What do you do?

We provide home health care services.

What inspired you to start your business?

We started the business from scratch after the local home health care agency was going to discontinue long-term care, so that created a need in the area. We started with 50 clients and 10 home health aides. It was us and Linda Moore (now retired) originally.

What's special about your business?

We are Registered Nurses ourselves with extensive hands-on home care experience. This experience gives us the ability to understand what the staff is doing.

What have been the high and low points of being a business owner?

Low points: Realizing the buck always stops here. We are solely responsible for what happens. Another would be the first time we had to let a staff member go. Dick Jordan was able to walk us through that. High points: We got a kick out of it when Dick Jordan (our mentor) called us entrepreneurs because we didn't think of ourselves that way. Also, being in the local parade with the staff we built up. Another would be realizing all of the people we have served, which is very exciting. We are still continuing to get referrals.

What is your relationship with SCORE? SCORE client What influenced you to seek help from SCORE?

We didn't have the business management experience we needed. Our other partner at the time, Linda, knew about SCORE so we reached out to them and we were hooked up with Dick Jordan.

How SCORE helped.

Dick was always available when we needed him. He has a wealth of knowledge and experience and could guide us well. Along with his own wisdom, he would offer many other resources such as online and in-person educational opportunities, websites to use as references and other SCORE mentors who are specialized in other aspects of business management.

What's great about my mentor?

Dick would always consider our particular situation in working through solutions, keeping in mind the culture we have built and what kind of management style we have chosen. Dick was always so positive about what we've accomplished, and he encouraged us each time we met!

What advice would you give to someone thinking of starting a small business?

Go for it! We didn't really know everything we were getting into, and that's probably true with any business you start, but you learn as you go, and that's why SCORE is so valuable. Absolutely use SCORE!

Pictured below: Co-owners, Adele Lausten, RN, and Rhonda Koehler, RN

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