2017 December / 2018 January Issue
Community Impact Awards: Arcphor, LLC
By Susan Haas 4345 New Town Ave., Suite 200, Williamsburg Founded: 2012 Number of Employees:...
Community Impact Awards: BizConnect Hampton Roads
By Angela Blue 318 W. 21st St., Norfolk Founded: 2015 Number of Employees: 1 As...
Community Impact Awards: Brittany’s Beauty Bar
By Angela Blue 601 Hampton Hwy., Yorktown Founded: 2015 Number of Employees: 14 At Brittany’s...
Community Impact Awards: Charles Barker Automotive
By Susan Haas 1877 Laskin Rd., Virginia Beach Founded: 1990 Number of Employees: 18+ In...
Community Impact Awards: Cookie Text LLC
By Angela Blue Founded: 2011 Number of Employees: 5 Since founding Cookie Text six years...
Community Impact Awards: Hampton Roads Chamber
By Barrett Baker 500 East Main St., Suite 700, Norfolk Founded: 1801 Number of Employees:...
Community Impact Awards: Hampton Roads Transit
By Barrett Baker 509 E. 18th Street, Norfolk Founded: October 1, 1999 Number of Employees:...
Community Impact Awards: Howard Hanna Real Estate Services
By Ryan Miller Howard Hanna has office locations in Chesapeake, Newport News, Norfolk, Smithfield and...
Community Impact Awards: ShoreBreak Pizza & TapHouse
By Ryan Miller 2941 Shore Dr., Virginia Beach Founded: 2003 Number of Employees: 65–70 full...
Community Impact Awards: SOLitude Lake Management
By Susan Haas PO Box 969, Virginia Beach Founded: 1998 Number of Employees: 216 With...
Community Impact Awards: Vandeventer Black LLP
By Barrett Baker 101 W. Main Street, 500 World Trade Center, Norfolk Founded: 1883 Number...
Community Impact Awards: Wasserhund Brewing Company
By Ryan Miller 1805 Laskin Rd., Virginia Beach Founded: August 2015 Number of Employees: 23...
2nd Annual Community Impact Awards: Honoring The Businesses That Give Back
By Barrett Baker, Angela Blue, Susan Haas and Ryan Miller We’ve all been taught that...
Top Lawyers 2017-2018 Reception at Virginia MOCA
Photos by David Uhrin On Dec. 6, CoVa Biz and Coastal Virginia Magazine held a...
Global Technical Systems to Open New Green Energy Facility in Virginia Beach
Global Technical Systems (GTS) announced its plan to invest $54.7 million in the construction of...
Best Places to Work Winners Toolkit
Congratulations on being Voted one of the BEST PLACES TO WORK by CoVaBiz Magazine! In...
SOLitude Professionals Receive 45th “Seeing Is Believing” Award
Multiple aquatics industry professionals from SOLitude Lake Management, an industry leader in lake, pond and...
The St. Paul’s Apartments Break Ground In Downtown Norfolk
S.L. Nusbaum Realty Co. announced the ground-breaking of The St. Paul’s Apartments, a 126-unit community...
Hampton Roads Businesses Recognized For Continued Success
These Hampton Roads businesses were recently honored with awards and recognized for their continued success:...
ADS Inc. Aids Hurricane Victims With Critical Supplies
From a solar-powered modular medical clinic to life preservers, first aid supplies to water purification...
Top Lawyer Of Immigration Law: Radlyn Mendoza
Radlyn Mendoza Discusses Navigating The Challenges Currently Facing Business Owners And Immigrants By Ryan Miller...
2nd Annual Top Lawyers Of Coastal Virginia
Recognizing Attorneys That Raise The Bar Of Local Law Understanding the challenges of law can...
EVMS’ Biorepository Earns Accreditation From College Of American Pathologists
The College of American Pathologists has awarded accreditation to Eastern Virginia Medical School’s Biorepository based...
Hampton Roads Nonprofits Receive Support From Local Businesses
Several Hampton Roads nonprofits recently received generous donations and grants from local businesses and community...
ITA International Recognized For Ongoing Commitment To Hiring Veterans
In September ITA International was among 15 Virginia employers recognized by Governor Terry McAuliffe during...
GET Solutions Relocate Corporate Headquarters In Virginia Beach
GET Solutions will relocate its current corporate headquarters from 204 Grayson Rd. to 5465 Greenwich...
Vandeventer Black Recognized As Pro Bono Law Firm Of The Year
Vandeventer Black LLP was recognized as Law Firm of the Year (Large Practice) by the...
Eastern Shore Is Virginia’s Fastest-Growing Tourism Region
The tourism economy on Virginia’s Eastern Shore continues record growth, with a 4.8 percent increase...
Auto Haus Opens New Location In Virginia Beach
Auto Haus, a full-service import automobile dealership with locations in Yorktown and Williamsburg, recently acquired...
Kara King’s Vintage Desk at Ironclad Distillery Co.
By Ryan Miller Photography by Jim Pile Named for Civil War ships and born from...
The Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel Celebrates Its 60th Birthday With Big Plans
By Don Harrison Archive Photos Courtesy of Virginia Department of Transportation "Forecast, if you dare,...
Newport News Tourism’s New Office Space in City Center at Oyster Point
The Newport News Tourism office relocated from a suite on the third floor of Fountain...
TowneBank Celebrates 10-Year NASDAQ Listing Anniversary
In October, TowneBank CEO Bob Aston and others visited the NASDAQ MarketSite in Times Square...
American Bankers Association Posthumously Honors TowneBank Employee
Elizabeth "Beth" Prever, a TowneBank employee who passed away in August after a courageous fight...
Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Suffolk Auto Dealers’ Jump Start Program In Suffolk Public Schools
The Virginia Sports Hall of Fame Education Foundation and the Suffolk Automotive Dealers Association teamed...
Central Business District Association 22nd Annual Golf Classic
The Central Business District Association (CBDA) held their 22nd Annual Golf Classic during the fall...
Hampton Convention & Visitor Bureau Receives ConventionSouth Magazine 2017 Readers’ Choice Award
The Hampton Convention & Visitor Bureau won the ConventionSouth magazine 2017 Readers’ Choice Award for...
Construction Begins On Jones & Cabacoy Veterans Care Center
Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Mayor William D. Sessoms, Jr. led a groundbreaking ceremony in Virginia...
Independence Professional Place Opens Near Town Center in Virginia Beach
Independence Professional Place, a two-story, 16,000 square-foot office building, opened near Town Center in Virginia...
J&F Alliance Honored at White House with Minority Technology Firm of the Year Award
Hampton-based J&F Alliance Group’s CEO Falana Dula-King and COO JarMarcus King were invited to the...
Virginia Arts Festival Receives “50 for 50 Arts Inspiration” Award
The Virginia Arts Festival was selected to receive one of the prestigious “50 for 50...
Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation Donates For California Wildfire Relief
The Chesapeake Bay Wine Classic Foundation (CBWCF) will donate $101,000 in proceeds from its main...
Opportunity, Inc. Redesigns and Expands
During a ribbon cutting ceremony, Gov. Terry McAuliffe celebrated the redesign and expansion of the...
LOVEVA App Rewards Shoppers for Buying Local During the Holidays
Three local consumers were rewarded by the LOVEVA app for shopping locally this holiday season...
Norfolk Attorney Brother Rutter Shares an Artful Perspective on Life, Law and Legacy
By Grace Silipigni Photos by David Uhrin Like many Coastal Virginia homes, Brother and Meredith...
Lafayette River Oyster Reefs Thrive Through the Work of Partnering Organizations
According to the results of a recent survey by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF), oysters...
4 Tips for Strategically Planning Health Benefits for Your Business
Businesses large and small routinely face challenges in putting together health benefits programs that employees...
Excellence In Leadership: Dr. Jeff Tanner, ODU Strome College of Business
Dean, Old Dominion University’s Strome College of Business By Barrett Baker Dr. Jeff Tanner worked...
Opportunity Inc. Receives 2017 Neighborhood Builders® Award from Bank of America
Opportunity Inc., Hampton Roads' Workforce Development Board, was named a 2017 Neighborhood Builders® award recipient...
Bcause LLC Expands and Relocates in Virginia Beach
Bcause LLC will expand its operations and relocate its corporate headquarters to 5465 Greenwich Road...
Gymnastics Inc. to Host Grand Opening Ceremony for NinjaZone with Hampton Mayor Tuck
Gymnastics Inc. is celebrating 40 years of serving Hampton Roads with the opening of NinjaZone,...
tHRive Announces New Board Leadership for 2018
tHRive, the young professional program of the Hampton Roads Chamber, has announced its new Board...
Vandeventer Black Elects 2018 Executive Board
Vandeventer Black LLP has announced its 2018 Executive Board, which is responsible for the governance...
Virginia Living Museum Executive Director Rebecca Kleinhample Connects People with Nature
By Barrett Baker Growing up in the mountains of Pennsylvania, Rebecca Kleinhample wasn’t afraid to...
The 4 Core Things You Buy with Health Insurance Premiums
Month after month, small businesses in Hampton Roads send a check to an insurance company...
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc. Purchases JANAF Shopping Yard in Norfolk
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc., a fully-integrated, self-managed commercial real estate investment company with...
Dough Boy’s in Virginia Beach to Offer Free Pizza on Valentine’s Day
Dough Boy's at 2410 Atlantic Avenue in Virginia Beach will be offering free pizza to...
Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia Receives Grant from Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation
Senior Services of Southeastern Virginia will receive $10,000 from Dominion Energy as a Critical Community...
Independent We Stand’s ‘Main Streets’ Contest Promotes Small Businesses
Independent We Stand, powered by STIHL, is drawing attention to “Main Streets” across America while...
Moosewood Creek Primitives Woodwick Candles
By Ryan Miller While visiting her grandparents’ country home upstate, Virginia Beach resident Angela Surgeon...
Virginia Beach’s LifeNet Health Opens European Headquarters in Austria
LifeNet Health, based in Virginia Beach, opened its European headquarters in the third district of...
By Angela Blue
318 W. 21st St., Norfolk
Founded: 2015
Number of Employees: 1
As one of the area’s best networking groups for building quality relationships, obtaining referrals and growing businesses, BizConnect Hampton Roads presents networking events, members-only events and a BizConnect Resource Center, offering business tools, workshops and a private office space rental.
Being a startup business with a limited budget and no extra revenue for giving, Founder/Owner Laura Henderson decided in her first year of business to start BiZConnect “Gives Back,” an annual event in May. This year’s event, held at Hilton Norfolk The Main, raised $3,000 for 15 BizConnect nonprofit members and allowed each organization to set up a table and talk about their organization with more than 300 attendees. The funds raised cover the nonprofits’ membership to BizConnect, plus some additional profit as well.
The first year, BizConnect had approximately eight nonprofit members, and that number doubled the second year. “Word is getting around, so more and more nonprofit members are joining because of this,” she says. Henderson doesn’t accept all nonprofits though. “I really look at where the money is going. I want it to be at least a local chapter of a charity to make sure the money is staying in the community.”
Aside from assisting nonprofit members, Henderson lends a hand to local entrepreneurs as well. She offers complimentary membership to an entrepreneurial startup business selected through ODU’s InnovateHER program, and she “adopts” organizations that are owned by young entrepreneurs. One is Troopster, a website that provides personalized military care packages as well as donation packages to troops who are deployed or stationed from home, founded by active duty Navy Petty Officer Chelsea Mandello. The other is Option 2, founded by a recent college graduate, Reginald Land, who was an athlete in high school who hoped to make it to the NFL but didn’t. In the process, he learned that there are a lot of kids like him who don’t have a backup plan for life after sports. So, he created a curriculum encompassing everything from networking and business practices to etiquette and general ‘how to treat a woman’ life lessons, held as workshops at local high schools. “If I hear of somebody that I think is a worthy cause and I feel like I really can connect or help, then I definitely will,” Henderson says.
The notion to help in any way she can was inspired by several local business owners, including Claus Ihlemann, who owns Decorum Furniture and The Palace Shops. “I have always admired Claus and his partner Robert Roman and the great things they do for the community,” she says. “I have watched them contribute to local charity organizations, offer their time and space and mentor business owners like myself. They live by the ‘pay it forward’ motto, and I believe in paying it forward as well because of the opportunities I’ve been given.”
Henderson says that getting to learn more about some of the local organizations in our area is what impacts her on a personal level. “I didn’t know a lot about some of the local nonprofits that are in my group like SMILE (Samantha Makes It A Little Easier) and Stop Abuse. Just having them in my group and getting to know them better through the “Gives Back” event, I’ve gotten to know their stories, and some of them are real tear-jerkers. It makes you stop and think, and it has made me want to get involved more with it.”
To our company, community impact looks like finding ways to get involved with individuals and/or organizations in need either by “rolling up my sleeves” to volunteer or connecting the right people and resources to make an impact.
