SVM-MAG_12122013

Business Journal Sauk Valley

Vol. 16, No. 4

Sauk Valley Media

Winter 2013

ANTIQUES ARE ‘IN’ AT THIS INN

Cover story: Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles opens in Morrison – Pages 4-7

Also inside s 0ERSONA 3TUDIOS s +EN S "ARBERSHOP s 7HEELOCK &URNITURE s + + #YCLES s 2AWSHU A /RGANIC -ARKET s "ARNACOPIA

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED P.O. Box 498 Sterling, IL 61081

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

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Welcome ... to the Winter 2013 issue of Sauk Valley Business Journal

INDEX OF STORIES Cover story | Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles ..................................................4 K&K Cycles ..........................................................8 Persona Studios ................................................10 Rawshu’a Organic Market ...............................12 Whiteside Area Career Center .........................14

The staff of the Sauk Valley Business Journal

On the cover

Don and Jacqueline Jevne recently opened the Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles store in Morrison. – Phillip Marruffo,

Internship program sponsored by Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce ..............17 Wheelock Furniture marks its 100th anniversary .....................................20 Ken’s Barbershop .............................................21 Barnacopia ........................................................22

Publisher: Trevis Mayfield Advertising Director: Jennifer Baratta

Advertising Sales: Jill Reyna Business Journal Editor: Jim Dunn

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Email Kelly Null at knull@saukvalley.com to start receiving your FREE subscription to the Sauk Valley Business Journal.

Sauk Valley Business Journal

Articles and advertisements are the property of Sauk Valley Media of Dixon and Sterling.

No portion of the Sauk Valley Business Journal may be reproduced without written consent of the publisher.

Ad content is not the responsibility of Sauk Valley Media. Sauk Valley Media cannot and will not be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by advertisers listed in any portion of this publication.

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WINTER 2013

COVER STORY | ANTIQUE STORE

‘Connecting the past with the present’ Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles has art, depression glass

BY LONNIE MILLER Special to Sauk Valley Business Journal

MORRISON – Don Jevne has packed 3,000 square feet of space on the main floor and the basement of the Old Hotel with collectibles and antiques.

He doesn’t take consignments or have independent vendors; everything here has been gathered by him and his wife, Jacqueline.

He also owns the local TruValu Hardware, which was was once housed in the former hotel building.

After he bought a larger space for the hardware store, he turned the old three-story hotel into a fun place to browse and find treasures.

OLD HOTEL CONTINUED ON 6

Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com

Don and Jacqueline Jevne have recently opened the Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles at 130 E. Main St. in Morrison.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

Collectibles tend to be displayed by type OLD HOTEL

CONTINUED FROM 4

The new venture has incorporated the help of the hardware store staff, with each clerk taking a turn at the antiques and collectibles venue. Laura Frederick is there on Wednesdays.

She is also the bookkeeper and helps to keep the place organized and clean.

One of the nice features about the store’s arrangement by a single owner, rather than several different vendors, is that collectibles tend to be displayed by type. Milk glass and depression glass are sprinkled throughout, but tend to be displayed by color. Artwork, ranging from one-of-a-kind to Sterling Silver Franklin Mint pieces, is abundant throughout as are many other collectibles.

Furniture and dishware, flatware, cast iron skillets and pots, kitchen utensils, cookie cutters, bake ware, and kitchen gadgets are conveniently arranged

Hunt for history Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles, 130 E. Main St. in Morrison, is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday, Call 815-772-4810 (Tru-Valu Hardware) for more information. somewhat in an area where they are displayed together.

The same is true of fishing reels, pocket knives, tools, and bikes. A hardware-store mentality definitely has influenced the layout of the merchandise.

That is not a hard-and-fastrule, however, so be sure to browse and peek at the backs of shelves and in the basement, as a shopper can find hand-painted bowls, glassware, and other household items mixed in with really unique antiques such as sewing machines, steamer trunks, furniture, armoires and wardrobes, crystal salt cellars, and a “fireless cooker” that appears to be a precursor to

Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com

Antique electric fans are just some of the specialty items at Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles at 130 E. Main St. in Morrison. the modern-day crock pot.

“They tend to like the beer Made in 1918, it has the origi- glasses and other interesting nal instruction book with it, glassware,” he said. including recipes.

Attorney Vince Chimera, from The basement houses a mul- Chicago, browses between titude of items, and it’s well court appointments or at lunch worth the trip downstairs to while he’s in Morrison. He search out treasures. Don says enjoys “connecting the past it’s a favorite place for younger with the present” and has spent folks to find things with which some very pleasant time searchto furnish a new apartment or ing for history in the shelves of home. the antique store.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

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OLD HOTEL ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES

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Jaqueline Jevne plays Fats Domino’s “Blueberry Hill� on a Victrola record player at her Old Hotel Antiques & Collectibles on Main Street in Morrison.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

BUSINESS PROFILE

Business rolling in at K&K Cycles Military vets fix motorcycles, scooters, ATVs

BY KIMBERLY WATLEY Special to Sauk Valley Business Journal

DIXON – Owner Keihin Ketchum couldn’t be more pleased with how K&K Cycles has grown as it celebrates its first year in business.

The shop features a full-repair garage where he works on all makes and models of motorcycles, specializing in HarleyDavidson, as well as scooters and ATVs. “My prices are really for guys like me who can’t afford to ride a Harley with the cost of repairs being what they are,� he said. “I make it as reasonable as I can and keep a very low markup on parts.�

K&K CONTINUED ON 9

Kimberly Watley/Special to the Sauk Valley Business Journal

Keihin Ketchum, 25, owner of K&K Cycles, works on a Harley-Davidson. About 60 percent of business is repair work and 40 percent is parts sales, Ketchum says.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

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Focus on parts, repairs K&K

CONTINUED FROM 8

The 25-year-old Ketchum insists on letting his customers know when repair costs aren’t worth the effort and exceed the value of a bike.

Parts make up about 40 percent of K&K’s business. “I can get parts for just about any bike you need,” he said.

He also has a showroom with a wide variety of motorcycles on consignment.

“I try to change the inventory at a great rate. ... We want people to keep coming back to see different things.”

Ketchum, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, went to school at Motorcycle Mechanics Institute in Orlando, Fla., when he got out of the Army. He had planned to work at a HarleyDavidson shop or dealership.

But when he finished school, he came back home and took auto mechanics classes. He realized his dream wasn’t out

One of many motorcycles recently for sale on consignment at K&K Cycles, at 1114 River Road, Dixon.

Cruise in

K&K Cycles, 1114 River Road, is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Saturday. To reach them, call 815-677-9463. of reach and decided to start his own business.

It wasn’t long after opening the shop that Josh Yardley walked in looking for brakes.

The two soon were working side by side.

Yardley, 31, also a veteran, was on leave at the time. He had been a diesel mechanic for 12 years in the Army.

He said he likes that K&K’s repair prices are fair.

“You go to some places and it’s over $100 an hour for labor,” Yardley said. “He’s not like that at all here.”

They built a custom motorcycle from the ground up in only 5 months. It is now displayed in the shop’s showroom.

Ketchum credits his father,

Kimberly Watley/Special to the Sauk Valley Business Journal

Karl, who owned Dixon Scooter Service, for his career path.

“I’d have to say, my dad got me interested in all this,” he said. “I was about 10 years old, working with him. I remember we built a purple bike from the ground up.

Was an ugly paint job, but a nice bike.”

His wife, Samantha, takes care of the office work and bookkeeping. Their 5-year-old daughter, Aeilee, likes to run around in the backyard.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

BUSINESS PROFILE

Grandfather’s photo passion lives on Technology takes photography business from film to digital

BY KIMBERLY WATLEY Special to Sauk Valley Business Journal

STERLING – Kathy Henson, 54, owner of Persona Studios, is a third-generation shutterbug.

Her grandfather, John Persona, opened the photography studio 79 years ago.

Her father, John Jr., also was passed the photo gene. Henson essentially grew up in the family studio.

Photographer Ashley Mosher’s son, Bentlee Lawrenz, is learning what that is like firsthand.

An entire wall of his growth has been documented and displayed at the entry of the studio. “Grandpa took hundreds of pictures of me when I was a baby, too,� Henson recalls.

PERSONA CONTINUED ON 11

Kimberly Watley/Special to the Sauk Valley Business Journal

Acting as photographer Amanda Koelling’s assistant, Nicolle Manus uses a reflector to block out some of the sunlight over the subject of the photo, Ashley Mosher.

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WINTER 2013

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Full-service studio offers variety of sessions PERSONA

CONTINUED FROM 10

As much as things are the same, and as many styles that find their way back, times have changed a lot. Since Henson took over the business in 1980, she said, evolving technology has posed a huge learning curve.

“The evolution of digital can be a blessing and a curse,” she said.

“I didn’t like it when it first came along. Now, I do. It is so easy.

When you had film, you didn’t know what you were getting.”

Photo editing can also be tricky, but her entire staff does a little of everything, she said.

The full-service studio offers all variations of photo sessions, with the staff of seven working as a team.

Photographer Mosher, 22, said that during consultations, the staffers share ideas with clients.

They discuss location, poses, props and the variety of printing options they offer.

Once a plan is set in motion, two assistants work with the per-

Take a shot Persona Studios 602 First Ave., Sterling 815-625-0801 Hours: 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday Website: www.thenewpersonastudio.com son or family to help make sure each detail is taken care of.

“We want them to be happy with everything,” Mosher said.

“Sometimes they come in with a picture they found online with an idea they want to re-create, and we do our best to make that happen.”

Added Amanda Koelling, 30, “We love when people come in with ideas and we are able to create their vision.”

Aware that not everyone has an idea how to be a “model,” they often show people exactly what pose and direction to face.

“We will get into position and show them, ‘This is what we want you to do,’ rather than just telling them,” Koelling said. “We

have two assistants who make sure everything is just right, every hair is in place, and things look good.”

The team enjoys shooting outside and taking advantage of natural light. The backyard of the studio is fully landscaped. It also has staged sets, including a rock wall waterfall, barn doors, wagon wheels, and several smaller props.

Although two indoor studios are available, many customers prefer to go on location, where the staff happily totes as many props as needed.

“Every year, every session, we want to do different things,” Koelling said. “You find, though, everything eventually comes back into style. We have a lot of urban brick wall type settings, farms, railroad tracks, abandoned buildings, and we are always on the lookout for that type of thing when we drive around.”

The team is involved in area schools as well. Aside from basic portraits, the photographers shoot high school prom, homecoming and other dances. This

Kimberly Watley/Special to the Sauk Valley Business Journal

Persona Studios is at 602 First Ave., Sterling. John Persona, grandfather of current owner, Kathy Henson, opened the photography studio 79 years ago. year they covered 13 schools.

They also shoot sporting events for yearbooks at no charge to the schools.

Because of time constraints, they no longer do weddings unless it is by special request.

Henson said doing what she loves is her favorite part about her work.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

OPEN FOR BUSINESS | RAWSHU’A ORGANIC MARKET

Photo by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

LEFT: Joshua Carter, owner of Rawshu’a Organic Market, makes a juice drink for a customer. RIGHT: The wheatgrass has been very popular at Rawshu’a, along with the market’s signature almond milk.

Rawshu’a’s owners say ‘food is medicine’ Organic food market takes holistic health approach

BY MATT MENCARINI Sauk Valley Business Journal

ROCK FALLS – Nearly every morning, Joshua Carter spends 2 hours blending, pressing, mixing, and meditating over gallons

of almond milk.

The meditating is just as important as the organic products that go into the almond milk, Carter said. It’s part of the holistic approach to health and wellness that is the central

ingredient to Rawshu’a Organic Market, 116 W. Second St. in Rock Falls, which opened in September.

Carter, 28, owns the organic market with Courtney Fritz, 19.

They say that Rawshu’a is more

than just a juice bar; it’s about giving its customers knowledge about the food they eat and the body care products they use.

“Everything here, basically, is certified organic, which means no pesticides, no hormones, no additives,” Carter said.

ORGANIC MARKET CONTINUED ON 13

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PAGE 13

Market owners careful to stock local products ORGANIC MARKET CONTINUED FROM 12

“We also offer raw living foods, which is sprouted seeds and nuts.”

In the front window of the Rock Falls storefront, Rawshu’a grows wheatgrass, which can be used in the food that the market serves at its deli. Customers can also buy bulk items, like nuts and granola, health care products, vitamins and Rawshu’a’s signature item, the almond milk.

Carter makes 2 or 3 gallons of the almond milk each morning the market is open. He prays and meditates over the milk during the process, sending positives vibes.

“Just the intention,” he said.

“Words have the power of life and death. So when you speak to it, it changes the structure, vibrationally and intentionally, because cells hold memory.

“Just like your brain or your skin or your stomach, when you ingest [genetically modi-

Store info

Rawshu’a is open every day except for Tuesday and Friday. The hours are as follows: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday: 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., and 5 to 8 p.m.

Tuesday and Friday: Closed Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sunday: Noon to 4 p.m.

For more information, go to www.facebook.com/Rawshua4Life or call 815-596-0729. fied organisms] or toxic food, it holds a negative thought or memory. And when you introduce raw living or sprouted foods, it reverses it to a positive.”

Rawshu’a is careful about the products it stocks its selves with, or that it puts into its food or drinks. “Food is medicine,” the owners said.

“We’re all about being local,” Fritz said. “All of our produce is local – that we receive for our juice bar. The only meat that we carry is local, from Hollyhock Farms [in Sterling].”

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

Courtney Fritz is co-owner of Rawshu’a, which along with fresh food, juice, and smoothies, carries nutritional supplements.

Carter first immersed himself in the world of holistic healing and organic foods while living with his uncle, Kelly Carter, in California.

While he was back in Sterling visiting family, an ATV accident set him on a path to plant roots in Rock Falls.

“I injured my hand, crushed my hand last summer in an ATV

[accident], and I had to stick around for doctor visits,” Carter said. “And we got the apartment back here, and it just so happened this [storefront] was open. And, I don’t know, it was just instilled in me that I had to pursue it.

“The seed was germinated 10 years ago, but now it basically bloomed into Rawshu’a today.”

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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WINTER 2013

BUSINESS EDUCATION

Career center weathers budget storms Government funding down; schools help make up for the loss

BY PAM EGGEMEIER Sauk Valley Business Journal

STERLING – The challenges Illinois schools face from decreased funding for education have been well documented.

Career and technical education centers have not been immune to those same challenges.

Despite recent drops in state and federal funding, Whiteside Area Career Center has managed to maintain a balanced budget. The funding distribution is different from the schools, although budget cuts at the schools can have a great impact at the career centers.

Whiteside Area Career Center Director Kim Purvis says there are several factors that have allowed the hands-on learning institution to weather the

Michael Krabbenhoeft/mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com

Students in the food service lab prepare chocolate chip cookies for visitors during the WACC open house on Nov. 7. Despite drops in state and federal funding, WACC has managed to continue having 12 programs and has maintained a balanced budget. storms. “We are holding our own right now,� Purvis said. “We are very fortunate because even though

state and federal funding is down, we set tuition rates locally and the schools have been very supportive.�

Like other school funding, career center revenue is based on the number of students attending, but the distribution is different. WACC is funded through state grants, federal grants, and tuition from the 15 public and two parochial schools they serve. Purvis said they also receive some donations.

In 2010, the funding distribution was 29 percent state, 15 percent federal, and 56 percent from the local schools. In 2014, state money will be 28 percent of its funding, 12 percent will come from the federal government, and the schools will pick up 60 percent.

From 2010 to 2014, per pupil funding has dropped 7 percent at the state level, and fallen 26 percent at the federal level, while local funding has increased 2 percent.

Purvis said that she has seen two sides to the schools’ budget cuts.

CAREER CENTER CONTINUED ON 15

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PAGE 15

CEO program important addition to WACC CAREER CENTER CONTINUED FROM 14

In 2010, a year of more drastic budget cuts by the schools, the career center’s enrollment dropped to 579 – it is now at 646. Those cuts, however, would later spur more student interest in WACC. “Most schools lost electives due to cuts,� Purvis said. “Many of them came here to receive some of the hands-on experience that they couldn’t get at their own schools.�

Shortly after, a change in the tuition calculation system also helped enrollment spike. “The tuition change gave the schools incentive to send more students here,� Purvis said. “As they sent more students, some were basically paying half price for tuition.�

Hands-on learning WACC has lost its CAD program, but picked up a new class – keeping it at 12 programs.

The addition is the CEO class, taught by LeAndra Hartman.

The 23 students in the class meet at different businesses, where they can speak to owners, company presidents and the workers in the trenches.

Before the end of the year, the students also will have written a business plan and met with prospective investors for their business. The class is modeled after the successful Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities (CEO) pilot program devised in Effingham County.

Lindsay McCoy, a senior at Amboy High School, said the class has visited several local businesses, including Wahl Clipper, Frantz Manufacturing, HALO Branded Solutions, and even a nonprofit agency, United Way of Whiteside County. “I like learning business like this better than in a classroom setting,� McCoy said. “This is real, not just something from a textbook.�

McCoy says she has always wanted to run a bakery. She

believes the class does a good job of preparing students for wherever they land in the workplace. “It teaches communications skills, networking, and how to be a professional,� McCoy said. “People in this class are people who really want to learn.�

Sarah Gunderson, a senior at Sterling High School, is thinking about opening a fashion boutique with her mother. She said the class is teaching her about being responsible and taking initiative.

The students say that local business leaders have been very generous with their time when they are in the field. “Some places we’re just there for a day, but others like United Way, we were there for 2 months,� McCoy said. “I would encourage people to do this; it’s a great learning experience,� Gunderson said.

Joseph Hunt is a third-year instructor in the popular commercial food services class. This year’s class has 38 students

– twice the number from last year. Hunt says that some students just want to learn to cook, while others have aspirations of running a restaurant or studying to become a chef. Thanks to a resurgence in program interest, classroom upgrades will be made for next year. “We’re getting a new kitchen with four cooking stations and a demonstration area,� Hunt said. “There were years where the program was closed, but we’ve grown the last 3 years.�

Hunt, a Bureau Valley High School product, has extensive experience in his field – culinary school in Chicago and work stints in such places as Naperville and Drury Lane Theatre.

He now does banquets for Timber Creek Golf Club in Dixon. “It’s nice to take what you do at work and teach kids,� Hunt said.

The students get a good taste of life outside the classroom kitchen.

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WINTER 2013

College, hospital ties aid learning experience TRAINING

CONTINUED FROM 15

“The kids actually have a license to do catering,” Hunt said. “They go out in full dress code and they get 100 percent health department scores.”

Community interaction WACC has close ties with Sauk Valley Community College, hospitals, and other colleges.

School representatives often visit for a day.

At a recent open house, parents were visiting the various classrooms to get a better understanding of the WACC learning experience.

Dale and Rebecca Anderson were there to check out the allied health program. Their daughter, a junior at Forreston High School, is in the program to pursue what she thinks will be a future in health care. She spends 3 days a week at the career center and 2 in the field.

She is doing different rotations,

Michael Krabbenhoeft/mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com

Julia Berhow, the instructor of the allied health program at Whiteside Area Career Center in Sterling, talks to visitors during a recent open house. Despite drops in state and federal funding, WACC has managed to continue having 12 programs. which gives her a taste of different health care specialties.

“Twice a week, she goes to the health care facilities. She has three rotations to go. Now she’s doing respiratory therapy, and then she’ll move on to X-ray,” Rebecca said.

“It’s a pretty sharp learning

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Future of WACC Purvis, now in her seventh year at WACC, her third as director, says the career center has had to make its own cuts to keep the budget balanced.

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“We decided to cut an administrative position a few years ago, which has helped to make up the difference in the loss of funding,” she said.

Purvis believes that the high cost of college will help drive enrollment at career centers.

The expense makes it even more important that students pinpoint what they want to do as soon as possible. She believes the programs are relevant and the instructors’ experience in their fields can be a huge advantage.

The career center offers more than 80 college credits through its programs. It places more than 200 students in internships.

The curriculum also is led by students. The students actually teach preschool, cater food for special events, fix cars and work in health care center environments.

“They can experience a career choice firsthand here rather than read about it,” Purvis said. “They can leave here with college credit and a better knowledge of what they want to do in the workplace.”

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

PAGE 17

CAREER EDUCATION

Internships: Starting out, starting over Official wants to take program to the next level

BY PAM EGGEMEIER Sauk Valley Business Journal

ROCK FALLS – The career paths of Rock Falls residents Derek Flannery and Mary Kay Whaley were moving in very different directions before they intersected through internships at the Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce.

Flannery, 19, who went through the program this past summer, is just starting out in the workforce. Whaley, now 68 and retired, did her internship back in 2005, after being forced to start over.

Although Flannery is young and studying full time at Sauk Valley Community College, his ambition could classify him as a non-traditional student.

INTERN CONTINUED ON 18

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

Derek Flannery interned this past summer with the Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce. Flannery, a full-time student at Sauk Valley Community College, will be with Rotary Airlock in Rock Falls for another year before heading off to continue his studies in industrial engineering and business management.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PAGE 18

WINTER 2013

Program’s success important on several levels INTERN

CONTINUED FROM 17

That’s because the Rock Falls High School grad seems to have an affinity for hands-on training.

He is studying industrial engineering with an emphasis on business management. To accelerate his career development, Flannery also has been working about 30 hours a week as an assistant production manager at Rotary Airlock, a Rock Falls Industrial Park manufacturer, for the past 3 years.

“I wanted to mix my technical knowledge with management skills,” Flannery said. “I get to manage a process – things like efficiencies and quotas – but I also get to deal with people in this setting.”

Starting over Whaley worked at RB&W and Reliant Fasteners for 24 years and was an AFL-CIO member.

While a desire for more education always stayed with her,

Whaley figured her career was winding down and she would soon retire from the manufacturing life she had always known.

But in 2002, Reliant closed and her plans would have to change.

She took a temporary job as a union outreach counselor.

“That was a great opportunity, but it only lasted a year,” Whaley said.

“Here I was in my latter 50s, had a high school diploma and was coming off a pretty serious industrial accident that took me out of the workplace for 2 years.”

Whaley assessed her situation and decided to listen to that voice in her head – she went to Sauk to pursue an associate degree in management.

Genesis of the program Bethany Bland, president/ CEO of the Rock Falls Chamber, has been with the group for 8 years and launched the internship program shortly after her arrival. Only about seven people have gone through the program

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since its inception. Participation has been sporadic, but she believes the program’s success is important on several levels.

“What I really believe is this is a great opportunity to get involved and help the community,” she said. “Maybe we can keep more people here by helping them personally.”

The flexMary Kay ibility was an Whaley important Former intern aspect of the program, in the hopes of attracting people in many types of situations.

Ideally, the intern would work 3 ot 6 months, but it’s not an absolute.

“This was designed to be a pretty laid-back internship,” she said. “We target high school and college kids, employees who were let go and going back to school. They might work one

day a week, only a month, or do some of the work at home.”

Target areas are management, graphics, Web design, human resources, marketing and general administrative work. With high school students, the goal is to teach basic skills that involve respect, professionalism and an idea of the expectations of the workforce.

All work is done exclusively for the chamber office. Applicants must go through an interview process.

Bland offers a program prototype of sorts to businesses in the hopes it will catch on elsewhere.

“They can use our materials and basically duplicate the programs,” she said. “Sometimes it can be a struggle to get them to understand how it can benefit them.”

Bland is working to eventually bring some money to the table for the interns, through the development of a scholarship program.

PROGRAM CONTINUED ON 19

WINTER 2013

SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PAGE 19

Participant appreciates programâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flexibility PROGRAM

CONTINUED FROM 18

Adding to the skill set Flanneryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s desire to add to his skill set brought him to Bland last summer. He had heard about the opportunity by word of mouth, called Bland and filled out the application.

While the chamber internships are unpaid at this time, the organizationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flexibility allowed Flannery to stay in his job at Rotary during the internship. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The chamber really tailored the internship to my needs, so I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t care so much that it was unpaid,â&#x20AC;? Flannery said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t just busy work; theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll set it up so there are specific things to help in your area of study.â&#x20AC;?

Much of his summer internship was spent working on Summer Splash, a chambersponsored festival held on the riverfront. Flannery said he able to hone his skills in communications and marketing through the internship. He took care of

vendors and recruited companies and community organizations to get involved in the event, giving him the opportunity to work with large corporations, small businesses and nonprofits. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I learned a lot about professionalism, how to handle yourself around many different types of people,â&#x20AC;? Flannery said.

Flannery recommends the internship experience, especially for those who are trying to juggle several other things. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a really good option for flexibility,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I worked 45 hours while I did it. They are more focused on how much got done, not how many hours you put in or when you did it. I even made a database for vendors from home.â&#x20AC;?

A new path While at Sauk, Whaleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s curriculum required she do an internship. She started what was supposed to be a 3-month stint with Richard Downey, who was the Rock Falls city adminis-

trator at the time. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Richard told me that someone had offered him an internship that was important in his career development and that he wanted to pay it forward,â&#x20AC;?

Whaley said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was very handson; I had a computer and chair right in his office and saw many of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s inner workings.â&#x20AC;?

Halfway through, Whaley ran out of work and she was sent to former chamber director Doug Wiersema and Bland to finish her time at the chamber. She said she received training in graphics and communications rewrites, and came away with a big-picture view of the city.

Whaley went on to get her management degree and made her transition from manufacturing complete by landing a job with Hope Life Center in Sterling, a nonprofit Christianbased social services agency.

After 2½ years there, Whaley retired and cites â&#x20AC;&#x153;enjoying her grandkidsâ&#x20AC;? as the most important skill she refines these days.

She has never forgotten how

Bethany Bland

President/CEO, Rock Falls Chamber of Commerce

important her internship was in very uncertain times. She said she would particularly recommend the experience for older people who are trying to transition to something completely different. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The internship was such a blessing,â&#x20AC;? Whaley said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I met so many people who made a difference in my life. The experience and contacts I made were so much more important than the money.â&#x20AC;?

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PAGE 20

WINTER 2013

BUSINESS PROFILE

Furniture store enters second century Wheelock Furniture celebrates 100 years

Store information

For more information about Wheelock Furniture and its products, go to www.WheelockFurniture.com or call 815625-0129.

The store, at 101 W. Second St. in Rock Falls, is open 7 days a week.

BY MATT MENCARINI Sauk Valley Business Journal

ROCK FALLS â&#x20AC;&#x201C; If it seems as if Wheelock Furniture has been around forever, well, it almost has.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been open for 100 years.

The store, 101 W. Second St. in Rock Falls, is at the interection of First Avenue and Second Street, not far from the First Avenue bridge. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the intersection with one of the highest traffic counts in a 13-county area, co-owner Daehle Reitzel said.

When he and his wife, Angie, bought the business 12 years ago, they became the third owners in Wheelockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was a very successful business,â&#x20AC;? Reitzel said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s much easier taking one of them over than starting from scratch. The employees came along. They

Philip Marruffo/pmarruffo@saukvalley.com

Wheelock Furniture co-owner Daehle Reitzel is celebrating the storeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 100th year in business in Rock Falls. He and his wife, Angie, bought the business 12 years ago and are the third owners in Wheelockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history. had been here for many years.â&#x20AC;?

Jeff Klocke, the manager, has Reitzel has owned and oper- been with Wheelock for about ated service stations in Sterling 25 years. Reitzel said the staffâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and some Villager Video loca- knowledge of the retail busitions. But he said he was selling ness, and the furniture industry, real estate and missed the store- is one of Wheelockâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strengths front business before taking that has helped it last for so control of Wheelock. long.

The Reitzels bought two buildings to the west of the showroom. They have expanded into one already and plan to move into the second, Reitzel said.

Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve also added a warehouse.

The business also added a lifetime warranty for the mechanisms on its furniture. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a small reassurance to customers that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re buying quality products, Reitzel said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the same old story: You do something wrong, and they tell everyone,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You do something right, and they might tell someone.â&#x20AC;?

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

PAGE 21

BUSINESS PROFILE

Veteran barber: ‘I just give haircuts’ Gift of gab keeps customers coming back to Ken’s

BY JOHN KERMOTT Special to Sauk Valley Business Journal

In 1965, the most popular Christmas presents were the game Operation and Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots. “Bonanza” was the most popular TV show.

“The Sound of Music” won the Oscar for Best Picture. The Beatles’ “Eight Days a Week” hit No. 1 on the charts, haircuts were $2.75, and Ken Masters started cutting hair at 208 W. First St. in Dixon.

Masters began working at the First Street location with Harry Stout on March 30, 1965.

“I graduated from high school, went to barber school, then started cutting hair,” he said.

“How many businesses are in the same building for 48 years?”

Masters wondered out loud.

The Small Business Administration website (www.sba.gov) reports, “About half of all new establishments survive 5 years or more, and about one-third survive 10 years or more.”

But to approach 50 years, and be in the same building, is surely very rare. Masters feels the weight of reaching that milestone.

“I’ve thought it would be nice to make 50 years,” he said. “But I’m not sure it’s going to happen.”

Masters has cut back on his working hours in recent years.

“Now all I do is golf, gam-

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

but not the b.s.,” giving some credit to his gift of gab for keeping customers coming back.

Another factor he points to is Bruiser.

“Bruiser was my dog ... a Chinese pug,” Masters said. “He went with me wherever I went.

He lived for 14 years, 7 months, and 19 days ... not that I was counting.”

Bruiser had a special chair on which he’d sit all day while Masters was cutting hair. “I wish I had a dollar for every person who petted him,” he said.

Masters hasn’t raised his prices since Nov. 4, 1999. Haircuts are still just $10. So if you want an inexpensive haircut, and some “good b.s.” (which is an oxymoron, but not necessarily a contradiction), you’ll want to head over to the shop from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Wednesday or from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, and just see whether his lights are on, or call him at 815-631-8444.

Ken Masters, owner of Ken’s Barbershop in downtown Dixon, has been at his 208 W. First St. location since 1965. ble and work … in about that Masters doesn’t claim to do order,” he said with a big smile. anything fancy.

“If the lights are on, I’m here. I “I just give haircuts, is all. I gotta stay on today, ’cause I got don’t do the fancy new hair a guy comin’ in a little bit. … He styles,” he said. “I enjoy people was my first customer when I comin’ in for the b.s. You can took the place over,” he said of get a good haircut anywhere, Walt Wickens. That was April 1, 1974.

Masters seems to have an extremely strong retention rate with his customers. Jim Smith thinks he had something to do with the shop’s longevity.

“It’s because I keep comin’ back,” Smith said with a smile.

He has been a customer of Ken’s since about 1976.

Photo Booth for “I tried a couple other barbers Weddings or Any of in town, and when I came home my wife would ask, ‘Where’d Your Special Events you get that haircut?’ So I’d tell her, and she’d say, ‘Well don’t go there anymore!’ So, I’ve put up with Ken, and he’s put up mb.proptography@gmail.com with me.”

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

PAGE 22

WINTER 2013

OPEN FOR BUSINESS | BARNACOPIA

This repurposed barn is a real blast Ag history seen in B&B, museum and wedding venue

BY MATT MENCARINI Sauk Valley Business Journal

POLO â&#x20AC;&#x201C; When you walk inside Barnacopia, before you get to the old-time diner or the replica of downtown Polo or the bed and breakfast in the silo, you walk over the first tractor Gary Bocker ever rode.

The red-and-white 1946 Ford is set into the floor, underneath glass, and looks as if it never spent a day in the fields.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just one of the many pieces of family history that Bocker, 68, has in Barnacopia, the barn he started building 20 months ago for weddings, receptions and other events.

But thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s plenty of local and farming history to go along

Barnacopia bits Barnacopia is at 2570 N. Westbranch Road in Polo.

To make a reservation at the bed and breakfast, to book the barn for an event, or for more information, call 815-238-1474, 815-2385487, or 815-946-2500, go to barnacpioa.com or find it on Facebook. with the family history, which includes a red 1962 Corvair, the first car of his 66-year-old wife, Judy.

High on the rafters on the third floor is an old bell from a schoolhouse, which used to be on Westbranch Road, just a few miles from Barnacopia, which sits next to the Bockersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; home on state Route 64, about 7 miles north of Polo.

He built the barn, in part, to house all his antique tractors.

BARNACOPIA CONTINUED ON 23

Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

Gary Bocker points out some aspects of the main area and talks about what went into the building of Barnacopia in rural Polo.

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SAUK VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

WINTER 2013

PAGE 23

Photos by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com

LEFT: Barnacopia is at 10662 Illinois Route 64 West, about 7 miles north of Polo. RIGHT: The second floor displays vehicles that are special to the Bocker family.

Tractors and cars are major decor elements BARNACOPIA

CONTINUED FROM 22

One is a John Deere 730, the last two-cylinder model tractor the company made. Another tractor in the collection, from the first 10 series the company ever made, is a six-cylinder. â&#x20AC;&#x153;One of the reasons I did this is because I wanted my grandkids

to see how farming used to be,â&#x20AC;?

Bocker said while walking among the eight tractors on the first floor.

In addition to the tractors, the first floor has the seating area, bathrooms designed to look like downtown Polo, and the kitchen, which serves ice cream, the only food itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s licensed to serve, although people renting the venue can have caterers come in and use the kitchen.

A walk up the stairs, or a ride in the elevator inside a silo, takes you to the second floor, where thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a movie theater, a chapel and, among the nearly eight cars, an old state trooper patrol vehicle. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was just going to be a barn to show people stuff,â&#x20AC;? Bocker said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;About halfway through we saw how much money we were spending, and [then] we

put a bed and breakfast in.â&#x20AC;?

The third floor has the game room, which includes a John Deere pool table, and the best view of the 18-foot fan on the barnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ceiling.

There are two rooms in the bed and breakfast, which is in a silo next to the barn. The top floor of the silo, which is one of the unfinished aspects left, will be a library, Bocker said.

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