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Local entrepreneur next Keystone Breakfast Speaker

May 22, 2009

KALAMAZOO--A local entrepreneur and Western Michigan University graduate will be the featured speaker in a presentation Friday, May 29, as part of Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Speaker Series at WMU.

Amy Knapp will discuss the inspiration, creation and success of her new business, Amy Knapp's Family Organizer, in a talk titled "Advantages of Operating a Small Business During Difficult Economic Times." Her presentation begins at 8 a.m. in the Dean's Conference Room in Schneider Hall, home of the WMU Haworth College of Business.

The event, the seventh in the speaker series for the 2008-09 year, begins with breakfast at 7:30 a.m. and is free and open to the public. Reservations are required and can be made by calling the college dean's office at (269) 387-5050. Parking is available in the nearby Fetzer Center lot.

Knapp graduated from WMU with a bachelor of science degree in social work. In 1991, with two others, she jointly formed Concept to Promotion, a specialty advertising company. Within five years, sales had exceeded one million dollars a year, and Knapp was doing national and international promotions for large corporations headquartered in Michigan.

Four years later, Knapp's son was hospitalized with meningitis. Through this experience, and a re-evaluation of priorities, Knapp sold out of the business to stay at home with her children.

After a short time, her frustration with various methods of keeping track of appointments, errands and schedules inspired her to create Amy Knapp's Family Organizer. Today, she is still a stay-at-home mom, who is creating, marketing and selling her unique organizing system, which provides a blend between the roles of a stay-at-home mom and entrepreneur.

Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Speaker Series

The Keystone Community Bank Breakfast Speaker Series is underwritten by Keystone Community Bank. The series provides an opportunity for the local community to hear prominent business leaders and WMU faculty, alumni and friends of the Haworth College of Business discuss current business issues and corporate strategies and, at the same time, learn about information regarding the continuing progress of the business college.

Media contact: Mark Schwerin, (269) 387-8400, mark.schwerin@wmich.edu

WMU News
Office of University Relations
Western Michigan University
Kalamazoo MI 49008-5433 USA
(269) 387-8400
www.wmich.edu/news