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New Group to Help Business Owners Grow
A new group has officially been formed and its organizers say it should help business owners grow by sharing ideas and learning how to grow.

A number of agencies including the Cities of Galesburg and Monmouth, and economic development partners in Knox, Warren, Henderson, and Mercer Counties, among others, have formed the Entrepreneurs, Pioneers, and Innovators Club -- or, "EPIC" -- patterned after a similar group in an Iowa community.

Carrie McKillip is Economic Development Educator for the Knox County University of Illinois Extension Office, and says the mission of the club is really as simple as its name.

McKillip says, "To provide opportunities for members to transfer knowledge into value through networking, exchanging ideas, sharing information, encouraging best practices, and promoting innovation."

Linda Lee Blaine is the Director of the Prairie Tech Learning Center in Monmouth, and says the group hopes to meet regularly, but they won't be called meetings -- they''ll be called "spark sessions."

Blaine says, "Entrepreneurs come together to network and create mentoring relationships and build capacity and they would probably have a speaker on a topic of interest to entrepreneurs."

Blaine says there will also be annual retreats covering various topics related to entrepreneurship, an awards program, and what she calls an "entrepreneurship swap" -- gatherings to observe other similar groups.

To find out more information on the group, CLICK HERE.


(City of Galesburg Economic Development Director Cesar Suarez, right, talks after presenting a mayoral proclamation honoring this week as "Entrepreneurship Week" to Carrie McKillip, Knox County University of Illinois Extension Economic Development Educator.)


(Linda Lee Blaine, Director of the Prairie Tech Learning Center in Monmouth, talks about what "EPIC" will do Monday. WGIL News Story and Photos by Will Stevenson.)
02 23 09 by Newsroom
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