Albany, Oxford business owners honored by SBA

AUGUSTA — Albany Township and Oxford business owners are among the 2018 Small Business Administration Maine Small Business Award winners, which recognize outstanding small business owners throughout the state.
Bethany Weisberger, owner of Gneiss Spice, in Albany Township was named Maine and New England Home Based Business of the Year. The Maine Small Business Exporter of the Year award went to Rayland O’Neal and Sasha Long, of Oxford, owners of Arcast Inc.

Beth Shissler, president, and Don Oakes, CEO, of Sea Bags in Portland were selected as SBA’s Maine Small Business Persons of the Year.
Shissler and Oakes will compete with the nation’s top small businesses for the honor of National Small Business Person of the Year during the SBA’s National Small Business Week celebration, April 29-30. The Winner will be selected from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Guam. The announcement will be made during an event in Washington, D.C. on April 30.
On Tuesday, May 1, the Maine District Office of the Small Business Administration will recognize the 2018 Maine Small Business Award recipients at a 4 p.m. reception and awards presentation at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport. For additional information about the reception, call 207-622-8551 or e-mail keith.lind@sba.gov.
Other award winners are:
Maine and New England Micro-Enterprise of the Year: David Jacobson, David Jacobson Glass LLC of Montville.
Maine Woman Owned Small Business of the Year: Heather Chandler, The SunriseGuide LLC of Portland.
Maine Young Entrepreneurs of the Year: Melissa Law, Benjamin Whalen, Abigail and Jeffrey Fisher, Bumbleroot Organic Farm LLC of Windham.
Maine Veteran Owned Business of the Year: Louis A. Waterhouse III, LAW Calibration LLC, of Saco.
Maine Minority Owned Small Business of the Year: Benjamin Okafor, Eastport Family Pharmacy, of Eastport.
Maine Jeffrey Butland Family Owned Business of the Year: David Machesney, Pratt Abbott, of Westbrook.
Maine Small Business Manufacturer of the Year: Jennifer Scism and David Koorits, Good To-Go LLC, of Kittery.
Maine Financial Services Champion of the Year: Sandra Stone, chair emeritus, Maine Angels.
Maine Small Business Development Center Excellence and Innovation Center Award: Joshua Nadeau, Maine SBDC at Northern Maine Development Commission.