FastTrac Graduation Set For April 17 At Baylor

by Alan Hunt

Graduates of the FastTrac Program will be honored during a graduation ceremony and reception at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 17, in the Blume Conference Center at Baylor University's Hankamer School of Business.
Keynote speaker will be David Hoffman, owner of Thera-Med Inc., Waco. Hoffman has been the FastTrac NewVenture instructor since 1996. FastTrac administrator Mary Abrahams said all FastTrac graduates and alumni are invited to attend the program to thank Hoffman for his many years of service to FastTrac and local entrepreneurs. "This is his last teaching session and this would be an excellent opportunity to recognize his work," she said.
Participants will include Jack Stewart, president of the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce, who will serve as master of ceremonies; Dr. Terry Maness, dean of the Hankamer School of Business; J. David Allen, director of the John F. Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship; Dr. Elisabeth Teal, professor of management; Rob Gibson, owner of Holze Music Company and FastTrac NewVenture business counselor; Lonnie Abrahams, FastTrac Planning business counselor; Allan Morris, president of Extraco Banks and FastTrac Planning instructor; and Tom Collins, executive director of the Waco Foundation.
FastTrac is a national program geared toward aspiring and current entrepreneurs. It has been holding classes in Waco since 1996. The program is co-sponsored by Baylor's Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship, the City of Waco and the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce in cooperation with the Small Business Development Center/Business Resource Center, the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and the Waco Foundation.
Honorees in the FastTrac NewVenture, Beginning Entrepreneurs section are: Betty Coppage, The Pathway; Dan Hetherington, The Gossip Bench; Arlett Malvo, Business Improvement Concept; and Philip Sanchez, Salon Twenty One Twenty One.
Honorees in the FastTrac Planning, Growth Oriented Entrepreneurs section are: Paula Barron, B&S Port-O-Jons; Theresa Ford, Grace Soap Company; Julie Percha, Casa de Artes; Barbara Rusling, The Waco Civic Theatre; Lea Anne Somerville, Texas Organic Nursery; Jason Stanley, The Food Monster; Ruth White, Dreamscape Day Spa; and Manuel Olvera, Cen-Texas Mobile Car Wash and Pressure Cleaning.
For more information, contact Abrahams at 710-4159 or Malinda Green at 710-4157.