As we make our way into 2017, we want to share an exciting development from the end of last year: SOTG had the honor of taking home the Small Business of the Year Award from the SBDC Lone Star University Park Campus, Small Biz of the Year Story. After being nominated twice before, as well as an incredible year of growth and development, winning this year was especially sweet.
On the evening of the awards ceremony, we arrived early, eager to start the festivities, to support our colleagues, but also in the hope of victory. We set up our business booth in the lobby, greeting friends and sharing SOTG’s story, all the while anxiously awaiting the program to begin. Once at our table, we were joined by members of the SOTG family: Shredders Emma Irby and Stephen Sheehy, and their mom’s Rachel and Jan. In addition, our trusted advisor Norine Jaloway, Lone Star College’s Don Ball, and James’ assistant, Jontaria Fowls, all sat with us to support SOTG.
Ours was the final award to be announced. A short clip on SOTG played for the audience, last out of all the finalists. As our anticipation grew, the MC spoke these words, “And finally, the winner is Shredding on the Go.” Everyone at the table jumped up and cheered as the whole room exploded with applause, whooping and shouts of support. With three team members on stage, we accepted this much-anticipated award, thanking the SBDC, the award committee members, as well as the support from our local community of Northwest Houston. The rest of the evening was full of laughs, fond memories and good cheer as we celebrated the fact that SOTG, a business that is a miracle in itself, had earned the title “Small Business of the Year.” What a great honor and humbling experience to be chosen among such other great businesses.
Besides winning the award, 2016 truly was a truly incredible year for SOTG. We added 6 new workers, expanded our client base to include 9 new contract clients, picked up 1,670 boxes of documents, shredded 51,700 lbs. of paper, participated in more than a dozen community events and found ourselves on the front page of the Houston Chronicle Business Section. The Houston Chronicle Story, Creation through Destruction, won the Barbara Jordan Media Award, and James rolled down the red carpet again as an alumni at the Night of Superstars. We are so very thankful to our clients, to our friends and workers and most importantly to God himself for our growth as a company and for the continued opportunity to show the world what people with disabilities can do.
