Stamford Women Honored by Women’s Business Development Council

GREENWICH, CONNECTICUT, October 31, 2017 – Seven Stamford women-owned businesses were recently recognized by the Women’s Business Development Council at its 20th Anniversary Luncheon Gala held at the Greenwich Hyatt Regency.

The Women’s Business Development Council was founded in 1997 to provide the training, education and borrowing power necessary to empower women to successfully launch and grow their own businesses. In honor of their 20th anniversary, the Council presented their “20 for 20 Award” to 20 successful women entrepreneurs and women business owners who have prospered from the not-for-profit’s services.

Seven Stamford-based women business owners were among the “20 for 20” honorees including:

- Davette Stephens, owner and Director of Just a Helping Hand, LLC, a child care facility dedicated to providing services and programs for infants and toddlers, including learning activities and games and free play in a structured environment.

- Teresa Semmunegus, co-owner of Mr. Mus Construction, LLC, which provides high-quality construction work throughout Connecticut.

- Paola Ortega, owner of TropiGlace, LLC, a unique ice cream and fruit store inspired by the flavors of Ecuador.

-Judith Heft, President of Judith Heft & Associates, which provides custom bookkeeping and bill-paying services.

- Nicole Clark-Taxiltaridis, Director, Early Head Start and Head Start of Children’s Learning Centers of Fairfield County, Inc., a non-profit agency that is a leader in developing and implementing high-quality and affordable early childhood education and care programs.

- Tess Abalos, owner of CT Massage & Bodywork, LLC which provides a variety of massages and energy work to help individuals manifest health, happiness and success in life.

-Maria Pribis, certified optometrist with Stamford Opthalmology and director of OcularPrime blog. Pribis specializes in ocular surface disease and dry eye prevention. The goal of OcularPrime is to provide useful information regarding eye health because “vision is our most valuable sense.”

Long-recognized as the signature annual women’s business gathering in Connecticut, the gala brought together nearly 700 supporters of women-owned businesses including Small Business Administration Chief Linda McMahon, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Congressman Jim Himes.

McMahon remarked that the women-owned businesses served by The Women’s Business Development Council are “not only serving our communities with products and services, they are providing paychecks to families and making our cities and towns vibrant places to live.”

She explained that small businesses create two out of every three net new jobs in the private sector with more than half of the U.S. workforce either employed by a small business or owning a small business. “Women in particular are driving a lot of that growth,” she said. “Research shows that women-owned small businesses are the fastest growing sector of our economy.”

Women’s Business Development Council CEO Fran Pastore addressed the crowd, “The Women’s Business Development Council’s work on behalf of women entrepreneurs has never been more relevant than it is today. Make no mistake about it; this is not a female issue. This is a socioeconomic imperative. When a woman can borrow money for income-generating activities like starting their own business or growing their own business, it has a ripple effect around our communities.”

About the Women’s Business Development Council:

Headquartered in Stamford with a satellite office in Derby, the 501 (c)(3) non-profit has served nearly 19,000 clients, assisted in the creation of nearly 1,800 businesses and supported the sustainability and expansion of 3,800 established businesses and created more than 4,900 jobs. For more information on the Women’s Business Development Council, visit ctwbdc.org.

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