of the Year, one each in Graham, Greenlee and Gila counties. To qualify, nominees must:
- Be the owner or part-owner of a small business, headquartered in Gila, Graham or Greenlee County
- Own a business with 50 or fewer employees
- Be an active owner
- Be in business for a minimum of three years Show evidence of community involvement
Independent consultants (i.e., Scentsy, DoTerra, Avon, etc.); managers, vice presidents, chief financial officers and chief executive officers; and previous grand-prize winners of the Small Businesswoman of the Year Award are not eligible for nomination.
Self-nominations will be accepted and multiple nominations for the same business woman are encouraged; however, finalists will be selected based on quality and not quantity of nominations submitted.
Nominations will be accepted until Sept. 1 at Nominations are OPEN (constantcontact.com). Nominations will be reviewed by an appointed committee and the top 10 from each county will be selected, as well as one outstanding nominee per county.
The Small Business Woman of the Year from Gila County will be announced at a ceremony in Globe on Thursday, Oct. 3, and Small Business Women of the Year from Graham and Greenlee will be announced Oct. 24 at a ceremony at the Hoopes Activity Center on the EAC Thatcher campus. Each woman named Small Business Woman of the Year will receive $2,000 for her business.
Previous Small Business Woman of the Year winners:
- 2013 — Janet Quinn, Trophies N’ Tees
- 2014 — Kally Efros, Indigo Mountain Wellness, Toys & Gifts
- 2015 — Dr. Debbie Chapman, Desert Cross Veterinary Hospital
- 2016 — Sheryl Goodman, Taylor Freeze
- 2017 — Graham County, Jenny Rogers, Safford Dance Academy
- Greenlee County, Susan Snyder, Chase Creek Marketplace
- 2018 — Graham County, Jenny Howard, Ginaveve’s Marketplace
- Greenlee County, Meghan Wagley, Chaparral Mini-Mart and Motel
- 2019 — Graham County, Margo Henrie, Fizek Fitness
- Greenlee County, Jackie Norton, PJ’s Restaurant
- 2023 — Graham County, Dr. Susan Jones, Gila Valley Clinic
- Greenlee County, Joyann Hernandez, Sunflower Environmental
- Gila County, Amanda Haas, Animal Magnetism
