While in an installation support in Canada, I was pleased to meet Mr. Powell, an entrepreneur in the fiber optic industry, his newly created Company is taking big steps in the manufacturing and distribution of cable assemblies for fiber optics systems.
Mr. Powel tell me a little bit how you started your company?
Turning Point Services is a for profit corporation that provides service and support to persons with developmental disabilities. Primarily in western North Carolina, Turning Point Services has thirty-four locations including Raleigh, New Bern, Charlotte, and Asheville. Turning Point provides one thousand persons with disabilities day programs, group homes, and independent living apartments. The focus of Turning Point Services is to help persons with disabilities and their families become more independent and successful in their homes and communities.
Tom Brittain, owner of Turning Point Services, worked for thirty-one years in NC State affiliated public mental health programs. Tom wanted to help families and work independently of government regulations, while being his own boss. In 1997, Tom “tried” to retire and planned to work part-time. He opened Turning Point Services and is now working more than ever.
Chris Carroll of Mill Spring, N.C. made the decision to turn unemployment into opportunity. Chris worked as a carpenter for 20 years before being laid off only 2 weeks prior to Christmas in 2009. He decided to take an Entrepreneurship class at Isothermal Community College. He met the Small Business Center Director who connected him with other community resources, which in turn helped him make plans to start is own business. Chris works hard and attributes his strong work ethic to his parents, both of whom are entrepreneurs.
Chris Carroll, a Master Craftsman, opened Carroll Woodcrafts Unlimited in May 2010. He now builds custom furniture, birdhouses, and wooden bowls, and sells them at arts and crafts fairs. “My only limit is your imagination”, Carroll said.
Mike Ciochetti of Heaven’s Landing
Note: The introduction is at a higher audio level than the actual interview. You will need to turn up the volume to hear the interview.
Mike Ciochetti is a former race-car driver on the ARCA circuit. With that lifestyle came a need to be more mobile. So, Mike became a pilot. The problem was that the nearest airport to his home was 25 miles away. So, he eventually found an area near his home and thought about putting in his own personal airstrip. His original plans were for his own private estate, but he was injured and was no longer able to race. So, he and several investors bought the property where he had originally planned to put his own runway and Heaven’s Landing was born. Heaven’s Landing is a fly-in gated community that allows owners to either house their planes in hangers built on to their homes, or at a hanger complex near their runway. Places like this give the daily commute a whole new meaning.
