Five Great Strides walks are scheduled to take place in April and May around the greater Jacksonville area. The walks are fundraising events for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF), which has a goal of raising $305,000.

The walks will take place in Clay County, Atlantic Beach, St. Augustine, downtown Jacksonville, and Fernandina Beach. Last year’s walks raised from than $268,000.

The 2010 schedule for the Great Strides walks is:

• 9 a.m. Saturday, April 24— Clay County Great Strides will take place at Orange Park Kennel Club, 455 Park Ave., Orange Park. Lunch is donated by Olive Garden.
• 9 a.m. Saturday, May 1 — Hanna Park Great Strides at Hanna Park, 500 Wonderwood Drive, Atlantic Beach. Outback Steakhouse grills lunch on site.
• 9 a.m. Saturday, May 1 — St. Augustine Great Strides at World Golf Village, One World Golf Place, St. Augustine. Lunch will be provided.
• 6 p.m. Thursday, May 13 — Riverwalk Great Strides at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 1201 Riverplace Blvd., Jacksonville. Hors d’oeuvres provided by Crowne Plaza.
• 9 a.m. Saturday, May 15 — Fernandina Great Strides at Fort Clinch State Park, 2601 Atlantic Ave., Fernandina Beach. Lunch will be provided.

Check-in for the Saturday Great Strides walks begins at 8 a.m. and the walks are 10K or 6.2 miles. The routes are suitable for walking, running. Participants can push strollers, pull wagons, ride bicycles, scooters, or bring a four-legged friends.

Check-in for Riverwalk Great Strides starts at 5 p.m., with a shorter course adjacent to the St. Johns River on the Southbank Riverwalk. Immediately following Riverwalk Great Strides, participants are invited to linger poolside and enjoy live music.

Participants can register for Great Strides by going to the Great Strides website, www.cff.org/Chapters/nfl/greatstrides. Once the team leader has registered online, walkers can sign up and utilize the online fundraising tools provided. Everyone who raises at least $100 receives an official Team T-shirt.

For more information about forming a team, walking or sponsorship, contact the North Florida Cystic Fibrosis Foundation at (904) 733-3560.

Beaver Street Enterprise Center (BSEC) will host several low-cost workshops for entrepreneurs. To make reservations, contact Selisa Grimes at 904-265-4700 or sgrimes@bsecenter.net.

• “How to overcome call reluctance when your business in one the line.” Friday, March 26, 10 a.m. to noon. Cost is $15. Speaker Steve McCann, author of Client-Conscious Prospecting for Today’s Small Business Owner,” will show participants how to build prospecting confidence.

•  “Introduction to QuickBooks.” Thursday, April 1, 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Cost is $15. Presenter David Barber will show participants the fundamentals of using QuickBooks in order to manage their financial data.

• “Turning social media connections into $$$.” April 6, 10 a.m. to noon. Cost is $15. Participants will learn how to harness Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Facebook as well as blogs to help them build their Web influence.

• “Tax informational hour.” April 8, 10 a.m. to noon.

Bottle Snugglers (www.bottlesnugglers.com), the original plush stuffed animal feeding-time helpers, has earned two top industry awards: the iParenting Media Award and the PTPA Award. Both are based on ratings by a panel of parents who individually test each product.

“Our first year has been very exciting, and to win these two awards is a huge bonus,” said Bottle Snugglers President Jennifer Marko. “We have received such a warm response from caregivers who need an extra hand. Our store list is growing every week,” she said. Marko added that Bottle Snugglers will be available at a special price to military families through the AAFES (Army Air Force Exchange Service) website in March.

A number of Jacksonville small business owners and managers are among those the Small Business Administration’s North Florida District Office is honoring as small business champions. An Orlando business owner, Waymon Armstrong, was named 2010 Small business Person of the year.

Armstrong is the CEO of Engineering and Computer Simulations, Inc (ECS).  He has been invited to attend the Small Business Week Celebration in Washington DC in May where the National Small Business Person of the Year will be announced.

SBA gave regional recognition to two Jacksonville business owners and managers. The regional recognition means that these individuals were selected as 2010 Small Business Week winners for Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Kentucky. The winners were:

• Joanne Marie Kazmierski, manager of Community Outreach and Environmental Advocacy for JAXPORT—Minority Small Business Champion of the Year;

• Helga Langthon, vice president of SOHO Network Solution, Inc.—Small Business Exporter of the Year.

The SBA recognized two district winners:

• Pegine Echevarria, CEO and president of Team Pegine of Ponte Vedra Beach—2010 Women in Business Champion of the Year for the North Florida District and the state;

•  Rear Admiral Kevin F. Delaney, president  and CEO of Delaney & Associates Consulting of Jacksonville—2010 Veteran Small Business Champion of the Year for the North Florida District and the State of Florida.

The SBA also named Christopher Hurn, CEO and co-founder of Mercantile Capital Corporation in Altamonte Springs as district and state Financial Services Champion of the Year Winner.

The 2010 Small Business Week Award Winners from the Jacksonville area (and top North Florida SBA lenders) will be recognized at the 18^th Annual Small Business Week & Lender Awards Celebration on May 13, 2010, at the University of North Florida’s University Center from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.. This event is hosted by the Small Business Development Center at the University of North Florida.  For more information on this award ceremony, please visit www.sbdc.unf.edu.

Riding Into History, a premier motorcycle event, will return to the World Golf Village near St. Augustine  on May 15, 2010. Author and motorcycle traveler Clement Salvadori will be the Grand Marshal of the event.

The event will feature charity rides, a Concours d’Elegance, the Biker’s Ball, and the Historic Ride. Proceeds from Riding Into History will benefit the Wounded Warrior Project.

The event is presented by Riding Into History Inc., a 501(c)3 charity organization comprised of volunteer members from several motorcycle organizations, led by the BMW Motorcycle Owners of Northeast Florida (BMWNEF) and the Historic Motorcycle Society (HMS).

Between 300 and 400 antique, vintage, and classic motorcycles from all over the country are expected to enter the Concours, which will feature the Great Bikes of Great Britain. Admission is $10 at the gate for the Concours. Various ticket packages are available for the Biker’s Ball and the Charity Rides.

Craig Vetter, designer and Motorcycle Hall of Fame member, will present seminars at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Admission will be free to these audio-visual presentation, which will be held at the Vetter Theater.

Internationally known motorcycle artist Don Bradley will provide the original artwork for the posters. Posters, t-shirts and other items will be available at RidingIntoHistory.org and at the event.

The media sponsors are RoadBike and American Iron magazines. Riding Into History is an AMA sanctioned event.

The World Golf Village is located just north of St. Augustine on I-95, exit 323.

For additional information go to RidingIntoHistory.org, or email info@RidingIntoHistory.org.

John Delaney, president of University of North Florida, will be the keynote speaker at a luncheon hosted by the Cornerstone Regional Development Partnership, the economic development division of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce. The event will be March 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Delaney will speak on how the region can create a new Florida economy based on knowledge and innovation. His talk is based on a new report from the state’s university system, which details key areas of focus necessary to the state’s future.

The event will be at the Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront. Reservations can be made at 904-366-6626.

Four local women who have made outstanding contributions to the Jacksonville community have been selected for recognition by the Mayor’s Commission on the Status of Women as 2010 Women’s History Month honorees.

The women are:

•  Jeannie Blaylock, co-anchor at First Coast News,

•  Jessie-Lynne Kerr, veteran reporter with The Florida Times-Union,

•  Jacqueline Nash, retired licensed clinical social worker,

•  Ellen Siler, chief executive officer of Hubbard House.

The Commission, in partnership with the Thomas G. Carpenter Library, University of North Florida, will host a reception in their honor on March 16, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., at the University of North Florida (Building 12, Library),

Each of this year’s honorees will be featured on a specially designed commemorative poster, which will be unveiled at the reception. The poster will be placed in the UNF Thomas G. Carpenter Library where the permanent collection of commemorative posters is being exhibited. The poster honorees were selected from nominations received from individuals, women’s organizations, agencies and businesses.

The Small business Development Center (SBDC) at the University of North Florida will present a workshop on exploring a career as a small business owner. “Are You an entrepreneur? Will be offered March 23 from 5: 30 to 7:00 p.m. at the Solomon Calhoun Community Center at 1300 Duval St. in St. Augustine.

This workshop will give attendees an overview what it takes to start a new business and so they can determine if it is right for them.

The workshop is offered free of charge. For more information or to register, call 800-450-4624.

The Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce has hired three new staff members. Robin Shelly has been hired as the director of marketing, Dawn Adams as the director of finance, and Kelly Gerlach has been promoted to the director of events from her previous position as event manager.

“Our new team members bring with them a wealth of experience that will continue to promote the Chamber’s goal of driving high quality economic growth in the region and making Northeast Florida the best place to live, work and play,” said Wally Lee, president of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce.

More information about the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce is available online at www.OpportunityJacksonville.com.

Robin Shelly

Kelly Gerlach

Dawn Adams

Women Business Owners of North Florida along with the Diamond Sponsor, the Professional Women’s Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce, have announced the 2010 finalists for the Women in Business Awards. The Award Winners will be named at the 24^th annual awards luncheon March 24, at the Omni Jacksonville Hotel in Jacksonville.

The Annual Women in Business Awards recognize and honor women who epitomize success in today’s business world. The awards recognize four women in the following categories: Entrepreneur of the Year, Franchisee/Franchisor of the Year, Corporate Leader of the Year and Pioneer of the Year.

Entrepreneur finalists are Camille Clement Gregg, Outside The Box Consulting; Teresa K. Myers, Myers-Seth Pump Inc.; and Sgt. Teresa Meares (ret.), DGG Taser and Tactical Supply Inc.

Franchisee finalists are Lynne Coggin, BNI Northeast Florida; Lauren M. Little, Edible Arrangements in the Shoppes of Avondale and in the Shoppes of Bartram Park; Stacie L. Rine, JM Steil Inc –Massage Heights Town Center and Massage Heights River City.

Corporate Leader finalists are Alicia Somers, Regions Bank; Karen Brune Mathis, Dreams Come True; Lisa Gufford, The Crexent Business Centers; Stella Sigfusdottir, Spa Academia Inc.; Jessica Evans, Regions Bank; Katherine D. Way, SafariLand; Anna Brosche, Ennis, Pellum & Associates, CPAs.

Pioneer finalista include Jean Jones, Jean Jones, E.A. Tax & Consulting; Elizabeth Paulson, Junior Achievement Girl$ Program Manager; Debra Braddock, State Farm Insurance; Suzanne Bass, Suzanne Bass, Attorney at Law; Marilyn McCall Wiles, The Enterprising Women’s Leadership Institute; Arden C. de Saussure, Arden’s Kafe & Katering; Snowden McFall, Brightwork Advertising/Fired Up!; Nancy E. Allen, Solutions for Care Inc.; Jean G. Watson, Sweet Repeats Consignment Shop Inc.; Martha C. Pellino, The Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce; Claudia Avery, Florida Cleaning Concepts; Sandy Bartow Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce; Ann Sabbag, Health Designs; Gwen Hutcheson Griggs, PARC Management LLC.

Donna Orender, president of the Women’s National Basketball Association, will be the keynote speaker at the luncheon. She will share insights into her “journey to success.”

The annual awards program is sponsored by Women Business Owners of North Florida, the Jacksonville Business Journal, the Professional Women’s Council, WOKV, AMP Promotional Products, Cave Productions and Pegasus Media.

The luncheon and awards program are sold out; however, names are being taken for a wait list. For more information go to www.wbonfl.org.