entrepreneur

Shopping Locally for Christmas !

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  This is the season of giving.  There is nothing quite like shopping in a rural town with  the perfect Christmas atmosphere.   Local retail shops offering hot cider to people walking in the door.  Music playing in the street.  Local residents smiling and talking to you as they shop.  Always a parking place nearby and never having to wait in line very long, if ever.  There are many reasons for shopping in the small town and having a GREAT experience is definately the first thing that comes to mind. 

Additionally, we need to keep in mind the economic support given to our small entrepreneurial businesses.  By shopping local, we keep a larger portion of our money in the local economy and support jobs through these businesses.  The business owners and the salaries toward their staff allow for those families to continue living and surviving in our area.  It is understandable that from time to time, some items need to be purchased from stores out of town, BUT many of those goods we need or even want for Christmas (or during the year) can be found or ordered locally.   Sometimes the item price will be same, higher or even (yes!) lower, than purchasing out-of-town goods.  Also, when you figure gas and incidental spending (food, movies, other), more often than not, a trip for buying out-of-town goods can cost a resident more than shopping locally.  Yes, there are exceptions.  I will not list them all, but the primary reason used seems to be  the “I just want to get out of town! ” .  Although this is the most used reason, it usually equates to the most expensive trip for the resident and/or family (due to unexpected and unneeded goods/services) and also takes  away critical, financial support from smaller local businesses.   

Because of the economy and challenging times, many residents have been very frugal and pro-active in their shopping this year.  Buying earlier in the year through payments at a local store.  Utilizing some of the out-of-home entrepreneurial businesses, such as candles, home decor, quilts, or other items, for stocking stuffers has been more popular this year. Gift certificates toward local grocers, fuel, or essentials have been talked about a lot this year as well. 

Christmas is definately the time for giving, as we are reminded by “the reason for the season!”  As we all look at our neighbors across our towns,  consider giving gifts acquired from  those local and small town stores, which in turn support the local community and families.  In these challenging times, we should also focus our attention toward supporting our local non-profit organizations, who work diligently toward improving our way of life and the basic needs those in need in our area. 

Thank you all for supporting our local businesses!  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Ron's Restoration in Glade since 1989

Since opening it’s doors in 1989, Ron’s Restoration, Inc. has restored or built over 180 vehicles consisting of antiques, classics, streetrods, customs and pickups. You will also find the business restoring that childhood pedal car or Cushman scooter. The vehicles have found their homes in Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, South Dakota, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.

Ron’s Restoration, Inc. employs full-time technicians: including an ASE Certified Master Technician for mechanical, Certified and award winning re-finishers, bodywork and frame fabrication technicians. The business also maintains up-to-date equipment for the fabrication, refinishing and assembly of it’s projects.

The president of the company, Ronald Kester, was born and raised most of his life in the Phillips County Kansas area and has always been a car buff. He credits his father for the love of cars. As a young man he bought his first vehicle for $35 when he was just 13 years old and still has that car, a 1930 Model A.

Ron has been in the automobile business since 1959, as a vehicle salesman, mechanic and bodyshop technician. He sold new and used Chevrolet and Ford vehicles for 30 years. When he and his wife, Sondra, were married in 1959, they would spend their spare time in area quarter-mile strip racing. After graduating on to legal racetracks in the late 1960’s, Ron qualified for the World Finals in Dallas, Texas amd is a charter member of the National Hot Rod Association.

In the late 1970’s he switched his car building attention to the upcoming Street Rod era building him and Sondra a 1932 Ford. The car made two trips to the east coast and back before selling it, and building for themselves a 1933 Buick 4 door. He and Sondra still have this car and is a favorite among their children and grandchildren. Ron is a member of the Buick Street Rod Association and the National Street Rodder’s Association.

Many of Ron’s projects have found themselves award winners and publication features. In 1992 the company restored a 1960 Chrysler 300 F Convertible for a realtor in Hastings, NE that won two National Chrysler 300 awards. The car was then sold at the Barrett-Jackson Classic Auto Auction in Arizona in 1998 with the purchaser being Tim Allen of the hit tv show “Home Improvement” It was re-purchased a few years later by a collector in the state of New York. That person had Ron’s restore another Chrysler for him during the years of 2004-2005.

A gold medallion award was received by Ron’s on a 1957 Ford Thunderbird Convertible at the CTCI meet in July 2000. This is the highest award than can be earned through the Thunderbird Association.

In the March 2001 issue of Classic Truck you will find featured a 1960 Ford pickup built by Ron’s equipped with a 4.6 Ford police car package drive train and a 1994 Ford step-side box.

Northern Rodder magazine featured in three of their monthly publications a 1935 Chevrolet, a 1937 Pontiac and a 1933 Ford Roadster completed by the business. The 1933 Ford Roadster was also picked by Rod and Custom Magazine as one of their top 100 cars during the year 2001 and won Boyd Coddington Pro’s Pick at the GoodGuys Mid-Western Nationals in Kansas City in 2004.

During the year 2002 the business completed a custom 1971 Ford Mustang with a 502 Chevrolet Ram Jet Fuel injection engine and Vortech Super charger. The car was invited to the Daryl Starbird show in Wichita, KS at the end of January 2003 and won a Comp D’Elegance gold award. From their it traveled to the ISCA World of Wheels show in Kansas City and won 4 awards. It was the featured article in the September 2003 issue of Super Rod magazine and the April 2004 issue of Car Craft magazine.

Nebraska Street Rod of the Year, Outstanding paint and Best in it’s Class at the 2004 ISCA World of Wheels show in Omaha was awarded to a 1935 Chevrolet Master Deluxe Coupe built by Ron’s. The car was also featured in the May 2004 issue of Street Rod Builder.

In June 2004, Ron’s Restoration completed the changes to a 1967 Corvette qualifying it for Bloomington

This article and pictures taken from the website:  http://www.ronsrestoration.com/

MarketPlace Kansas

Exciting News for Kansas Entrepreneurs! Over a year of planning and collaboration with key designers of the MarketPlace event in Nebraska has resulted in the expansion of this entrepreneurial event in Kansas. Mark your calendars! On November 9 & 10, MarketPlace Kansas will be coming to Hays, Kansas. Normally a one day event, the organization team has decided to put on a day and a half of MarketPlace at the Hays Ramada Inn Convention Center in November to host the hopefully anticipated 500 + participants.

If you are not familiar with MarketPlace, you should look at the Center for Rural Affairs website and review activities and educational opportunities for small and midsize entrepreneurial businesses at the 2009 Nebraska Marketplace. This conference is directed toward small businesses, entrepreneurs, as well as economic development and community leaders. It will be a great learning and networking opportunity for your local businesses and young/developing entrepreneurs. Over 500 people attended the one-day event in North Platte this year, and it is hopeful that the same or more will attend in Kansas; if we start getting the work out!

Mark your calendars. Plan to attend and share your talents/products at the Kansas Market in November!