(from left) Adam Roundy, Kade Hallows and Ladd Hallows, all of Hallows and Company,
a CPA firm in Rock Springs, conduct an accounting boot camp for Sweetwater County
Innovation Launchpad (SCIL) applicants at Western Wyoming Community College Aug. 8.
In its first year, SCIL will host a Pitch Night Sept. 27 for six businesses chosen
as finalists. Winners will receive seed funding for their businesses. (Monica Patten
Photo)
The first Sweetwater County Innovation Launchpad (SCIL) is down to six finalist teams
that will compete in a Pitch Night competition Tuesday, Sept. 27. This is a date change
from when the event was originally scheduled.
The event begins at 6 p.m. at the Broadway Theater, located at 618 Broadway St. in
Rock Springs. The public is invited to attend and cheer on the finalists.
SCIL is a competition for local entrepreneurs that provides valuable mentorship from
the University of Wyoming’s IMPACT 307 and local professionals. It is administered
by IMPACT Sweetwater, a collaboration between UW’s IMPACT 307 and Western Wyoming
Community College. It is made possible by an Economic Development Administration’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security
(CARES) Act grant.
SCIL’s program is sponsored by the Wyoming Business Council, Gov. Mark Gordon’s Wyoming
Innovation Partnership, Rock Springs Main Street Urban Renewal Agency (URA), Rock
Springs Chamber of Commerce, Green River Chamber of Commerce and the Green River Main
Street URA.
To better prepare for the upcoming Pitch Night, SCIL participants attended two August boot camps, where accounting and banking topics
were presented. Accounting topics were presented Aug. 8 at Western Wyoming Community
College by Hallows & Company representatives Ladd Hallows, president of business development; Kade Hallows, CEO and CPA; and Adam
Roundy, president of tax and accounting, and CPA. The Aug. 22 bankers panel, which
also took place at Western Wyoming Community College, consisted of Cody Bateman, president and CEO, and David O’Connell, vice president for business
development, both from State Bank; Tiffany Kindel, vice president and branch manager,
and Shannon Alam, vice president and branch operations manager, both from Commerce
Bank of Wyoming; Ben Bell, regional market manager, and Jeff Killpack, branch manager,
both from First Bank of Wyoming; Ozzie Hay, vice president of RSNB Bank; and Ted Ware,
president of Uinta Bank.
The first competition attracted 28 applicants. Nine semifinalists gave pitches to
local judges Rick Lee, CEO of the Rock Springs Chamber of Commerce; Lisa Herrera,
CEO of the Green River Chamber of Commerce; and Bateman.
The six finalist teams will compete for seed funding, which is made possible by the
Wyoming Innovation Partnership, JP Morgan Chase, First Bank of Wyoming, State Bank,
Commerce Bank of Wyoming, RSNB Bank and Rocky Mountain Power. Local judges will determine
the winners.
The six finalists are:
A banking boot camp for SCIL participants took place at Western Wyoming Community
College Aug. 22. Here, the group networks after the event. Pictured (from left) are
Cody Bateman, Aaron Lobo, David O’Connell, Cody Gray, Dawn Hood, Brittany Gray, Justin
Hood, Laurie Carollo, Tiffany Kindel, Jean Joseph, Dylan Covington and Ozzie Hay.
(Monica Patten Photo)
-- GM Valley Processing, started by Glen and Mindy Reddon, is a custom meats processing
facility in Farson. Born and raised in Wyoming, the Reddons strive to close the gap
in their area for domestic meat processing.
-- High Desert Technology LLC, founded by Cody and Brittany Gray, is a startup technology
company specializing in safety and reliability for the recreational and automotive
industry. Cody is a controls engineer for Enterprise Products. He is a graduate of
Western Wyoming Community College and a member of the school’s Electrical and Instrumentation
Advisory Board. Brittany is the director of stewardship for Climb Wyoming. She is
a UW graduate, a UW Alumni Association board member and a Leadership Wyoming graduate.
-- Meridical Health Solutions was founded by Amanda Finch, a board-certified holistic
health care practitioner, certified functional nutrition counselor, certified personal
trainer and a functional nutrition specialist. Finch uncovers the root causes of symptoms
and develops customized lifestyle programs -- focused on prevention and mediation
-- to improve her clients’ health. She has 24 years of experience in fitness and 12
years of nutritive intervention.
-- Shop Dog Custom, founded by Dylan Covington, is a woodworking business that focuses
on custom cabinetry and built-ins. Covington says he came up with the idea for his
company when he waited several months for kitchen cabinets from a big-box store. When
the shipment arrived, several of the units were badly damaged. For more information,
go to www.facebook.com/shopdogcw.
-- Wild Sage Market is increasing access to locally produced foods and other healthy
products by opening a community-owned grocery store. Memberships provide the initial
capital needed to develop the business and open the store. Founders include Nick Walrath,
Stacey Dolinar, James Chavez, Aaron Slaton, Megan McComas, Chelsie Naylor, Pete Rust
and Laurie Carollo. For more information, go to www.WildSageGreenRiver.com.
-- Wyoming Apparatus was founded by Justin Hood in 2020 as an avenue for small fire
departments to maintain older equipment. Today, the company offers a multitude of
services centered on fire trucks throughout Wyoming. Wyoming Apparatus helps fire
departments achieve and maintain National Fire Protection Association compliance for
Wyoming emergency vehicles. For more information, go to www.wyomingapparatus.com, or follow on Facebook or Instagram.
IMPACT 307 is a statewide network of innovation-driven business incubators committed
to growing and strengthening Wyoming’s entrepreneurial community by providing resources
and support for founders to thrive.
For more information, call Monica Patten, IMPACT Sweetwater assistant director, at
(307) 466-3963 or email monica.patten@uwyo.edu.
