An Exciting Week for Laval EMP

By: Cathy Heinrich

Fall has officially arrived and so has the next week of Laval Entrepreneur Mentor Program excitement! The Laval EMP enjoyed a mentor-sponsored mixer on Tuesday night. Nancy Ervin and her colleagues at Baker, Peterson & Franklin, CPA, LLP (BPF) hosted the event providing excellent food, conversation, and introductions to mentor student matches. BPF is an accounting and consulting firm serving the community since 1917. They are an efficient and responsive firm who offer services in a number of life events and company models, ranging from estate planning to agricultural business consulting. Many of our mentors were present at the BPF sponsored event and we were grateful for the dedication of their time to participate.

Nancy Ervin and Cathi Wiens of BPF greeted everyone at the door with friendly smiles. Many of the new mentees were nervous to meet their mentors for the first time. Throughout the evening the entire room was filled with smiling, laughing, and interesting conversation.

During the mixer attendees gathered in a circle and proceeded to introduce themselves. During introductions, Jane Yow of Performance Link, expressed her deepest gratitude for Dr. Stearns and many others for their involvement and efforts with the Laval Entrepreneur Mentor Program. CPA Jane Faulk thoughtfully proclaimed, “I absolutely love it!” She elaborated by saying how speaking with the students is intellectually inspiring because it, “challenges her normal thinking.” Peg Breen of Community Medical Center shared that while interacting with her mentees, she finds that she is learning more than they are. Margot Karlin echoed this all too common theme, “I always learn more from them than I’m able to give.” The Laval Entrepreneur Mentor Program is a program truly enriching the lives of its participants; mentee and mentor alike.

This past Friday, after a delicious lunch from the local restaurant More Than Pizza, the Laval EMP students spent time under the lights to have a group photo taken by Roe Borunda of Roetography. Roe orchestrated the theme and positioning of the students to capture the perfect photo. She required each of the Laval EMP students to play a business role, checked for clarity, and repositioned the students and Dr. Stearns until they reached business-like perfection! Dr. Stearns was at the helm of the photo as they smiled, posed, and made Laval EMP history. There were lots of laughs throughout the photo shoot and the students bonded as a result. The group photo is expected to be released within the next few weeks and will be posted on the website as well as framed and mounted on the Lyles Center wall.