Stafford County YEC
Written by Isac Mata for the St. John News published March 31, 2022.
Stafford County YEC (Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge) was held Wednesday, March 23rd, at 11:00 AM at the Stafford County Annex. Teams of Stafford County youth entrepreneurs presented four-minute presentations and answered questions posed by a panel of three judges. A business plan executive summary was sent in prior to the competition and scored.
The event was made possible by NetWork Kansas, Entrepreneurship Community Partnership, KANSAS FREEMASONS ON THE LEVEL, and Stafford County Economic Development.
Awards were presented after lunch. Tiger Coffee took first place and will be awarded $750. Cantrell Auto Detailing took second place and will be awarded $500. iTable Menu took third place and will be awarded $250. Buck-in Leather took fourth place and will be awarded $100.
“I’m appreciative of all the work the teachers did to prepare the students. All of the teams did an amazing job. The students spent a lot of time developing and crafting their businesses. It’s not easy to get up in front of a room full of people and present your idea, especially when there is a panel of judges following up with questions,” says Kathleen Norman, Stafford County Economic Development Executive Director. “It was a great learning experience, and many are already starting to think about next year’s competition!”
Tiger Coffee will have the opportunity to compete in the Kansas Entrepreneurship Challenge April 28th on the campus of Kansas State University.
1st Place- Tiger Coffee. Pictured: Allison Lopez, Tara Dowling, Lillian Brummer, and Hannah Son
2nd Place- Cantrell Auto Detailing. Pictured: Erynn Cantrell and Jessie Hogie
3rd Place- iTableMenu. Pictured: Eric Mata and Ixik Mawhirter
4th Place- Buck-in Leather. Pictured: Brandon Henkle and Jorja Blakeslee
