Greater Shreveport Chamber recognizes diversity, leadership

The Business Development Connection (BDC) of the Greater Shreveport Chamber will honor outstanding business owners and professionals who are making a difference in our community at the (MBOA) Dinner, presented by Willis- Knighton Health System. The event will be held on June 15 at Sam’s Town Hotel & Casino.

Each year, the BDC recognizes a diverse group of honorees. All the honorees inspire us by building a stronger business culture that involves empowering growth, creating leadership opportunities and developing robust community support. They have made a commitment to connect, grow personally and professionally, discover strategies for positive change and develop new ideas for their business and employees. The recipients of each category will be announced at the event on June 15. Sponsorships and tickets for the dinner are available now by visiting www.ShreveportChamber.org.

MBOA Chair Darlene S. Rossum states, “The MBOA stage is set, and this year’s event promises not to disappoint! Without question, our honorees and recipients truly embody a spirit of well-earned success. Their phenomenal talent, determination and most certainly their resilience have served to distinguish them as champions among their peers. It is indeed an honor and a privilege to be a part of this collaborative effort to showcase this amazing group of businesses and individuals.”

At the event, David Raines Community Health Centers will be recognized as our Business of the Year recipient. This award is given to an established business that creates opportunities for minority individuals and has a strong philanthropic commitment in our community.

The Honorable Carl E. Stewart, judge in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, is our Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. This award is presented to an individual who, throughout their long career, consistently exemplifies the highest standard of professional excellence, has dedicated many years to providing service to our community, has an extensive record of accomplishments and has a reputation that is widespread.

“This year’s class of honorees speaks to the entrepreneurship and engaged leadership that is increasingly the hallmark of our Shreveport-Bossier community,” said Dr. Timothy Magner, president of the Greater Shreveport Chamber. “By celebrating these individuals and organizations, we not only lift them up for their own accomplishments but celebrate their trailblazing leadership as an example to others. If you know any of the honorees or recipients, please make sure to congratulate them on their achievements.”

Emerging Business of the Year

HONOREE

GEAUX 4 GREEN, LLC
Frank Gipson

Established in 2020, Geaux 4 Green, LLC’s mission includes all things green and all things clean. Owner Frank V. Gipson is a native of Shreveport, La., with a vested interest in using the business for citywide improvement. Geaux 4 Green serves the area’s industrial production plants through cleaning services, including dustless blasting (rust removal) and dirt/oil/ scale removal using a vacuum truck. In addition to these and similar industrial cleaning services, Geaux 4 Green’s home services include landscaping, lawn service, pressure washing, painting and beyond.

What started as a desire to service local city and state passageways had expanded into all-inclusive industrial and home improvement services. Geaux 4 Green is growing, and so is its list of opportunities. The best is yet to come!

Emerging Business of the Year

HONOREE

MRJ HOMES
Marie Jones

MRJ Homes was created by husband-and-wife duo Rickey and Marie Jones. After starting a family and raising two beautiful kids, years of purchasing, selling and interior designing their own homes, they decided to utilize their talents to help others beautify their homes. With Rickey’s extensive background in Information Technology, MRJ homes has become a catalyst in the community creating smart homes.

From simple makeovers to complete renovations of large and small spaces, the philosophy and foundation of MRJ Homes is centered around three principles. Those principles are: Inpire. Design. Create.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

JERRICO STAFFING, LLC
Shemika Caldwell-Owens

Shemika Caldwell-Owens, the proud owner of four local businesses and a non-profit organization, has committed herself to exemplify stellar characteristics both professionally and personally. She encourages others to strive in that same manner.

Mrs. Caldwell-Owens has asserted her business acumen to create opportunities for individuals who may otherwise face challenging circumstances. Her everlasting heart for people motivates her to continually provide essential, daily needs such as housing, clothing and food through employment opportunities.

Shemika has strategically recruited and employed men and women from all backgrounds and walks of life through Jericho Staffing, meeting the needs of local employers. We Care Sitting Services provides care for patients in our community. She seeks to remain engaged and involved in community efforts that will better serve constituents.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

DURHAM TRANSPORT
Latronia Durham

Ms. Durham is a lifelong resident of Shreveport, La. As a specialized transportation specialist for more than 12 years, she is an experienced licensed commercial driver, dispatcher and mentor. She is the owner and operator of Durham Transport Express, a minority and family-owned transportation company providing jobs and transportation services locally and cross-country. Her professional expertise offers an exceptional entrepreneurial skill set, where she manages a staff of more than 10. She utilizes her love for trucking and mentorship to assist others, particularly other women, to excel and earn a livable wage.

Ms. Durham is the 2022 award recipient of the Conference of Minority Transportation Officials Celebrating Women Who Move the Nation and serves on advisory boards. She has also been selected as a 2022 Harvard Business School Field Program Participant.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

VH BARBER & STYLING ACADEMY
Vanette Harris

Vanette L. Harris came to the Greater Shreveport area in 1992 by way of the United States Air Force. Her desire to become an entrepreneur led her to Magnetic Beauty School. Vanette spent the next 17 years teaching in the Caddo Parish School System. After earning her instructor’s license, Vanette’s entrepreneurial journey expanded.

On Jan. 15, 2012, Vanette and her husband, Derrick Harris, opened the first barber school in Bossier Parish at 505 Barksdale Blvd. VH Barber & Styling Academy, colloquially known as VH Academy, started with only seven students. By year seven, the business outgrew that location, which led to the current location at 1701 Old Minden Road.

Today, hundreds of students have gone through the barber/stylist and instructor programs at VH Academy.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS ENTERTAINMENT
Brent Latin

Owned and operated by Brent Latin, Young Professionals Entertainment (YPE) is a media, marketing and entertainment firm based in Shreveport, La. YPE specializes in video production, photography, audio recording, social media marketing, websites and live streaming.

In 2008, the company was officially formed and spent nearly a decade in downtown Shreveport’s historic Slattery Building. Now located in South Shreveport, YPE continues to provide innovative forms of media and marketing to increase visibility for every client.

The company services clients not only in Northwest Louisiana, but all over the country and has worked with a number of international brands. The increasing impact and demand for progressive media gives YPE an exciting future for growth and expansion.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

LOWDER BAKING COMPANY, LLC Sarah Lowder

Sarah and Preston Lowder began Lowder Baking Company by making Lowder King Cakes from their home kitchen for family and friends during Mardi Gras seasons. After growing over the years, they decided to take a leap of faith. They quit their full-time jobs and opened their first bakery storefront in January 2019.

Lowder baked goods quickly grew beyond king cakes to include full bakery menu items. The menu changes weekly with fresh baked items made from scratch, including breakfast pastries, cinnamon rolls, baguettes, assorted breads, cookies, brownies, cookie cakes, coffee and Espresso – and Lowder King Cakes during Mardi Gras season.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

THE ULTIMATE FINANCIAL BOUTIQUE
LaToria Stewart

LaToria Stewart, CEO and owner of The Ultimate Financial Boutique, equips individuals with financial knowledge and skills because everyone deserves the opportunity to reach their financial dreams. Your financial mistakes should not define your future.

The Ultimate Financial Boutique has been successful in educating clients to achieve financial empowerment by conducting Bridging the Wealth Gap sessions to provide youth with knowledge on financial literacy.

LaToria’s company has also helped clients secure financial security with life insurance policies and produced several first-time homeowners with individualized personal credit restoration programs. They have coached business clients on a path to provide their small business with funding and business vehicle purchases. Other clients are coached on how to utilize various money management methods to pay down debt, save money and secure financial security by efficiently using their tax refund.

Small Business Owner of the Year

HONOREE

THE BRAIN TRAIN, LLC

DBA LEARNINGRX OF SHREVEPORT

Donesa Walker

Donesa Walker is the owner of LearningRx of Shreveport, the only internationally board-certified cognitive training center in the state of Louisiana. LearningRx provides one-to-one, individualized and customized brain training for all ages to address weaknesses in attention, short-term and long-term memory, processing speed, auditory/visual processing as well as logic and reasoning.

Cognitive training for clients of all age groups addresses underlying weaknesses evident in learning issues and struggles with issues like ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, executive function disorder, memory decline and many others. LearningRx in Shreveport has trained over 1,500 brains in the 14 years it has served the Ark-La-Tex. This center has ranked as a top center in customer service for every year that it has been operating both locally and nationally.

Top Business of the Year

HONOREE

DAVID RAINES COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS

David Raines Community Health Centers (DRCHC), originally the Cooper Road Medical Clinic, is a federally qualified health center established in 1992 and nationally accredited by the Joint Commission. The health center is named in honor of Mr. David Herndon Raines, an African- American who donated 22 acres of land in the Martin Luther King Jr. area, where the Shreveport health center is located. Since its inception, DRCHC has expanded to provide quality and affordable primary care services through six community-based health centers, six school-based health centers and two pharmacies serving nearly 14,500 patients in Caddo, Bossier, Webster and Claiborne parishes.

DRCHC provides comprehensive family medicine, pediatrics, dentistry, behavioral health, women, infants and children (WIC) optometry and pharmacy services. Services are available to patients at community-based and school-based health center locations through in-person and/or telehealth services.

DRCHC emphasizes accessibility, affordability and the establishment of a medical home to increase access particularly for uninsured and underserved residents. DRCHC provides services regardless of ability to pay. For persons without insurance coverage, a sliding fee program for individuals at or below 200% of the federal poverty guidelines is available. DRCHC accepts Medicaid, Medicare, commercial and Veterans Administration-insured patients.

Top Business Professional of the Year

HONOREE

SUSLA SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER
Darrin Dixon

Darrin Dixon is the center director for SUSLA Small Business Development Center. In January 2004, he established the small-, women- and minority-owned business incubator program. That program served over 125 business interests per year. Additionally, he does grant writing at the university and has generated more than $2.5 million in grants for small business activities.

Currently, Darrin serves as past chairman of the board of directors of the Shreveport-Bossier African-American Chamber of Commerce, past chairman of the Strategic Action Council, the Committee of 100 of Northwest Louisiana, chair of United Way of Northwest Louisiana, and District 7 member of the Caddo Parish School Board.

Darrin has a B.S. in agricultural economics from Southern University - Baton Rouge and an MBA from the University of Phoenix.

Top Business Professional of the Year

HONOREE

OSCHNER LSU HEALTH SYSTEM
John Green

John Green is responsible for developing a strategic framework to support diversity and inclusion efforts and programs within the North Louisiana region, developing and implementing initiatives that support ongoing leadership efforts to ensure understanding and adoption of diversity, equity and inclusion across the Ochsner LSU Health System and surrounding communities.

He is engaged in systemic and focused recruitment and retention activities to ensure diverse populations within Ochsner LSU Health, including exploring mentorship and business opportunities specific to minority vendors in the region’s communities seeking to partner with Ochsner LSU Health.

John participates in community outreach opportunities aimed at increasing Ochsner LSU Health’s visibility and impact in Shreveport through supporting the education of the children of Shreveport, and exploring internship and outreach opportunities with our region’s HBCUs.

Top Business Professional of the Year

HONOREE

GRIGGS ENTERPRISE MCDONALDS
Quantine Sudds Myles

Quantine Sudds Myles is a 1992 graduate of Captain Shreve High School, 1996 graduate of LSUS with a bachelor’s degree in business management and administration, 2010 associate business degree from SUSLA.

An empowering female with a profound task and gift of “leadership,” who has given 29 years of service/ leadership to one of the largest corporations within the Ark-La-Tex, Griggs Enterprise/McDonald’s, as director of operations.

Quantine navigates the corporation that includes 17 McDonald’s restaurants throughout the Ark-La-Tex that employ over 800 employees, with an operational budget more than $38,000,000.

Quantine Myles, the wife of the Reverend Thomas Myles, is the phenomenal mother of two amazing sons, who have blessed her with two beautiful granddaughters.

Top Business Professional of the Year

HONOREE

PAPA JOHN’S
Shilpan Patel

As the area supervisor of Papa John’s for the Northwest Louisiana community, Shilpan Patel focuses on youth leadership and entrepreneurship, food security and food waste reductions. His core values with the company also identifies “People first, doing the right thing and everyone belongs.”

This past year, Papa John’s assisted in helping to empower young people in the community by providing them with delicious pizzas at various career readiness and job placement classes at Caddo Parish schools and local community colleges as well as donating pizzas to local non-profit organizations and local hospitals.

Shilpan has served as a board member with the Renesting Project since 2021. As a board member, his goal is to improve the quality of life for clients transitioning into permanent housing by providing the basic future and household items free of charge.

Top Business Professional of the Year

HONOREE

CITY OF SHREVEPORT S.P.A.R. Cheredith Dianna Rhone

Cheredith Dianna Rhone is the daughter of Cherokee and Amye-Adger Rhone. She is a public servant, advocate and business executive committed to making a difference by closing socioeconomic gaps, advancing diversity, equity and inclusion for all.

Cheredith earned a Bachelor of Science double majoring in business management and finance from Centenary College of Louisiana, as well as a Master of Management with a specialization in energy finance from Tulane University.

As a Centenary student, Cheredith served as the president’s student assistant for three years. Currently, she is the division manager of administration for the city of Shreveport, Shreveport Public Assembly & Recreation department. In this role she serves as a member of the senior management team, charting the direction of the department, ensuring its accountability to all constituents and effective operation.

Non-Profit Professional of the Year

HONOREE

GOODWILL INDUSTRIES
Lynn A. Stevens

Lynn Stevens is the director of workforce development for Goodwill Industries of North Louisiana. In this position, Lynn develops, fundraises for and oversees all activities related to workforce development programming.

Lynn approaches all that she does with a passion to serve others and create positive change. She has used her past 25 years’ experience and leadership skills to guide and direct many types of local, regional and national organizations. Lynn is active in the community and has been recognized and received numerous awards. During her career, Lynn has helped secure more than $65 million for nonprofit organizations. Prior to her nonprofit work, Lynn was employed with Pepsico Brands.

Lynn and her husband, Aaron, have two children, Kaitlyn and Colin, and help to care for her elderly parents. Her hobbies include photography, being outdoors and completing her “bucket list.”