Women in Business 2020 Tab

A Special Supplement to The Daily Star, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020

WOMEN BUSINESS IN

Local businesswomen who are making a difference in our area

PLUS • 3 ways women can build and maintain professional networks • More women becoming primary financial providers • How women can make their way in male-dominated fields

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American Business Women’s Day is September 22 AMERICAN BUSINESS WOMEN’S DAY On Sept. 22, American Business Women’s Day honors the accomplishments of the businesswomen across the nation. Take a moment to reflect on the contributions and achievements of the millions of women in the workforce. Also, consider the impact of millions of women business owners in the U.S. The day also brings together businesswomen of diverse occupations to collaborate and network. The opportunity provides insight into platforms and inspirational ways for women to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally. Workshops and seminars offer leadership, education, networking, and national recognition.

Through small businesses and corporate leadership, women provide a variety of skills in the business world. They set examples for young women driven to become leaders themselves. Generation after generation pave the way for new and inspiring professionals. This day honors each and every one!

HOW TO OBSERVE #AmericanBusinessWomensDay Give a shoutout to a businesswoman you know. Attend a seminar, workshop, Ted Talk, or other resources to increase your business knowledge. Sponsor a leadership conference or speak at a local school.

Attend a career fair and offer your expertise as a businesswoman to aspiring youth.

Support businesswomen in your area, whether they’re experienced or just starting out. Join forces with other business leaders and create a positive environment for women in business.

Share your business style, strengths, and creativeness using #AmericanBusinessWomensDay to post on social media.

AMERICAN BUSINESS WOMEN’S DAY HISTORY American Business Women’s Association first sponsored American Business Women’s Day in 1982. Congress officially recognized the day through proclamations in 1983 and 1986. www.nationaldaycalendar.com

We celebrate the accomplishments of the businesswomen in our communities who are making a difference each and every day through their hard work and leadership.

Here are just a few of the stories of successful women in business in our readership area. Say thank you today to a businesswoman who is a positive and inspiring light to our communities and our daughters.

SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

Brooke A. Chilson Harmony Martial Arts and Fitness, LLC Southside Mall, 5006 State Hwy. 23, Oneonta, NY 13820 Phone: 607-434-2160 | harmonymartialartsandfitness.com

Harmony Martial Arts and Fitness, LLC, is owned by Brooke A. Chilson. It is an authorized Genbu-Kai Karate Dojo at the Southside Mall in Oneonta, offering traditional Shito-Ryu karate (including self defense), Okinawan weapons and Japanese Sword (batto-do). It is a familyfriendly dojo with current students ranging in age from 7 – 70.

Brooke is a graduate of Oneonta High School and Hartwick College. She began training in the art of Shito-Ryu Karate-Do Genbu-Kai in 1995, steadily progressing through the ranks from white belt to black belt under karate legend Fumio Demura. She earned her first black belt in 2001.

She is a 4th degree black belt, having achieved the ranking in 2019. In addition, Brooke holds black belt rankings in both Okinawan kobudo (weapons) and Toyama-Ryu Batto-Do (Japanese sword). She also teaches these disciplines along with karate at her dojo.

Sensei Chilson enjoys teaching karate to students of all ages, and she believes that the principles of karate training can be applied in everyday life. She likes to say, “Karate is not just

about blocking, kicking and punching. It’s about making yourself a better person outside of the dojo.” Parents of Sensei Chilson’s junior students often tell her that their children are more focused at school and get better grades due to their karate training with her. Adult students of Sensei Chilson benefit in several ways, including confidence building, flexibility, coordination, memory retention and patience.

Brooke also teaches karate and self defense courses at Hartwick College and enjoys promoting martial arts in the community through various demonstrations and parades.

She also does workshops for local organizations, including LEAF and SADD. CONTRIBUTED

WOMEN IN BUSINESS THE DAILY STAR - Women in Business | SEPT. 22, 2020

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Jillienne LaFever LaFever Insurance Agency, Inc. PO Box 58, Bovina Center, NY 13740 | 607-832-4815 LaFeverlns@delhitel.net | LaFeverinsurance.com Jillienne LaFever is a fifth generation Bovinian who was born and raised in the small Catskill Mountain town of Bovina with a population of about 630 people. Rural mountain life has helped form her into the person she is today.

She owns and operates a certified woman owned business named LaFever Insurance Agency, Inc, and has more than 21 years of insurance experience. She offers group and individual health insurance, life insurance, Medicare Advantage plans, Medicare Supplemental plans, long term care insurance and dental insurance.

Her duties include business administration, sales, business retention, customer service and marketing. She feels her experience in the industry and product knowledge as well as no administration charges set her apart from her competition.

Jillienne sits on the board of The Friends of Bramley Mountain Fire Tower which is a nonprofit organization with a mission to erect the fire tower that once stood on the mountain top. When not working, she is passionate about spending quality time in the outdoors. She carves out time to enjoy her family, and seasonal activities including running, hiking, kayaking, camping, four wheeling, gardening, mountain biking, skiing, snowshoeing and snowmobiling. She’s been known to step up the adventure and can be found sky diving, auto racing and ziplining yet she balances out her thrills with daily meditation and insurance work.

She can be reached at LaFever Insurance Agency Inc, PO Box 58, Bovina Center, NY 13740. 607-832-4815. LaFeverlns@delhitel.net LaFeverinsurance.com

WOMEN IN BUSINESS SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

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One Atwell Rd., Cooperstown, NY 13326 1-800-BASSETT (227-7388) | bassett.org

We are stronger together.

Bassett Healthcare Network salutes the extraordinary women working across our organization in diverse capacities. Their dedication, talent, professionalism, skills, and compassion have helped carry us through one of the most trying times of our lives. From doctors, to advanced practice clinicians, nurses, aides, therapists, technologists, laboratory staff, food service workers, housekeepers, groundskeepers, maintenance workers, operational leaders, administrative professionals, emergency response personnel, supply chain managers – and countless others – their commitment to the care of our family, friends, and neighbors is evident every day.

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Thank you for your service. Thank you for keeping us safe in your care.

WOMEN IN BUSINESS THE DAILY STAR - Women in Business | SEPT. 22, 2020

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Kirsten Stoop Amish Barn Company 6048 State Hwy. 7, Oneonta, NY 13820 | 607-432-0527 amishbarnco.com Kirsten Stoop made a measurable impact while working at Amish Barn Company over the last 12 years. When the time was right, she purchased the business from her parents. And she chose QUITE a year. Within the last year she has gotten married, been hospitalized for gall bladder removal while pregnant with her first child, purchased Amish Barn Company from her parents and managed Amish Barn Company from home after the mandated COVID shutdown, while dealing with a newborn.

Through it all she remained a passionate, supportive and enthusiastic boss. Her courage and strength are prime examples of what kind of person she is and what kind of business she runs.

She leads with a fierce tenacity while working with our crews and remains a gentle yet driving force behind the scenes, encouraging innovation, creativity, and compassion. She is loved by so many, including our customers who return time after time because Amish Barn Company goes above and beyond for them. She is a huge advocate that customer service be a number one priority.

She is so passionate about the work that we do and the community that we serve. Amish Barn Company donates to many local fundraisers and works with local animal shelters and colleges on building moves and purchases.

ALLISON COLLINS

Jeffrey and Kirsten Stoop, ‘new’ owners of Amish Barn Company in Oneonta, stand with daughter Margaret in early May.

WOMEN IN BUSINESS SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

Kirsten has inspired many over the years and continues to do so with her bubbly personality and positive attitude. Her laugh is infectious and makes Amish Barn Company a wonderful place to be. With a caring heart, she takes it upon herself to provide exceptional service and support to her customers, and her employees.

Kirsten’s skills, knowledge, dedication, and willingness to help others are a true testament to her character. Quite simply, she is amazing.

Michelle Catan Sears Hometown Store 207 River St., Oneonta, NY 13820 | 607-432-3100 searshometownstores.com

Local businesswomen Michelle Catan has been helping business owners at the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for the past nine years. Catan is a business owner herself, and brought her expertise to the SBDC to help others in the business community. She actively helps business owners with the process of applying for local and state grants, preparing a sound business plan to help their business succeed and being a business adviser who offers guidance and support.

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Mrs. Catan has played an active role in the City of Oneonta Microenterprise grant process to assist and solicit applications. She offers small business startup classes for the SBDC and participates with the local Otsego County Chamber of Commerce with Access to Capital roundtable discussions. Catan, through the SBDC, has offered an internship to a SUNY Oneonta student, each academic year, for past eight years. This internship offers the student a real world experience of how a business owner starts a business, operates the business to be successfully and how to overcome pitfalls and problems. This internship program has been

very successful and has created awards and job placements for many graduating students.

As a businesswoman, Michelle Catan likes to give back to her local community. She volunteers her time at both SUNY Oneonta and SUNY Delhi as a member of the business advisory council for the school of economics and business. Michelle also offers her business experience and expertise to local organizations such as: trustee for the FUMC, volunteer for the YMCA gymnastics team, Helios Care annual Turkey Trot committee member, OHS PTO member, former Kiwanis Club president, Otsego County Board of Ethics Member and many more local events and organizations.

As a business owner, Michelle and her husband own and operate the local Sears of Oneonta Hometown franchise store. The hometown store sells all products and services that the Sears corporate stores sell, offers home delivery and employs five people. The Sears store has been in Oneonta, in different locations, for more than 100 years.

WOMEN IN BUSINESS THE DAILY STAR - Women in Business | SEPT. 22, 2020

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3 ways women can build and maintain professional networks Established professionals often tout the importance of building strong networks. In fact, a 2017 global survey from LinkedIn found that nearly 80 percent of professionals consider professional networking to be important to their career success.

Professionals may see networking as a great way to land their next job, but establishing strong networks can pay dividends even for those people who have no immediate plans to leave their current companies. Small Business BC, a resource that caters to entrepreneurs in British Columbia, notes that successful networking can lead to referrals and new partnerships and raise the profiles of professionals and the companies they work for. The LinkedIn survey supports that notion, noting that one-quarter of professionals across the globe have established new business partnerships through LinkedIn Messaging. Of course, networking often helps people find new jobs as well, as the LinkedIn survey also found that 70 percent of people hired in 2016 found work at companies where they had existing connections.

Women can employ various strategies to build

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SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

strong networks and maintain those networks once connections are established.

1. Join professional organizations.

Professional organizations provide great networking opportunities, serving as avenues to begin new business relationships. Many such organizations host annual conferences, and attending these conferences can help women maintain the

relationships they develop through their participation in these groups. That’s an important benefit, as the LinkedIn survey found that 38 percent of professionals admitted they find it hard to stay in touch with their network.

2. Offer help as much as you seek it.

The LinkedIn survey found that only 48 percent of professionals keep in touch with their networks when things are going well in their career. By reaching out to a network when things are going well, women are showing a willingness to offer help as much as seek it.

That can lead to stronger, more easily maintained networks.

3. Schedule networking each week.

Build networking into your weekly schedule.

Even the busiest professionals can find time each week to email someone in their network to see how things are going or share updates on previous collaborations. That’s a quick and easy way to maintain connections.

The value of networking is undeniable. Women can take various steps to build strong networks and maintain those relationships for years to come.

Stacey Camilleri Keller Williams Upstate NY Properties 31 Main St., Suite 3, Oneonta, NY 13820 | 607-638-9568 (Home Office) scamilleri@kw.com

Stacey Camilleri is a brilliant, hardworking, strong and independent businesswoman who has built her real estate brand on a foundation of determination and resilience. Stacey was born and raised in Schenevus, and has a deep appreciation for the Central NY region where she has raised her four daughters.

In 2006, a close family friend from Schenevus encouraged Stacey to get her real estate license because he saw her potential as an outgoing, smart and trustworthy person. After she became licensed, Stacey joined Prudential Fox Properties, now Keller Williams, with the help of her mentor, Josie Norton.

Stacey says it was the best decision she ever made.

At first, real estate was a hard adjustment. It was hard to be a woman in the industry, while managing her household and building her real estate business. In her early years as a real estate salesperson, Stacey remembers feeling like she was treated differently, as if she didn’t know what she was doing or that she was “less than” as a woman in the industry. Stacey soon realized that her success isn’t about being a salesperson, it’s about being a trustworthy and knowledgeable friend to her clients. It’s about working tirelessly on her client’s behalf to find them the home that is their perfect fit.

It took strength and confidence, and over the past 14 years, Stacey has grown into one of the best and most recognized real estate professionals in the region. She is consistently awarded as a top performer by Keller Williams and the Otsego Delaware Multiple Listing Service.

In 2019, Keller Williams was voted by Forbes as one of America’s best employers for women and Stacey believes that the company supports her in all of her endeavors.

You make us immensely proud Stacey, congratulations on all of your accomplishments!

CONTRIBUTED

WOMEN IN BUSINESS THE DAILY STAR - Women in Business | SEPT. 22, 2020

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Vicki Hurlburt Shakedown Street 167 Main St., Oneonta, NY 13820 | 607-436-9776 facebook.com/oneontashakedown Vicki Hurlburt is a sole proprietor of Shakedown Street located at 167 Main St. in downtown Oneonta. Following her cross country travels with the Grateful Dead, Vicki opened her shop in 1995. This month represents her 25th anniversary as a female business owner in our community.

The shop offers an outlet to more than 3,000 artists, crafters and consignors with both local, and fair trade global merchandise. Vicki opened Shakedown Street after Grateful Dead’s lead Jerry Garcia passed so she could have an outlet for her art and continue her education locally. After obtaining her bachelor’s degrees in psychology and sociology at SUNY Oneonta, she went on to Cornell for her credential in family development work.

Vicki worked in the field of human services for more than 25 years while operating Shakedown Street and managing a local

tavern all at the same time. Her work in the human service field was focused on runaway homeless and at risk youth as a coordinator of a federally funded program in a six-county region. Vicki resigned from her career as a social worker in 2014 to focus on her business and bar management and also became a mom to an amazing baby girl, Samira Grace. In 2018 after receiving her second micro enterprise award from the city of Oneonta, Vicki opened a second Main Street business called Shakedown Street Cafe offering Grateful Dead, Moe and Marley themed menu items. Vicki continues to sub contract as a grant writer and a private contractor in the human service field. Shakedown Street prides itself on giving back to the community through collaborations and linkages with non for profits. Vicki is proud to be part of the Oneonta business community and one of the longest standing businesses on Main Street.

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Did you know?

WOMEN IN BUSINESS SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

The employment outlook for women over the next several years is very good. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women predominate in many fields that projections suggest will have considerable openings through 2026. In its job openings projections that estimated openings between 2016 and 2026, the BLS found that 13 of the 20 occupations with the best employment outlook employed more women than men in 2016.

Childcare workers, registered nurses, nursing assistants, and home health aides were all professions that were dominated by women, and the BLS anticipated that each profession would have considerable openings through 2026. The field of nursing figures to be especially good to women in the coming years, as the BLS estimated, in its recent “Occupational Outlook Handbook,” that employment of registered nurses was projected to grow by 12 percent between 2018 and 2028. Registered nurses, 90 percent of whom are women according to the BLS, figure to benefit greatly from this rosy employment outlook.

More women becoming primary financial providers Women are increasingly becoming the primary breadwinners in their homes.

In 2018, Prudential surveyed more than 3,000 Americans between the ages of 25 and 70 for its “Financial Wellness Census.” The survey indicated that 54 percent of women are the primary breadwinners in their family, while 30 percent are married breadwinners who are producing more than half of their household income. This marks an increase from 2015, when the Center for American Progress found 42 percent of women were sole or primary breadwinners — bringing in at least half of their families’ earnings. This represents a long-running trend that indicates women’s earnings and economic contributions to their families are of growing importance.

Studies show how much more likely it is for today’s mothers and working females to provide essential financial support to their families compared to earlier generations. It can be empowering to be a sole or primary earner. However, this role

also may place extra pressure on women who also want to be ideal mothers. While gender roles have become much more egalitarian, the traditional household dynamic, in which women take on more responsibilities around the house, remains predominant in many families. That can contribute to stress for women

who work.

A 2015 University of Chicago study found that opposite-sex couples in which women were the top earners reported greater relationship strife and were more likely not to endure as couples. The study also found that some women who earned more did a greater amount of housework in or-

der to make their husbands feel better about the situation.

There are several ways to address and cope with feelings that arise from an increase in female breadwinners.

• Stay open-minded. Couples need not fall into dated ways of thinking regarding gender roles. If they adjust their roles accordingly and continue to adapt, things can work out just fine.

• Divide tasks evenly. Evenly divvy up tasks around the house so that neither partner feels as if they are doing more than the other.

• Share financial goals. Even if one person is bringing in more money, the overall household should be the main priority. That means that all adults have an equal say in financial goals, regardless of who earns the most money.

Many women are now the primary breadwinners in their households.

That has, in many cases, led to shifting gender roles and couples and families may have to adjust accordingly.

THE DAILY STAR - Women in Business | SEPT. 22, 2020

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How women can make their way in male-dominated fields Women have made great strides in various industries over the first two decades of the 21st century. Highly publicized pursuits of gender equality, such as the ongoing gender discrimination lawsuit by the United States Women’s National Team against the U.S. Soccer Federation, have done much to further the cause for women in a great number of industries. But the fight for equality is far from over, as evidenced by the array of fields that remain predominantly male.

In 2017, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics tracked the percentages of women in a variety of professions, ultimately finding that many professions are male-dominated. For example, the BLS found that only 20 percent of software developers were female, while roughly 63 percent of financial analysts are male. Each of those fields can be lucrative, suggesting women can benefit greatly from making inroads into these professions and others in which they are underrepresented.

Women may face an uphill battle as they look to establish themselves and subsequently thrive in male-dominated fields. That challenge can be overcome by employing various strategies.

• Build your network. Networking is essential for

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modern professionals. According to a global survey of nearly 16,000 LinkedIn members across 17 countries, 79 percent of professionals agree that networking is valuable for career progression.

Networking also can make it easier for women to thrive in male-dominated fields, as they can seek advice from professional colleagues, male and female, about hurdles they can expect. In addition, professional networks can serve as support networks as well. That can be invaluable as women face the challenge of establishing themselves in male-dominated fields.

• Work with professional women’s organizations.

Many professional organizations now cater exclusively to women within certain professions.

Working with these groups places women in direct contact with peers with varying levels of experience. That means women will have access to people who have faced and overcome challenges at various phases of their careers.

• Work with your employer. Wage gaps have narrowed in many professions, but that’s not the only way industries have become more accommodating to women. Many businesses now recognize the need to change not just their pay structures,

Congratulations to all area businesswomen.

We are proud of you!

102 Chestnut St., Oneonta 607.432.1000 thedailystar.com SEPT. 22, 2020 | Women in Business - THE DAILY STAR

but also their working environments to make them more accommodating to women. Women who encounter problems at work, such as routine resistance to their ideas and input, should discuss such frustrations with their employers.

Women working in male-dominated fields face many challenges. But such challenges can be overcome in various ways.