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by Susan McFarland
"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss it you will land among the stars." - Les Brown.
And here are ten who did. Interviewed about their entrepreneurial ventures, these Lesley alumni tell stories of perseverance, collaboration and evolving clarity of vision. Their fire and fancy fascinated me and I saw a thread peculiar to the Lesley tradition that connected them all.
Throughout the interview process - whether talking about interior design or therapy, decorated socks or costume jewelry, consulting services or children's literature, access to the arts for people with disabilities or asbestos removal - all of these alumni live by a conviction nurtured by Lesley values. They consistently describe a commitment to quality service. They forge relationships in every aspect of their business and tout the necessity of collaboration to succeed. They say learning never stops, and in the tough times, it has enabled them to save their businesses.
Gerri Bloomberg '61 SUS founded Workplace Solutions in 1985. Using a network of 45 professionals across Vermont, Workplace Solutions sets up employee assistance programs, does organizational consulting, provides outplacement services, career and personal counseling. "I took all the skills I had, defined a company and did it," says Bloomberg. Committed to personal service and helping people rethink issues and problems, her reputation for quality has been her best marketing tool.
"I still consider myself an educator," she says. "My education background has given me a wide, more creative stance than just my counseling background." It also helped her develop an organization with real capacity to make a difference in the workplace. Bloomberg believes that it takes at least five years to develop a successful business. She says she "just never gives up. People let problems slow them up. I just keep going with it. The things that stop you are the walls in your head."
John Monahan '93 SOM comes at workplace issues from a slightly different angle with his organization, Training and Development Services. With a background in corporate research in the technical arena, Monahan completed his master's in training and development and founded TDS in 1994. TDS provides training for senior managers to develop their human resources in areas such as communications, team dynamics and Total Quality Management techniques.
Monahan stresses the value of relationships and networking in every aspect of his work. He sees that mentors and coaches help individuals to push the envelope by thinking outside their usual patterns. In his consulting, Monahan always focuses on the audience, and adjusts his style to adapt to their needs. "I read people pretty deeply," he says, "and listen carefully to what they say." And like Bloomberg, the reputation he builds from these relationships is the primary source of his client base. They agree that to be successful you need tremendous patience. "Focus your energy," says Monahan. "Having a whole bag of offerings is too much. It becomes a distraction."
Focus for Maida Abrams '76 SOE began at age 5 when she was diagnosed with a reading problem. Her grandfather taught her to sew and the visual arts, dance and music all played a critical role in her education. These early lessons became her life work. In 1978, she began working with Very Special Arts Massachusetts. Under her leadership VSA has grown into a private, nonprofit organization serving more than 20,000 individuals with disabilities by creating opportunities for participation in the arts. VSA sponsors artist residencies, professional development programs, participatory festivals and publishes a Cultural Directory and a seasonal newsletter, Access Expressed.
Abrams believes that it is important to "start small, define an area of focus and look for support for that mission." She did just that. "I turned every stone to bring about inclusion to be sure not to leave people in isolated settings." Throughout, collaboration has been a guiding principle - from early meetings around her kitchen table with the Department of Education to building broad based statewide networks and beyond - including a substantial connection with Lesley faculty and alumni.- - -
Ten Lesley alumni found their way to imaginative work on a path often carfully crafted, sometimes marked by enormous good fortune, but always characterized by a deeply held interest in other people.
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Carol Bateson '91, '92 SOM is celebrating the 17th anniversary of the founding of her firm, Dec-Tam Corporation. Bateson had worked for a construction company and realized she "could do the job as well with half the aggravation." Spurred on by the media exposŽ of health hazards caused by asbestos, she started Dec-Tam, environmental specialists in asbestos abatement, lead paint removal and microbial duct cleaning. Within eight years, she grew her business to a $36 million concern and was having fun as well.
Then the recession hit. Bateson survived by "managing like hell, micromanaging everything. I had a good management team," she says. "I got everyone faced in the right direction and we focused on survival." Bateson's award-winning master's thesis on the recession gave her an opportunity to talk to other business owners suffering through hard times, and provided her with new business contacts. Today, led by Bateson, Dec-Tam continues in a steady growth phase.
Fifteen years ago, across the country from Bateson, Karen Bell '75 SUS was working in Los Angeles as a secretary in a venture capital firm and looking for a way to earn extra money. She bought $30 worth of plain white socks, decorated them with buttons and rhinestones and sold them to a boutique for double her investment. Bell's flair for the creative and need for money were the seeds of K.Bell, a $5 million legwear company that sells her designer socks nationwide.
Bell credits luck for much of her success. But as the story unfolds, the other ingredients of Bell's achievements emerge: lots of hard work, a passion for the enterprise, excellent team members and attention to detail. With over 400 items in her line, Bell is clear that "retailers know they can count on us to come up with something unique and exciting each season." K.Bell's marketing materials personalize her venture: "We like to think of our socks and tights as 'our children' and when they go off into the big world, we celebrate their success!" Bell says she "always had ideas" but says that her mother helped provide the spark. She told her that she could do anything and Bell believed her.
Heidi Loomis '76 SUS found her way to entrepreneurial adventures when she joined her family's jewelry business in 1980, with fiscal and administrative responsibilities. When Loomis' father died in 1990, she and her sister inherited the business. In the last eight years the sisters and their husbands have worked collaboratively, reorganized the business into the Winkler Group Ltd., and more than tripled its sales volume. The company manufactures and sells up-to-the-minute fashion jewelry geared to the young, mostly to major chain stores like the Limited and Express.
Loomis attributes their success to a persistence in creating styles customers want, a high-quality product, effective pricing and fast delivery. "We're loyal to them and they're loyal to us." Underneath the smart business strategies, she values the trust among family members at the heart of the work. "We are very devoted to each other, we count on each other and all have the same goal." Her mother is "still a driving force in our energies, guiding us as she guided my father." Loomis says her father continues to be a presence. "His office is still there. I go in sometimes when I need to think and reflect."
Evelyn Finnegan's secret desire to write a book also became a family venture. Always devoted to children, Finnegan '48 SUS taught first grade and kindergarten, served as a children's librarian, and told stories on cable TV. But her role as grandmother created an entrepreneurial opening. In 1994, when her grandson Paul faced kindergarten with a bit of the usual apprehension, Finnegan knitted him a sweater and inside made a secret pocket which held a small gnome-like doll - a little friend to provide comfort and reassurance. She was encouraged to write a story to go with the sweater. The results were My Little Friend Goes to a Baseball Game and Little Friend Press Ltd., a family enterprise which has published 10 children's books, including four of Finnegan's and a line of accessories including sweaters and puppets.
Her original and thoughtful gift launched her on a journey that has included nationwide travel, an appearance on CBS, and school visits everywhere. Finnegan says that children want to know where she gets her ideas and offer numerous suggestions for future books. She feels her work started at Lesley where she loved her studies, especially music, piano and drama. "The family atmosphere and the interest of professors in the students created a special something."
While Finnegan writes in Scituate, Mass., Diana Lewinstein '64 SUS creates distinctive spaces in Rhode Island homes. When she and her husband bought two condominiums on Cliff Walk in Newport, she did all the interior design work herself. Encouraged by her sister to follow her bliss, Lewinstein studied at the Rhode Island School of Design. "I loved (returning to) school. I got everything out of it I could." Instructors encouraged her to keep pushing the creative process until she was satisfied. "But they didn't teach me to be interesting. That's what can't be taught."- - -
Bloomberg believes that it takes five years to develop a successful business. She says, "People let problems slow them up. I just keep going with it. The things that stop you are the walls in your head."
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As a self-employed interior designer, Lewinstein now does work for her husband, a developer. She gets to know her clients, their interests, hobbies, etc. "I like creating things, creating pleasing spaces that are a reflection of the person that's in it." She acknowledges, "it takes a lot of faith, but the process is a lot of fun and almost more important than the product." Extensive travel, including safaris to Africa and most recently China, have also nourished her imagination. Lewinstein stresses the importance of realizing "it's a big world" with immense possibility.
Ellen Warren '80 SOE has also expanded the boundaries of her world. The newsletter for her new venture, Levy Warren Marketing Media, sums up the needs of her clients: "Get me 'out there' they say. My competition is 'out there.' Everybody else is 'out there.' I need to be 'out there.'" Levy Warren helps clients through strategic planning and communications, public relations, community partnering and program development.
Warren has a knack for getting 'out there.' Her master's from Lesley in integrating arts in education led to internships at the Children's Museum and the Museum of Science. As vice president of communications at Jefferson Bank in Philadelphia, she developed joint corporate-nonprofit programs including an award-winning banking education program for kids. When she left there to form a partnership in Levy Warren, the bank became one of her largest clients. Warren credits her ability to create relationships - both between people and ideas - as her best asset. "I keep information percolating, retrieve it and match it with stuff that is nontraditional." Warren summarizes her approach: "You learn, you grow, and you take everything with you."
Sara Wye '87 GSASS also knows how to get 'out there.' Formerly a successful television news anchor in Rhode Island, Wye left to get her master's in counseling psychology. "My education at Lesley reoriented me in terms of how I approached life. I have never stopped learning and growing." Since last August she has focused on her private practice for victims of post-traumatic stress where she uses relational therapy to help clients rebuild their lives. She also hosts a radio talk show on women and health.
A self-described maverick, Wye says "all of me is a therapist." She describes her style as "flying by the seat of your pants with daily doses of coming back to center. Affirmation, praying, reading and playing help hold her center.
These ten Lesley alumni found their way to imaginative work on a path often carefully crafted, sometimes marked by enormous good fortune, but always characterized by a deeply held interest in other human beings. Fashioning lives that make a difference, their vitality and versatility is energizing.
Susan McFarland is an adjunct faculty member in the School of Management.
