ASHEVILLE – The 29th annual Minority Enterprise Development (MED) Week Awards was held Wednesday Sept. 21 at Homewood in Asheville North Carolina. Two Cherokee businesses were honored; Clear 1 Services, LLC and Long House Funeral Home.
Nancy Pheasant, of Clear 1 Services, and Bruce Martin Jr., of Long House Funeral Home, were honored at the recent MED Awards in Asheville. (Photo courtesy of Cherokee Business Dev.)
Bruce Martin Jr.,of Long House Funeral Home, was awarded the Phyllis J. Sherrill Minority Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Long House Funeral Home is the first funeral home on the Qualla Boundary and provides full service funeral home services in a respectful, dignified manner while honoring Cherokee traditions. The business is co-owned by Martin’s parents, Bruce and Nancy Martin. The family also owns Native Clans Casket Company and Qualla Secuirty, Inc.
Clear 1 Services was awarded the Emerging Business Person of the Year award. This award recognized an emerging minority owned business that has created jobs, demonstrates the promise of future growth, leveraged community resources, and showed commitment to the community. Clear 1 Services, LLC was started by Nancy Pheasant in November 2010. The business provides drug-free workplace programs, drug screen collections, workplace identification badges, and operates an occupational worksite First-aid clinic.
Also recognized were Anthony Thomas, owner CyText Mobile Media as the winner of the inaugural business plan competition; Ricardo Bello, owner Village Florist as Retail Business Enterprise of the Year; William James Johnson’s Circle B Ranch BBQ as the Restaurant Business Enterprise of the Year, and Peter Mills, owner of Mills Trucking, LLC, received the Service Business Enterprise of the Year.
Minority Enterprise Development is a national celebration of minority entrepreneurs and business owners. Each year since 1983 a weeklong series of events is held in Western North Carolina to provide the best leadership and direction for the promotion, establishment, and development of minority businesses in the region through education, communication and advocacy. The 2011 regional program was held September 19-23. For more information please visit www.wncmedweek.org.
– Cherokee Business Development
