Weblogic

Local businesswomen Jennifer Holcombe and Jessica Jones are sisters and best friends who last year teamed up for the biggest physical challenge of their lives — participating in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in New York City.

Successful entrepreneurs and business scholars both say that without a clear set of goals, deadlines and numeric benchmarks, a small-business owner can quickly become overwhelmed by a tsunami of tasks.

The Deepwater Horizon oil rig disaster has suddenly made “boom,” “skimmer” and “junk shot” part of the vocabulary for residents of the Florida Panhandle. But the Gulf spill is now also introducing such terms as “multi-district litigation,” “secondary claims” and “gross negligence” as the battle with BP and its oil shifts from the beach to the courtroom for many coastal residents and businesses. Experts say it’s vital to be prepared for what will likely prove a long siege with the oil giant. Their advice: Keep good records of lost business or bookings, check your existing insurance coverage, videotape before-and-after footage of property affected by the spill — and don’t be shy about making a claim.

A century ago, vast satsuma orange orchards stretched across Jackson County, with rows of trees extending as far as the eye could see. Every November, the trees would be laden with thousands of ripe satsumas ready for picking. The sweet, juicy and easy-to-peel fruit became a trademark of the county, garnering Jackson County a reputation as “the Satsuma Capital of the World.” Annual satsuma festivals celebrated nature’s bounties and attracted crowds of thousands in the late 1920s. Recently, a few farmers have ventured back into the world of citrus growing, emboldened by new freeze-protection technologies and the promise of greater profits.

Using his experience in road construction, Darryl Carpenter came up with an unexpected (and now internet-famous) idea for oil cleanup

Northwest Florida, the state’s last real frontier, has undergone a multitude of changes over the past decade. The population has grown, industry has blossomed, educational opportunities have expanded and, not surprisingly, local medical care provided by the region’s hospitals has evolved to where it is as good as anywhere in the state. Brick-and-mortar expansion of medical facilities, along with innovative and improved technology — and a focus on patient care and quality service sparked by a strong sense of competition — are the hallmarks of change in the region's medical care.

When Sean Doughtie launched Taproot Creative in 2005, he had a singular focus — to “save the universe, one pixel at a time.” Although Doughtie may not yet have saved the universe, he has been able to grow his one-man show into a thriving company in challenging economic times. Over the past five years, Doughtie has taken Taproot Creative from a website design firm to a full-service public relations and social media/marketing shop. And he has done well enough to be hiring new staff during the recession.

As a young boy growing up in rural Michigan in the late 1970s, James Klok was immersed in the auto-racing culture. For Klok, souped-up cars with massive rumbling engines, aerodynamically modified bodies and exotic paint jobs were as normal as any vehicle seen on the highway. It couldn’t be helped. He lived adjacent to a drag strip — and a thin property fence couldn’t muffle the day-in-and-day-out staccato roar of the behemoths scorching the pavement. Hot cars were imprinted on Klok’s mind. Now, at 40 years of age, Klok operates Renegade Performance in Pensacola, customizing cars with a particular focus on the Ford Mustang. His is one of only five businesses in the United States authorized by Ford to modify the Mustang for dealerships.

Today, Matt Butler is a major in the U.S. Air Force. He works as an air battle manager at Hurlburt Field, testing surveillance and reconnaissance equipment, systems and aircraft. But around seven years ago, while seated in a Boeing 707 flying 35,000 feet over Iraq and Afghanistan, he became an inventor as well.

Thanks to a new state grant system, Florida’s traditional waterfronts may come back to life. The Stan Mayfield Working Waterfronts Florida Forever Grant Program, created in 2008, is aimed at restoring once-vital coastal communities. Apalachicola is the first community to receive money from this pot, which may help the Water Street district hum with the sounds of one particular waterfront industry: boat building.

Taunya James was eager to take the reins of the Franklin County Seafood Workers Association in January. As the new president, James had what she thought was a successful business model. Her plan was to help create work for fishermen and reel in money to the coastal community. But then came the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and subsequent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a disaster likely to forever change Franklin County. Suddenly James’ plan to breathe life into the region’s oyster industry was overshadowed.

When the stakes are life and death for American service members, military inventors have to think on the fly to come up with equipment that will keep the blood off the ground. And the counter-IED engineers at the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Panama City Division are as good as anyone at doing just that by developing surprisingly simple, but effective solutions. With the help of private military contractors, they have been saving the lives of U.S. Marines and sailors in Afghanistan with one of their latest pieces of equipment, the Panama City Mine Roller System.