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Maine Names 2024 State Star

Stephanie Case State Star 2024The Maine Small Business Development Centers (Maine SBDC) has selected Stephanie Case as the 2024 State Star. The award, given annually, recognizes a member of the Maine SBDC staff who has shown exemplary performance and a strong commitment to small business success.

Stephanie Case is the Administrative & Data Manager at the Maine SBDC. In her role, she works tirelessly to ensure entrepreneurs and business owners get seamless access to Maine SBDC services. She oversees client intake to ensure effective delivery of services, provides patient guidance to colleagues on the policies and practices of the SBDC, and creates data reporting that helps enhance both individual and program performance. 

Stephanie is known for asking excellent questions that help identify and clarify issues. She works diligently to overcome obstacles that improve the Maine SBDC program. In the three years she has been with the SBDC, she has contributed to many critical improvements to SBDC practices and operations. Stephanie helps keep the Maine SBDC operating efficiently, consistently, and accurately. Before joining the SBDC in 2021, Stephanie worked at a non-profit run organization that educates on the power of buying local and promoting the goods of small-batch makers and artisans.

“Stephanie’s positive attitude, willingness to help, and strategic thinking consistently lead to outcomes that exceed expectations and help the entire organization run more smoothly,” commented Mark Delisle, Maine SBDC State Director. “In a very short period of time, Stephanie has demonstrated her ability to learn quickly and be a key part of the team.”

Each year, America’s Small Business Development Centers recognizes top performers from programs around the country at its annual conference. A special reception was held on Tuesday, September 10, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia to honor this year’s award winners.

Ground Well Counseling – Bowdoinham

Ground Well Counseling logoAilish Kress has always had a passion for helping others. With a degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and a Graduate Certificate in Adventure-based Counseling, she’s turning her passion into a career. Ailish set out to launch Ground Well Counseling, offering experiential counseling that integrates nature and therapy through garden-based techniques. Her innovative approach helps clients address issues of adjustment, trauma recovery, and emotional, relational, and communication skills.Read More

Our Commitment to You

The Maine SBDC is preparing for an upcoming shift in its organizational structure. Rest assured, entrepreneurs and existing small business owners across Maine will continue to receive the same high-quality, no-cost, and confidential Maine SBDC business advising services they rely on.

What’s Changing:

Starting October 1st, Coastal Enterprises Inc (CEI) will no longer be providing Maine SBDC business advising services. CEI is implementing this change to better align with its mission and strategic plan, and will focus on prioritizing its business advising services to entrepreneurs in specific populations and sectors.

Despite this change, Maine SBDC and CEI will remain collaborative partners, working together to ensure Maine’s entrepreneurs and small businesses have the resources needed to thrive.

What’s NOT Changing:

The Maine SBDC will continue to offer high-quality, confidential, and no-cost business advising services to diverse small business communities across Maine.

SBDC logo with text that say "Committed to Your Success". No cost, statewide, high quality, confidential and professional business advising, training, and resources.Over the past 45+ years, the Maine SBDC with the assistance and support of CEI and its other contract partners, Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments (AVCOG) in Auburn, the Northern Maine Development Commission (NMDC) in Caribou, and the University of Southern Maine (USM) in Portland, has provided one-on-one business advising services to thousands of entrepreneurs and small businesses across Maine.

The Maine SBDC looks forward to continuing to provide exceptional business advising services and embracing this change as an opportunity to better address the ever-changing needs of Maine’s entrepreneurial community.

If you have questions about this change, please contact mainesbdc@maine.edu. To request Maine SBDC business advising services, click here.

Gillies Law – Portland

Gillies Law logoJennifer Gillies completed her law degree at the University of Maine before dedicating nearly 10 years to serving Maine’s immigrant community as an immigration attorney at a local firm. During her time at the University, Jennifer was introduced to immigration law through the Refugee and Human Rights Clinic, igniting her passion for assisting asylum seekers and individuals navigating the complex U.S. immigration system.Read More

MainelyNP Primary Care – South Portland

MainelyNP Primary Care logoAmy Brown, a dedicated nurse practitioner from South Portland, Maine, has always been passionate about healthcare. With over 20 years of experience in the field, she dreamed of providing more personalized and comprehensive care to her patients. This dream led her to establish MainelyNP Primary Care, a direct primary care practice offering a subscription-based model that allows for more meaningful patient interactions and better healthcare outcomes.
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Maine Coast Creamery – Winslow

Maine Coast Creamery logoOriginally from Haiti, Ismael Thadal immigrated to Maine in 2007. He met Molly Hodgkins, a Maine native, in 2014, and they bonded over their shared love of ice cream. Ismael and Molly began making ice cream at home, working on perfecting their unique recipes with the help of friends, family, and community members who served as eager taste testers. To deepen his knowledge, Ismael took an Ice Cream 101 course at Penn State, which helped him understand the complexities of manufacturing high-quality ice cream.Read More

Countryside Kids Childcare – Hiram

Countryside KidsKaren Bachelder established Countryside Kids Childcare, a home-based daycare in Hiram, in 2020. After two years in operation and with several families on her waitlist, she recognized an opportunity to expand to better serve the growing needs of her community and support more families needing childcare. She envisioned relocating to a new building that would allow her to increase her capacity from 12 to 60 children. Read More

Dreamer Food – Bangor

Business Owner Anik Derphilibossian sitting in front of her food truck Dreamer FoodAnik Derphilibossian is a Registered Nurse (RN), Armenian-born & raised in Lebanon, who immigrated to the United States from Lebanon in 2021. She found herself missing the flavors and food of her homeland. With a love for cooking and encouragement from her fellow nurse and best friend Kara, Anik started sharing her culinary creations –  first with friends and then with the wider community. Thus marked the beginning of Anik’s business, Dreamer Foods. It started as a pop-up restaurant operating one day a week at a shared location, and within months, the public fell in love with her Armenian and Lebanese dishes. Read More

Intro to Using ChatGPT in Your Small Business

Decorative image with computer and AI chat screen.For small business owners, leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) can be a game-changer. Among the various AI tools available, ChatGPT stands out as an accessible and helpful tool. ChatGPT specializes in generating text and having human-like conversations. It can assist with various tasks, including writing, brainstorming, planning, and more. In this blog post, we’ll explore how you can integrate ChatGPT into your business operations to enhance efficiency, save time, and stay ahead of the competition.Read More