NAWBO/LI is proud of the accomplishments of our members! Here are the first of many examples of members' achievements that we plan to post on this site.

Send in your own success stories. We want to share them with other members and with everyone who visits us.

Who's Who in Environmental Consulting/Engineering and Building Services?
Donna Gathard That's Who!

NAWBO/LI Members Chosen as 2010 Top 50 Most Influential Women in Business by Long Island Business News

Launched in 2000, the Top 50 Most Influential Women in Business program recognizes the Island’s top women professionals for business acumen, mentoring and community involvement. The program’s honorees are selected by a judging committee and receive a unique crystal memento at the elegant dinner attended by more than 700 of the Island’s top business leaders, and represent the most influential women in business, government and the not-for-profit fields.

This year, two NAWBO/LI members have been selected for this prestigious award:
Donna M. Gathard - All Service Electric, Inc.
Colleen West - Enright Court Reporting

Congratulations to them both.

Anne D. Shybunko-Moore, president of GSE Dynamics Inc., Named 2009 Enterprising Woman of the Year by Enterprising Women

Anne D. Shybunko-Moore, president of GSE Dynamics Inc. in Hauppauge, was named a 2009 Enterprising Woman of the Year by Enterprising Women, a national magazine for female entrepreneurs. Shybunko-Moore was a winner in the category of companies with annual revenues of $10-$25 million.

Shybunko-Moore was chosen for a combination of business success and community service.

Since taking the helm of the defense manufacturing company seven years ago, GSE Dynamics has experienced significant growth. “Sales were about $5-$6 million when I started,” she said. “Since then, annual revenue has doubled. We have also opened two new buildings and grown into a new product area, composites.” This year, the company landed a $33 million Pentagon contract.

As co-chair of the Hauppauge Industrial Association’s manufacturing committee, Shybunko-Moore is striving to ensure manufacturing gets its due recognition as an important element of the local economy. “So many people think manufacturing is dead on Long Island,” she said. “It’s not the way it was in the 1980s when Grumman was here, but the industry is still here.”

As a past president and current board member of the Nassau Association of Women Business Owners-Long Island chapter, she works on a program called Girls Going Places, which pairs girls with mentors who are business owners. “It connects young ladies with women in different careers, to open their eyes about the career opportunities that are available,” she said.

MANHATTAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PRESENTS IWEC AWARDSTO LEADING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

The Manhattan Chamber of Commerce (MCC) presented three New York City women business owners with the International Women’s Entrepreneur Challenge (IWEC) award recognizing their outstanding professional accomplishments and their commitment to furthering women’s role in global business. As award recipients, Rachel Allgood, chief creative officer of Isocurve, Nancy Johnson, chief executive officer of Optimyze LLC, and Kalpana Patel, president and chief executive officer of Unique Comp Inc., will travel to New Delhi, India to attend the IWEC conference where they will explore opportunities and strategies to expand their businesses globally with the other nine women entrepreneurs who hail from Spain, South Africa and India. The conference will take place from February 3 - 7, 2009.

“Today, more than ever before, women are playing significant roles in helping New York City maintain its status as the business capital of the world,” said Nancy Ploeger president of the MCC. “These three ambassadors of business embody the progress and success women entrepreneurs have achieved. We are proud to honor them and have them represent the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce at this prestigious conference.”

IWEC is a joint project of the MCC, the Chamber of Commerce of Barcelona and the Indian Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and is supported by the United States Department of the State. The conference promotes global dialogue on women’s entrepreneurship, the exchange of experiences and the forging of partnerships, personal contacts, networks among women’s business associations and individual entrepreneurs. Winners were chosen through a competitive nomination process, based on the nominees’ successes in exporting their goods or services to overseas marketplaces.

Over the past two decades, Rachel Allgood has founded and led two successful marketing and design firms based in New York City. Noted and recognized as a highly adept entrepreneur, she currently holds the position of chief creative officer for Isocurve, the firm she founded in 1996, which specializes in generating effective international marketing strategies and creative solutions for its clients.

Nancy Johnson has spent more than 20 years in the fashion industry driving creative and analytical business development and process improvement. Johnson founded and is the chief executive officer of Optimyze LLC – a company that provides strategic business advice and technology tools that enable fashion companies to operate more efficiently during the product development phase and supply chain process.

Kalpana Patel is president and chief executive officer of Unique Comp. Inc. She has built her organization in to one of the most successful “Minority Woman Owned Small businesses” in the Tri-state area, providing technology solutions and consulting to an impressive number of agencies within the public sector as well as several “Corporate 100 Companies.” In 2008, she proudly received MTA-COMTO’s “Small Business of the Year" award and Women Chamber of Commerce "Woman of Excellenace Award”

Nancy Torres Sternbergh Honored with the 2009 M / WBE Award

Nancy Torres Sternbergh has been honored with the 2009 M / WBE Award byNassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi and the Office of Minority Affairs forher meritorious service within the Nassau County Business community. Shereceives this award at a luncheon on Friday, February 27, 2009 at the TheodoreRoosevelt Executive & Legislative Building in Mineola, Long Island.Nancy started PNJ Promotions in 1997, producing advertising specialties andpromotions for hundreds of clients nationwide; designing logos, marketingmaterials and web sites with her particular creative flair. Her background includestraining in theatre, a strong knowledge of the printing industry, working with artdirectors and copywriters, and previously owning Nancy's Video in Syosset. Herwork for Nassau County includes the design and production of custom ServiceLapel Pins for the Nassau University Medical Center.She has served on the Boards of SCWBEC- receiving their first ever 2008Outstanding Member Award; NAWBO/LI; BPW; and is an active committeemember of the LIA – honored in 2005 as the LIA Small Business Council “WomeninBusiness Advocate” Award; HIA; BWE – 2006 Honoree as a “Black Rose”Hispanic Business Woman of the Year; and The Long Island Hispanic Chamber ofCommerce (honored in 2001 as “Minority Advocate of the Year”).

NAWBO-LI Celebrates Board Members LIBN's 40 Under 40 Selections

Linda S. Agnew, Esq.
Jaspan Schlesinger LLP

Linda S. Agnew is a Partner in the Litigation Practice Group for Jaspan Schlesinger LLP and has extensive experience in trial and appellate advocacy with an emphasis in commercial litigation and title insurance defense claims. She has handled numerous complex commercial litigation matters including corporate dissolution actions, shareholder derivative actions and litigation involving real property. She also has substantial experience in municipal law and land use.
Agnew co-authored the updated Chapter 17 of the Real Estate Titles treatise published by the New York State Bar Association in 2007 entitled “Adverse Possession.” She presently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Women Business Owners, Long Island Chapter, and is active in her church. She has also volunteered her time on Election Day in representing citizens who have been denied the right to vote in their particular polling places. In 2008, she was a recipient of the Public Service Attorney of the Year Award presented by the Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center. She is a member of the New York State Bar Association Real Property Law Section, the Nassau County Bar Association, the Suffolk County Bar Association and the Nassau County Women’s Bar Association.
She received her Juris Doctor from St. John’s University School of Law and her Bachelor of Arts, magna cum laude, from Long Island University. During law school, Agnew was a senior member of the Moot Court Honor Society where she competed in several State and National Moot Court Competitions. She also interned with New York City’s Corporation Counsel where she was assigned to the Civil Torts Division.
Agnew is admitted to practice law in the State Courts of New York and New Jersey; the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York; and the District of New Jersey. She resides on Long Island with her husband David Howell and their children, Emma, Thomas and Matthew.

Kathleen Stanley
Empire National Bank

Kathleen Stanley is a Vice President and Director of Cash Management for Empire National Bank. With more than 15 years experience in the financial services industry, Stanley directs the sales, training and implementation of cash management products to assigned middle market, municipal and retail customer segments. She is currently building the cash management department for a De Novo bank that opened its doors in February 2008.
Stanley spent the last nine years of her career in cash management as a sales person and department manager. She developed a work study program with Adelphi University that enabled undergraduate students to work on a bank’s strategic initiative, giving them the opportunity to work with bank employees and senior managers.
In 2004, she launched the cash management department for State Bank of Long Island, which successfully grew to be an integral part of the bank’s revenue stream. She has also worked as a customer service representative, an assistant branch manager, branch manager and vice president in charge of branch administration. She was recognized as a Woman of Distinction for the 15th Assembly District of New York State for her commitment to her profession, her family and her community; and, in 2007, as a Woman of Achievement in Banking and Finance by the Long Island Center for Business and Professional Women.
Stanley is a board member of the National Association of Mother’s Centers and chair of its 2008 Work Life Conference; a member of the Women’s Executive Network of the Nassau County Museum of Art and the President’s Council for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island; a board member of The National Association of Women Business Owners and the Association of Financial Professionals; and a committee member for the Dress for Success 2008 Gala.
In 2007, she wrote and published an article entitled, “Using Cash Management Services to Prevent Fraud and Other Losses” for the CPA community. She was a guest speaker at the American Heart Association’s Queens Luncheon and at the groundbreaking ceremony of the North Shore-LIJ Katz Women’s Hospital/Women’s Health Institute. Stanley earned a bachelor’s of Business Administration degree from Hofstra University, is a Certified Treasury Professional and an Accredited ACH Professional.

NAWBO-LI Mentors:Girls Going Places

NAWBO-LI has been asked to participate in Girls Going Places. The Girls Going Places® Program was created in 1999 by The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian) to educate young women about the financial and entrepreneurial opportunities available to them. It is a positive experience for both NAWBO-LI mentors and the young women. The event supports our mission in terms of mentoring and being seen as leaders in entrepreneurship for the Long Island business community.

Girls Going Places® Entrepreneurship Conferences are designed to encourage financial literacy and educate teen girls about starting businesses, managing personal finances, and the advantages of business ownership, entrepreneurship and financial independence. Sponsored nationally by Guardian, Girls Going Places® conferences are planned and hosted by Guardian general agencies in various cities throughout the year.

The conference for Guardian Girls Going places is scheduled for Friday, March 20, 2009 (time TBA)at Touro Law Center in Central Islip.

ACTION ENVELOPE HOSTS AFGHANI WOMAN BUSINESS OWNER AS PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVE

Sharon Newman, president of Action Envelope, spent two days as an international host to Parwana, Afghanistan’s only female commercial printer. The visit included a thorough review of printing processes, website business, machinery and business practices. It was coordinated by Business Council for Peace (www.bpeace.org), a non-profit international volunteer network of business professionals that helps women entrepreneurs in post-conflict countries expand their businesses, create employment, and build a peaceful future for their communities.

Sharon spent two days with Parwana, showing her how the printing business works in the United States, including the use of cutting edge technology, equipment sourcing and maintenance, raw materials management, sales and marketing, workplace safety, employee training and more. During the two days, the women shared their experiences and knowledge about commercial printing and running successful companies. Action Envelope is one of 40 companies in America hosting one or more Afghan women entrepreneurs.

"I am truly honored to have been selected to have Parwana come to Long Island and share our experience and knowledge with her,” said Sharon Newman. “Parwana is the only woman printer in Afghanistan. As a woman in what is still a male-dominated business in America, I can only imagine what her challenges must be.”
 
The visit is particularly apt for Sharon Newman, who entered the printing business unexpectedly. Newman was a stay at home mom when her husband Ken founded Action Envelope in 1971 as a distributor of plain and printed envelopes. When he died suddenly in 1993, Newman was left with three young children and no business experience. She jumped in, learned the business and kept the company growing. In 2000, her son Seth Newman joined the company and the firm made its first foray onto the internet. Today ActionEnvelope.com is a major internet business and has serviced over 250,000 customers across America and around the world.

Parwana is one of twelve Afghan entrepreneurs travelling throughout America for three weeks as part of the Bpeace Apprentice Road Trip. Her business, Afghan Women Entrepreneur Printing Services (AWEPS) employs 49 women; most are the sole support of their families. Parwana is committed to promoting women’s ability to earn wages for their families and be self-sufficient. It should be noted that Parwana and her colleagues are not running micro-enterprises. Rather, they are fledgling small businesses run by Afghanistan’s top businesswomen—the lifeblood of their communities and an essential stabilizing factor to generating jobs that provide income and a better life.

The sponsoring organization is Bpeace: the non-profit international volunteer network of business professionals that helps women entrepreneurs in post-conflict countries expand their businesses, create employment, and build a peaceful future for their communities. They believe: More jobs mean less violence.

ActionEnvelope.com offers plain and printed envelopes in all sizes, styles and colors.  A well-stocked inventory of millions of envelopes allows ActionEnvelope.com to fulfill most orders the same or next business day.  A trade discount program features discounts up to 20% off orders, and ActionEnvelope.com also has a loyalty discount program for repeat customers. 

For more information, visit www.actionenvelope.com.

Sharon Newman’s Action Envelope Named To Internet Retailer Magazine’s Top 500 Web Sites 

Action Envelope has been named the 12th largest online office supply retailer by Internet Retailer Magazine, placing it among such national companies as Staples, OfficeMax and Office Depot.  The Lindenhurst company was ranked #430 overall in a field of over a million online retailers.  The rating was based upon revenue and highlights Action Envelope’s 30% jump in online sales in the past year.

"We are proud that our efforts have been recognized by Internet Retailer Magazine and we are delighted to be named in such excellent company,” said Sharon.  “Our website has been a huge success.  Our growth is also the result of the efforts of our employees.  Everyone at Action Envelope works hard to ensure that customers get the best products, pricing and service.”
 
ActionEnvelope.com offers plain and printed envelopes in all sizes, styles and colors.  A well-stocked inventory of millions of envelopes allows ActionEnvelope.com to fulfill most orders the same or next business day.  A trade discount program features discounts up to 20% off orders, and ActionEnvelope.com also has a loyalty discount program for repeat customers.  For more information, visit www.actionenvelope.com.

JoAnne Alter launches Web site about planning special occasions

NAWBO/LI Communications Chair JoAnne Alter has announced her latest publishing venture, www.celebratewithstyle.com. The Celebrate with Style™ media program, officially launched at the end of October 2006, is targeted at sophisticated women and men who plan—or even simply enjoy attending—family, business, or social events and/or fundraising activities.

The site, billed as “Your Keep-Handy Guide to the Best-Ever Parties, Special Events, and Fundraisers,” was launched in anticipation of the debut of Celebrate with Style™, a print magazine currently planned for distribution in Spring 2007.

Featured content categories include Family & Friends, Kids' Birthdays, Coming-of-Age Ceremonies, Holidays, and Business & Social Events, among others. “Share Your Ideas,” Message Boards, and unlimited free Special Occasion Reminders are designed to make the site interactive and useful to site visitors on a year-round basis.

Alter, who serves as CEO and publisher of the new venture, is developing a range of print and online marketing opportunities to help improve the visibility of advertisers in what she calls “the celebrations market.”

Gail Trugman-Nikol featured in Long Island Business News

NAWBO/LI Membership Co-Chair Gail Trugman-Nikol was the subject of a feature in the November 17-23, 2006 issue of the Long Island Business News . The article, “Forward-looker ensures business is to be continued,” was written by Adina Glenn.

The LIBN feature discusses the business that Nikol has created to help companies avoid disruption in case of natural disasters or other situations that threaten the loss of information necessary for the business to function.

To read the entire article in PDF form, click here.