Young entrepreneurs to compete for grants
April 11, 2016
Young entrepreneurs to compete for grants
Goshen News
LAGRANGE — The LaGrange County Economic Development Corp., LaGrange County Chamber of Commerce and LaGrange County Community Foundation have announced finalists in the first-ever Launch LaGrange County Business Competition set for later this month.
The event will be open to the public and will be held at the Shipshewana Event Center April 26, from 6 to 8 p.m. The competition will feature students from Howe Military Academy, Lakeland, Prairie Heights and Westview school corporations competing for startup business grants, college scholarships and other prizes.
The program is designed to promote entrepreneurship and support the talented youth in LaGrange County, according to Ryne Krock, president and chief executive officer at the LaGrange County EDC.
The competition will be featuring the following businesses and individuals:
• Bus Buddy (Lakeland) — A phone app with GPS technology for school buses that would allow students and parents to track the location and arrival time of the bus each day. Founders: Kameron Combs, Manuel Rangel, Nolan Isaacs and Kyle Coalson.
• Dream_Flex (Howe Military Academy) — Micro-controlled bracelets that are worn during sleep to promote lucid dreams. Founders: Jakub Kundzicz and Zachary Yanakeff.
• Fashion for a Future (Westview) — Custom-made apparel and accessories; this philanthropic business model will provide a portion of all profits to furthering education of students who have been through the foster care system. Founder: Karey Haney.
• GreenWater Enterprises (Howe Military Academy) — A filtration system and product that will revert gray water back into a home for uses in appliances and other applications. Founders: David Ernst, Dillon Pauck, Adam Wratcher and Samuel Scott.
• Haywire (Lakeland) — An application that teaches users how to code and create apps. Founder: AJ Dorough.
• Michiana Dog Training (Westview) — A company that trains dogs and their owners, including those in animal shelters that may otherwise be euthanized. Founder: Kalei Bollinger.
• Millermatic Irrigation System (Lakeland) — A single-pivot irrigation system designed for smaller farms and fields with the capability to connect directly to a residential well. Founder: Cole Miller.
• PencilPort (Westview) — Designed and marketed for students, professionals, frequent travelers and many others, this product holds writing utensils and can be securely attached to a variety of surfaces. Founders: Christopher Janik and Trace Scoles.
• Something Else Photography (Prairie Heights) — A photography business that specializes in everything from special events to landscape and news. Founder: Kayla Williams.
The student teams will be competing for a variety of prizes, including startup grants totaling $8,500, general education scholarships, office space and scholarship offers from the following higher education institutions in Northeast Indiana should the winners choose to enroll at the school immediately following high school graduation:
• Goshen College — $3,000 scholarship, renewable (up to four years) for each student on the winning team;
• Indiana Tech — $12,000 scholarship for each student on the winning team; $10,000 scholarship for each student on second place team; $8,000 scholarship for each student on third place team, all renewable (up to four years).
• Ivy Tech (Northeast) — $3,000 scholarship for each student on winning team; $2,000 scholarship for each student on second place team; $1,000 scholarship for each student on third place team
• University of Saint Francis — $10,000 scholarship for each student on winning team.
Those who would like to attend the competition should call (260) 499-4994 orvisit the Launch LaGrange Facebook page at facebook.com/launchlagrangecounty.
