Award Winners
2008 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
David Minor, Director Neeley Entrepreneurship Center, and Brian Happel, Fort Worth Market President of Compass Bank, with the 2008 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners Matthew Brown, Michael Hodge, Erick Van't Westeinde, Zach Galant, Seth Dennis, Gabe Cocanougher
Erick Van't Westeinde
Senior, Jesuit College Preparatory (Dallas)
Erick was the grand prize winner of the $5,000 scholarship. His business, Westend Trading Company, buys, repairs, restores and sells classic European cars. An avid collector, Erick started his business at age 12 with his first sale of two high-end scale-model cars. Soon, he was buying and selling these cars all over the world. He moved on to bicycles before settling on European classic cars, mirroring his father's passion. He has bought and sold 15 Porches, four Jaguars and one Mercedes to loyal clients all over Europe, his primary market, and the U.S. Erick utilizes his language skills to communicate in Dutch and German. His eventual business goal is the commercial real estate market.
Matthew Brown
Senior, Paschal High School (Fort Worth)
Matthew won a $1,000 scholarship for his advertising, marketing and PR firm, The Frankfurt Group www.thefrankfurtgroup.com. Matthew's company focuses on guerrilla and grassroots marketing, serving business with small budgets, especially actors, documentary artists and musical artists. One documentary, "Loose Change," has been labeled by TIME magazine as "the most-watched documentary of all time." Matthew started his business in 2001, helping small businesses with their internet presence.
Gabe Cocanougher
Senior, Decatur High School (Decatur)
Gabe won a $1,000 scholarship for his cow-calf operation, Cocanougher Connections. The business also specializes in hauling agricultural commodities. Gabe began his entrepreneurial operation in 2005 by hauling hay and doing contract labor for ranches. With profits from hauling hay, he purchased some property and three cows, which grew to 24 cows, 1 herd sire and 36 yearlings. Gabe plans to expand his business while in college. He hopes to attend TCU and study Entrepreneurship and Ranch Management.
Seth Dennis
Senior, Texas Military Institute (Boerne)
Seth won a $1,000 scholarship for MPS Innovations LLC and Domestic Task Freelance. MPS is a real estate investment company that buys, renovates and sells single family houses in central Texas. Domestic Task Freelance is a renovation and general contracting company. Seth is one of three founders of MPS. The company targets pre-foreclosures and REOs. His other business has Seth doing exterior and interior property maintenance and renovation, along with one employee. Seth plans to have at least six employees and see some of the teens spinning off and starting their own companies.
Michael Hodge
Senior, Scurry Rosser High School (Scurry)
Michael also won a $1,000 scholarship for Hodgy Martial Arts (Hodgyma) and Hodgy Web Design www.hodgyma.com. Michael has operated Texas Karate Academy for three years. He began Hodgy Web Design in 2006, offering advertisements, web design, maintenance and a complimentary web design each year. Through Hodgy Martial Arts, launched in September 2007, Michael develops and distributes martial arts educational materials to instructors, such as DVDs, operation manuals and enhanced website. He plans to introduce an instructional series called Ultimate Training™ to target martial arts students. He will continue to grow his business while in college.
Zach Galant
Senior, Greenhill School (Dallas)
Zach won a $1,000 scholarship for TeraByte www.terabytegames.com. TeraByte is an exciting, engaging summer camp where kids are taught to create and bring home their own video games and movies. Zach started the summer camp the summer before his freshman year, convincing the headmaster at Greenhill to allow him to rent the computer lab for 20 percent of the revenue from the camp. He has since installed a computer lab in his parent's garage, and added film making and digital art to the schedule. Total enrollment for summer 2007 was 70 students. Zach has hired thee skilled counselors to provide individualized teaching. He plans to increase offerings and space, as well as the run time (four weeks). He would like to expand his company globally.
2007 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
2007 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners with Brian Happel, Fort Worth Market President, Compass Bank, Roger Williams, Texas Secretary of State, and David Minor, Director, Neeley Entrepreneurship Center
Tania Foster
Senior, Sachse High School (Dallas, Texas)
Tania won a $1,000 scholarship. She turned her entrepreneurial spirit into a 501c-3 organization called Dallas is Love, which benefits 11,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea. In 2005, her organizations collected $5,000 in donations to purchase Army Air Force Exchange gift certificates in $25 increments to give to the troops for the holiday season. Tania and her family were invited to visit the troops, and after receiving clearance from the Pentagon, she arrived in 2006 with additional $2,500 gift certificates, plus autographed sports memorabilia. Tania's strategy is to send donation letters to everyone she meets, as well as business leaders, community leaders and major organizations. She plans to continue Dallas is Love through college and turn it into a nationwide charity to recognize those who serve. www.dallasislove.org
Justin Shoulders
Senior, Shallowater High School (Lubbock, Texas)
Justin won a $1,000 scholarship for his yard maintenance service, American Lawn Service. Justin began his business the summer before his freshman year with a few yards and hi dad's lawnmower. He now serves approximately 30 weekly customers in addition to those who call for special services such as tree and hedge trimming, weed control, flower bed maintenance and fertilizing. He manages private homes as well as several commercial accounts, including Coldwell Banker Realtors in Lubbock. He sends Christmas cards to clients and performs voluntary yard work for elderly and disabled individuals. Justin plans to study business in college while maintaining his company.
Chris Sterling
Senior, Jesuit Preparatory School (Dallas, Texas)
Chris also won a $1,000 scholarship. Chris' business is quite unique. Sterling Coral and Shells is a wholesaler that distributes decorative coral and shell specimens to upscale retailers such as Ceylon et Cie, Kentstone Antiques and Peacock Alley. His coral has been featured in Dallas Home Design and Veranda magazine, which featured his coral in a layout of Donald Trump's house. With Dallas covered, he hopes to expand to Fort Worth and Southlake. Customer service, on-time delivery and the best specimens available make his company a success. He is already thinking of other items such as quartz spheres, citrine points and amethyst specimens as design trends evolve. He plans to study business in college.
Karen Radewald
Senior, Lake Travis High School (Austin, Texas)
Karen was the Grand Prize winner of a $5,000 scholarship. A senior at Lake Travis High School in Austin, Karen combined her hobby of collecting bottle caps, with her design talent, to create distinctive jewelry that is now sold world-wide. Karen's company, Um. Yeah. Inc. produces and sells vintage bottle cap jewelry, as well as jewelry made from antique keys and other found objects. Her bottle cap jewelry is sold via the web and through more than 15 retailers in six states, Canada, Central America and Hong Kong. Utilizing her savvy marketing skills, she contacted Teen Magazine and Teen Vogue with her story. Both publications featured her jewelry, and because Teen Vogue is distributed world-wide, Karen received e-mails from more than 3,000 girls around the world, many asking for advice in starting their own businesses. She plans to continue serving her current accounts while in college, where she plans to study graphic design and entrepreneurship. www.popartbykaren.com.
Victor Ramon
Senior, Highland Park High School (Dallas, Texas)
Victor, who won a $1,000 scholarship, uses his brains to make money while helping others. He formed Highland Park Tutors to provide quality tutoring at affordable prices for the entire Park Cities area. With 10 different tutors, each ranking in the top of their class at Highland Park High School, Victor's company can tutor every core subject as well as foreign languages and a few other electives. He taught himself web design and created a website. He invited the local newspaper to meet his tutors at their first meeting, which resulted in news coverage both in the Park Cities People and Dallas Morning News. He plans to further market the already successful company and continue it through college. He plans to study business, start his own company and have it grow to become a Fortune 500 company.
Christopher Wilshire
Senior, Calvary Christian Academy (Fort Worth, Texas)
Christopher won $1,000 scholarship for Rockin' W. Cattle Co. LLC, which breeds, buys and sells registered and purebred Black Angus cattle and registered quarter horses. The company also farms and raises its own hay and performs some cattle hauling. Chris has grown his herd from three Black Angus calves to a herd of 24 cows, one bull and 17 calves. His business plan takes him through 2009 for 150 breeding females and 50 stocker calves. At that point, the profits will provide him with enough capital to meet operational costs, provide for expansions and assist in educational costs while Chris pursues a degree in business and ranch management. www.rockinwcattleco.com
2006 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
Craig Gagne ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Judson High School (Universal City, TX)
Gagne's company, Global Exotic Reptiles, provides exotic livestock to zoological institutions and other organizations worldwide. He has distributed more than 1,300 of these animals in the past three years, an endeavor that started when Gagne was 15 and he used his savings to buy an exotic animal that he sold for a profit. He buys animals from breeders and sells them through Internet sales and trade shows. He plans to someday directly import the animals and build a breeding facility http://gereptiles.250free.com
Jeff Livney ($5,000 Scholarship)
Senior, The Woodlands High School (The Woodlands, TX)
The grand prize of $5,000 went to Jeff Livney, a senior at The Woodlands High School in The Woodlands. He came up with the company Piko Zoom, a student-run graphic consulting firm that offers Web design and development, brand and identity consulting, print and Internet marketing, and Web/interactive solutions, including e-commerce. He founded the company during his sophomore year and has since hired 15 students as independent contractors. www.pikozoom.com
Austin Hoffman ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, All Saints Episcopal School (Tyler, TX)
Hoffman's business, Coleto Collectibles, is an internet retailer that sells garage sale items. He visits multiple garage sales on Saturday mornings, buys things and sells them for profit online via eBay. He has grossed more than $50,000 and has written a book about operating a successful Internet business titled Guerilla Garage Sales. www.guerillagaragesales.com
Lucas Butler ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Palmer High School (Palmer, TX)
Butler's business is Lucas Boer Goats. He began raising goats in 2002 to help save for his college tuition. He now has 28 females, two males and four show goats and expects 60 to 80 kids in the spring. He markets his business by networking with other breeders via professional organizations, and has recently expanded his business to offer barn and fence construction as
well as breaking horses and helping other goat raisers.
Andrew Spiziri ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Highland Park High School (Dallas, TX)
Spiziri started iLaunch Creations in 2002. The company, a network of Web sites offering independent services, includes sites that offer streaming radio music, image hosting, funny movies and pictures, template downloading and professional template layout work. He gains revenue by charging for the sites' services in addition to advertising dollars. www.ilaunchcreations.com
Charlie Neff ($1,000 Scholarship)
Junior, Grandview High School (Grandview, TX)
Neff started CN Graphics, a printing business, in 2003. His company prints business cards, T-shirts and other promotional materials on his own portable printing press. He sends flyers and coupons to high school officials, approximately 1,000 mailings per month, and says he gets at least one new customer for every 50 mailings.
2005 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
Justin Avery Anderson ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Robert E. Lee High School (Houston, TX)
Justin Anderson produces and distributes Anderson Trail "The Original Premium Moist Granola.' Open for one year, the business has grown from word-of-mouth selling in high school to online orders at andersontrail.com. Web inquiries soared after Justin was featured in a 3-minute story on Houston's ABC news affiliate. Justin has procured a state manufacturing license, insurance, purchased a product bar code, and arranged for the use of a commercial kitchen after hours. He is pursuing contracts with Central Market and Randall's/Safeway.
Natin Paul ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, St. Michael's Academy (Austin, TX)
Natin Paul Enterprises (NPE) is a multi-venture company founded in August 1996. Natin has expanded his business to include several business ventures with 15 employees. The company includes Natin's original disc jockey service, a tutoring service which offers private tutoring for high school and junior high students, a company which designs and distributes personalized bottles of water to businesses in central Texas, Trendy Tees for Teens which creates and produces trendy T-shirts, and 360 Lawn Care which provides lawn and pressure washing services to commercial and residential properties in the Austin area.
Grace Beck ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, All Saints Episcopal School (Fort Worth, TX)
Camp Kiddos, started in 2001, is a summer day camp for young children. Camp Kiddos has 4 employees who manage up to 27 kids per week. The program is marketed through fliers to the families of All Saints' school and Grace has generated quite a bit of word of mouth advertising to other families. Grace is very proud of her business and has already set forth her succession plan when she enters college this fall - she will pass the business on to her young siblings.
Clayton Reed Ellis ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Temple Christian School (Arlington, TX)
Clayton started Clayton's Landscaping and Power Washing business as a landscaping business in 2003, and then later added power washing because the competition in power washing was less fierce. He grew his business by soliciting door to door in the neighborhood. Clayton was able to pay off his dad's start-up loan in one month, and he purchased an SUV before his senior year. This summer he plans to buy 1 or 2 more power washers and hire 1 or 2 more people.
Christian Fields Pearson ($1,000 Scholarship)
Senior, Coronado High School (Lubbock, TX)
Christian created Texas Mobile Wash in the fall of 2003. Pearson launched his business by offering "free' car washing at a local fundraiser, with donations going toward the fundraiser. Several months later, he obtained an exclusive contract with Yellow Cab of Lubbock, the only taxi cab service in Lubbock, as well as a contract with Sexton Enterprises Freight Company, which involves cleaning the company's fleet of 25-65 foot freight vehicles and passenger vehicles.
Kyle Mann ($5,000 Scholarship)
Junior, Lake Dallas High School (Corinth, TX)
Kyle got started in business at the tender age of 11, mowing his neighbor's lawn to earn money to pay for the family phone he accidentally broke. The next year, after moving to a new neighborhood, he used the "new kid on the block' attitude to solicit yards. He steadily grew his business all the while investing his earnings in better equipment. Kyle joined the Lake Cities Chamber of Commerce and acquired most of his commercial accounts. Last year, 2004, he registered a new company name, Lawn Mann. In addition to his commercial accounts he has 40 residential properties earning over $45,000 in sales in 2004.
2004 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
Austin Cash Hoffman - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Sophomore - All Saints Episcopal School, Tyler
When no one would hire a 14 year old for a summer job, Austin turned his desire to work into a profitable business selling merchandise on E-bay and half.com. He buys "low" at garage sales, and sells "high" on the internet. Investing two hours a day, every day, he earns enough from his business Coleto Collectibles to pay cash for his own car, have two major credit cards and two bank accounts - not bad for a sophomore! Check your bookstore, Austin's busy writing a book on how to be a successful E-tailer.
Jessica A. Froberg - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Junior - Plano East Senior High School
Like many entrepreneurs, Jessica learned to juggle a lot of responsibilities - successfully. She is a high school scholar, athlete, community donor, and business woman. Her business Bead It! is a custom jewelry business that sells beaded products all over the country. She started at age 13, selling to the local tennis facility. Now as a successful entrepreneur and accomplished tennis player, she regularly donates her products to the Dallas Professional Tennis Association's silent auction.
Chris Isenblitter - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Junior - San Augustine High School
Persistence, hard work and dependability are the underpinnings of successful entrepreneurship. Starting at age 12, Chris and his brother mowed the lawn of a neighbor to earn money. After four years and the addition of another worker, they steadily grew Isenblitter Mowing Service to 32 clients. Chris' reputation with his clients is the key to his growth, as referrals and newspaper ads help spread the word. Typical of these entrepreneurs, Chris is also active at school; he is a scholar, a power lifter, student leader, and actor.
Kyle Mann - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Sophomore - Lake Dallas High School
Salesmanship is key to business success and super salesman, Kyle Mann, created SuperMann Lawn Care after honing his selling skills at the age of 13. When his mother turned down his request for $20, he took the family lawn mower and convinced the neighbors to let him mow their lawns. Kyle now has 7 commercial accounts, 10 residential accounts, over $10,000 worth of equipment financed by the business and is an active member of the Lake Dallas Chamber of Commerce. Kyle believes in setting a goal, writing it down, and then working for it. He aspires to be a multi-millionaire by 25, good luck, Kyle!
Nathaniel S. Turner V - $5,000 Scholarship Winner
Senior - The Academy of Science & Technology at Oakridge High School
Many entrepreneurs start young. Nat set the record, founding his first company at the ripe old age of 10, just before he entered the fifth grade. Since then he started more than 10 business adventures, ranging from exotic reptile breeding to e-commerce media solutions. Nat featured two companies for this application process - Novotrix Group, LLC, a media solutions business, and Certificate Swap.com, the Internet's Gift Certificate Marketplace.
Matthew D. Bizer - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Senior - New Braunfels High School
Finding money is a big challenge for entrepreneurs. Starting at age 15, Matthew worked part time at a local restaurant to fund the purchase of his video equipment and a new computer. His business, Willow Productions, is a digital video and media production studio that produces commercial videos, short films, DVDs, interactive web pages, business cards and logos.
2003 TCU Texas Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winners
Michael McKenzie - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Junior - Faith West Academy, Katy
Michael McKenzie is following in the footsteps of another famous Texas entrepreneur named Michael. Time will only tell if MCM Computers reaches the level of Dell, but the beginnings are very similar. Michael's interest in computers started when he built one from scratch at the age of 10 for a school science project. Today Michael builds custom computers and provides computer consulting, repair work, web hosting, and network management. In 2002 he did $20,000 in revenue.
Richard S. Kearns - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Senior - Greenville High School, Greenville
Richard is a great example of an entrepreneur who had an idea and turned it into reality. Two years ago, he co-founded MarySquare Garden Concepts with his brother Robert after watching a TV show about broken glass mosaics. Realizing there could be a great opportunity to sell the product at "First Monday Trade Days" in Canton, Richard and Robert set out to produce and sell fine art mosaics for the home and garden using non-recyclable broken glass. What a great idea it was! In 2002 they had revenues of $32,900!
Henry Talamantes - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Junior - Silva Magnet High School, El Paso
Henry Talamantes is proof positive that the challenges of being a young entrepreneur can be overcome if one looks at "challenges as opportunities in disguise'. Case in point; Henry became a distributor of Pepsi and Coke products at the age of 17. He sells the product through his vending business, Mr. Snacks, a company catering to small businesses. In 2002 Henry sold enough snacks and sodas to bring in $10,000 in revenue!
Shanetta Drake-Pruitt - $5,000 Scholarship Winner
Senior - Longview High School, Longview
Shanetta is an incredible success story. She started Nett's Nap Mats in 2001 at the age of 16. The company now does over $27,000 in annual sales and employs three people! The firm manufactures a quality line of bedding for infants, children, and teens specializing in custom fitted daycare mats and cot covers with matching pillowcases. Customers from all over the world order off her website at www.nettsnapmats.com.
Charley Case Baugh - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Senior - Wills Point High School, Wills Point
Who says a high school entrepreneur can't go global? Charley Case Baugh thinks otherwise. Charley started his business at the ripe old age of 12 selling antique fishing tackle and equipment. The company did $5,500 in revenue last year. He sold over 500 lures in Japan! Charley is looking to expand in this market and other markets overseas.
Charles E. Johnson - $1,000 Scholarship Winner
Junior - Burges High School, El Paso
Charles is the epitome of a young entrepreneur who just will not quit! Deaf since birth, Charles set out to prove to the non-disabled world that someone without hearing could be employed and be successful. His motivation for starting his own business came when he was turned down for a job because of his disability. Like many entrepreneurs, Charles looked at this adversity and would not accept defeat. He started Chuckie's Lawn Service and now does over $5,200 in revenue and employs four people!
