Service Core of Retired Executives – SCORE: A Regional Business Resource
Published 5:00 pm Friday, June 30, 2006
SCORE is a nonprofit association dedicated to entrepreneur education and the formation, growth and success of small business nationwide. More than 10,500 volunteer counselors provide individual counseling and business workshops for aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners.
Counselors work with entrepreneurs through every phase of their entrepreneurial venture: generating and assessing ideas, preparing a business plan, raising capital and managing the operations and finances of the growing venture. Our services are largely free, and we charge only for our workshops and computer program templates, such as our business plan.
An adjunct of the Small Business Administration, (SBA) SCORE was formed 41 years ago and has two Chapters in the Coast River Business Journal coverage area. The Portland chapter handles activity north of Tillamook, and the Salem chapter handles everything south. We are blessed with approximately 100 volunteers with experience in over 65 different industries.
From a counseling standpoint we match our clients proposed business field of endeavor with a counselor who has experience in that field. All counseling services are conducted on a face-to-face basis in our office, or away from our office by one of our “outside” counselors. Counseling may also be done via e-mail.
Our Business Resource Center is the only one located between Seattle and San Francisco. It features seven high-speed computers and an excellent Entrepreneurial Library consisting of over 300 books, and are available to new and existing business clients. Counselors are also available in our BRC to work with clients who need assistance.
We also conduct workshops covering a wide range of interests and have an experienced cadre of speakers available for most occasions.
We are also fortunate to have a Satellite Chapter in Astoria/Seaside, which is very adequately staffed by Judy Capellen, Travis Purtle, and Ned Roach. In addition to my position as Chair, another current officer of SCORE, Chapter #11 is the Chair-elect Karen Blomquist, a successful small business owner and Commercial Property Manager.
For more information about SCORE visit www.score.org, or our local site www.scorepdx.org,or e-mail scorepdx@wa-net.com
Bill Klammer is the Chairman of SCORE, Chapter #11. He is a retired employee of General Motors Corporation, and most recent former mayor of Lake Oswego. Contact him at (503) 326-5211.
