Business Beat: Feb. 7 – 14

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Colonial American Wins Breakthrough Lender Award
SHREWSBURY – Colonial American Bank was named Breakthrough Lender of the Year for 2013 by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), New Jersey District Office, at the SBA’s Annual Lender Awards Ceremony.
The Breakthrough Lender award honors lenders with a greater than 500-percent increase in the number of closed SBA loans over the prior year.
“We are very pleased to receive the SBA Breakthrough Lender award and proud of the level of SBA loan activity our team originated for small businesses in the tristate area during 2013, our first full year as an SBA lender,” said Anthony Giordano III, president and CEO of Colonial American Bank. “We believe that small businesses are the engines that drive the U.S. economy, and our goal is to help start-up and existing small-business owners secure the funding needed to build and expand their companies and pursue new business opportunities.  “To that end, we are fortunate to have Andrew Glatz, senior vice president of SBA Lending, lead our SBA team with a great deal of experience, professionalism and SBA lending success,” Giordano said.
Just a few examples of the SBA loans Colonial American Bank closed in 2013 for small businesses in the tristate area include, an assisted living facility, restaurants, a title company, a document shredding company, contractors, a private school and industrial/office buildings.
Information about obtaining a SBA loan is available by calling 732-933-4600 or visiting www.colonialamericanbank.com.
Webb joins Resources Real Estate, Rumson
bayshore.seanRUMSON – Resources Real Estate has welcomed Valerie Dowd Webb to the company as a new sales associate in its Rumson office.
Webb, who will cover the greater Monmouth County area, chose Resources for her personal connections as well as its boutique training.
“Because our business is so dependent on word of mouth and the referral system,” said Carolynn Diakon, broker-senior partner, “having friends join our team is purely positive. Our model is based on team effort, which is beneficial for everyone.”
Webb’s entertainment background gives her an unusual advantage of professional presentation and people skills. For three years, she has been a cast member on Broadway’s “Backwards,” and for 15 years, she has sung with Holiday Express.
“Valerie is going to be a wonderful addition to our team,” said Thomas McCormack, broker-managing partner. “She is a star on stage and will most certainly have the same affect on clients.”
Resources Real Estate is located at 112 E. River Road in Rumson, 36 Beach Road in Monmouth Beach, 4A West Front St. in Red Bank, and 65 First Ave. in Atlantic Highlands.
For more local real estate information or to inquire about a career in real estate, you can call 732-212-0440 or visit resourcesrealestate.com.
Kampfe Hired as Press Aide for Fair Haven Schools
FAIR HAVEN – Superintendent of Schools Nelson Ribon has announced the appointment of Mary Ann Kampfe as press release writer for the Fair Haven School District.
Kampfe’s appointment was approved by the Fair Haven Board of Education.
The Fair Haven School District educates children at its Viola L. Sickles School, which is pre-K through third-grade school, and Knollwood School, which serves students in grades 4-8. Approximately 1,015 students are currently enrolled in the schools.
“The school district and I are very excited to have Mary Ann join our team,” Ribon said. “Her character and her experience in the field, along with her knowledge of our schools and community, made the decision to bring her on board an easy one.”
Kampfe earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in advertising from Rowan University in Glassboro, where she was president of the advertising club. She began her advertising copywriting career at American Management Association in New York City and has since worked as both an in-house and freelance copywriter for major corporations in the New York City area.
Kampfe served as assistant librarian at Sickles School from 2004 to 2012.
“I truly enjoyed my position at Sickles School, where I was impressed by how dedicated the teachers were and how great an experience the students were having,” Kampfe said. “I am thankful to be welcomed back into the fold, and anxious to report all of the wonderful events and achievements taking place in our district.”
NJ Natural Gas Relaunches School Fundraising Effort
WALL – New Jersey Natural Gas (NJNG) has announced the relaunch of its Conserve to Preserve Community Rewards program.
The program is a fundraising opportunity for schools to raise money while encouraging their supporters and community members to take the next step toward energy efficiency.
Designed to complement the NJNG Conserve to Preserve (CTP) Dashboard, CTP Community Rewards provides the chance for schools to earn up to $5,000. Moreover, there is no purchase necessary to support a school’s efforts as is typically required of most fundraisers.
The CTP Dashboard is a free online home-energy assessment tool that helps customers reduce their energy bills through simple behavioral changes or investments in home energy-efficiency improvements. By answering brief questions about their homes’ energy usage, customers receive a customized action plan that contains helpful energy-saving recommendations, including information about a comprehensive whole-house energy audit.
NJNG will donate $5 to a participating school for each NJNG customer who successfully completes the CTP Dashboard and designates the school. Plus, through a new Community Rewards feature, NJNG will reward a school with a $25 bonus for each person who completes the CTP Dashboard, designates the school and pays to have a whole-house audit performed by an NJNG auditor. Income-eligible customers may qualify to have this audit performed at no cost. Through a whole-house audit, customers can identify potential energy-saving opportunities and may be able to access up to $15,000 in financial incentives for home energy-efficiency improvements.
“It’s a win-win situation for both the schools and their supporters,” said Anne-Marie Peracchio, director of conservation and energy policy at New Jersey Natural Gas. “We are focused on those things that mean the most to our customers, and that includes education and the environment.”
The CTP Community Rewards fundraising opportunity is open to schools within NJNG’s service area. Schools are encouraged to participate and have until Thursday, Feb. 20, to register for the upcoming fundraising session, which begins March 1.
For more information, including complete terms and conditions, go to the Save Energy & Money section of njng.com and click on Conserve to Preserve® and then Conserve to Preserve Community Rewards.
To register, contact NJNG’s CTP Community Rewards team at ctpcommunityrewards@njng.com or 732-378-4926.
 Valente Named to Chairman’s Club at Morgan Stanley
SHREWSBURY – Morgan Stanley has announced that Anthony Valente, an executive director, financial advisor, and director of portfolio management in its wealth management office in Shrewsbury, has been named to the firm’s Chairman’s Club.
The Chairman’s Club is an elite group composed of the firm’s top financial advisors. The appointment recognizes Valente’s consistent creativity and excellence in providing a wide range of investment products and wealth management services to his team’s clients.
Valente, who has been with Morgan Stanley Wealth Management and its predecessor firms since 2006, holds a bachelor’s degree from Union College.
He lives in Old Bridge with his family.
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management provides access to a wide range of products and services to individuals, businesses and institutions, including brokerage and investment advisory services, financial and wealth planning, banking and lending, cash management, annuities and insurance, retirement and trust services.
For further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.
Cowerks to Hold Introductory Workshops
ASBURY PARK – Cowerks, a collaborative workspace environment for freelancers, entrepreneurs and other working professionals, will host introductory workshops on Saturday, March 8, for those looking to take their projects from fruition to action.
The Saturday Workshops offered will be: Growing Your Brand Through Social Media, Save Time with Indesign – A Workshop for Photoshop and Illustrator Users and Introduction to Processing Big Data Using Hadoop.
Growing Your Brand Through Social Media will be taught by Joshua Davidson, CEO and founder of Chop Dawg who is also  founder and president of Subtle, the first online platform designed to help companies manage their presence online in an effortless and efficient way. During the 2 ½-hour course, Davidson will discuss social media and proper branding execution using the popular social networks of 2014, backing it up with the data and results they have already have accomplished.
Save Time with Indesign – A Workshop for Photoshop and Illustrator Users will be offered by Andrew Gioulis, designer and owner of KFR Communications, a custom graphic and website design firm.
Gioulis teaches graphic design as an adjunct professor at St. John’s University in Queens, N.Y. Attendees of his class will learn more about how Indesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator work together, and the benefits of using Indesign. They will leave with a better understanding of Indesign and how to save time by using it with their next design project.
Brian Enochson is an independent software developer, consultant and trainer living at the Jersey Shore. He lends his vast knowledge of software development and big data solutions for the Introduction to Processing Big Data Using Hadoop Workshop that will give attendees a chance become familiar with Hadoop, core components and associated applications.
Students will be systematically led through various Hadoop topics with plenty of opportunity to experiment on their own.
Cowerks is located at 619 Lake Ave.
Availability and seats are limited. For tickets and information on workshops and prerequisites, visit http://cowerks.eventbrite.com.
Chen of Heritage House SIR Ranked No. 1 Realtor in Marlboro
BIZ-CHEN.2.7HOLMDEL – Mary Burke, president and broker of record, Heritage House Sotheby’s International Realty and Karen Saltzbart, branch manager, announce that Lydia Chen, sales associate, Holmdel office, achieved the highest closed sales volume for Marlboro, properties in 2013, according to data from the Monmouth/Ocean County Multiple Listing Service.
A seasoned professional, resident, and respected veteran in the Marlboro area, Chen has a thorough knowledge of Western Monmouth County and is fluent in both Mandarin and Taiwanese. She is consistently ranked in the top 1 percent of real estate sales in Monmouth County.  Over the past five years Chen has closed over 147 homes in Marlboro alone; as well as ranked overall No. 1 Realtor in Marlboro closed sales volume from 2008 to 2013.
“I joined Heritage House Sotheby’s International Realty in 2012 for my continued business and personal growth,” said Chen.  “But more importantly I needed the ability to offer my clients the exclusive Sotheby’s International Realty® marketing exposure and extraordinary service designed to attract buyers and sellers on a local, national, and global level.”
“Lydia continually satisfies her clients with her extensive industry knowledge, experience, and top negotiation skills,” Burke said.  “A true professional, she is dedicated to her clients and consistently is achieving remarkable results for them.”
Heritage House Sotheby’s International Realty is an independently owned and operated full-service brokerage with four sales offices in Holmdel, Middletown, Rumson and Shrewsbury.  The firm’s corporate headquarters is located at 834 Broad St., Shrewsbury. For additional information, including office locations and phone numbers, please visit their website at www.heritagehousesothebysrealty.com. To contact Lydia Chen at the Holmdel Office call 732-946-9200, directly on her mobile 732-267-6654 or via email at Lydia.Chen@sothebysrealty.com.
Girl Scout Honorees Welcomed into Distinguished Company
FARMINGDALE –The Girl Scouts will honor three Women of Distinction, several Junior Women of Distinction and a community partner on March 7 at its annual Women of Distinction & Community Partners Gala.
Each honoree is a person or organization whose contributions have bettered the community.
The Girl Scouts’ 2014 Women of Distinction are: Dr. June Duck, CentraState Healthcare System; Mary Ann Larkin, Stillwell-Hansen, Inc.; and Kathleen Mead, Investors Bank.
Michele Coyotl , Joyce Falotico, Morgan Fuerbacher, Jacqueline Hennessy, Adriana Poznanski and Francesa Poznanski from Girl Scout Troop 1701 have been named this year’s Junior Women of Distinction. The girls created a public service announcement encouraging women to make a pinky promise to get a mammogram to earn their Bronze Award. The award is the highest award that can be earned by Girl Scout Juniors.
This year’s community partner is Holiday Express and Tim McLoone. McLoone created Holiday Express, an all-volunteer charitable group that creates free holiday events for people in more than 50 organizations who are in need of good cheer.
Sponsorship opportunities and tickets are still available for the gala. The black tie optional event will take place Friday, March 7, at Eagle Oaks Country Club, Farmingdale.
For tickets and sponsorship information, visit www.girlscoutsjs.org/gala or call 732-349-4499, ext. 223.