Local consumers contacting the BBB regarding suspicious persons going door to door are on the rise.
One local senior was surprised to have a representative from “ADT Security” knock on his door after 9:00pm. The gentleman at the door was nicely dressed and allowed access to the home. The so-called employee came in under the guise of checking the alarm batteries. He proceeded to press buttons and changed the alarm code to 1-2-3-4. No uniform or proof was given that he worked for the firm. An observant neighbor reportedly saw two gentlemen, one querying her neighbor and another man peering into windows. There was no company vehicle visible. After being questioned, the two men got into their vehicle and speed away. The senior contacted the real ADT Alarm and was told to change his alarm code to prevent unwanted access. The Sheriff’s office was also alerted to this possible burglary scam.
Door to door solicitations for roofing repair/replacement have also been cause for concern for local residents. Home owners are being approached by representatives to check their roofs for damage. These persons are also trying to ascertain if they are dealing with a home owner or tenant, if it is the latter, the personnel moves along. Varying firms are trying to get property owners to sign a contract which allows the company to contact the insurance company and immediately begin processing the claim. Although there is a three day right of recession, some of the contracts have special caveats charging 20% if the consumer tries to cancel after the repairs have been approved by the insurance carrier and if the insurance payment has been issued.
In regards to door to door solicitations, the BBB reminds consumers that:
∑ You do not have to let any person in your house. If you're not interested, say good-bye and shut the door.
∑ Don't be afraid to interrupt and ask questions.
∑ Solicitors should be able to provide credentials of who they are and the firm they represent. They should be wearing some sort of name badge or uniform.
∑ Do not be pressured into signing a contract or making a spur of the moment decision. Read all contracts before signing. A legitimate firm will allow you time to investigate their offer.
∑ If it sounds like a good deal, ask the salesperson for their name, and the name, address and telephone number of the company.
∑ Contact the BBB for a reliability report on any company at www.bbb.org or 866-206-1800/719-636-1155
The official blog of SouthSideBusiness.com
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Leandra's Touch Therapy to Open August 15th
Leandra Haus has launched her new massage therapy practice at 1825 Main Street, Ste C. in Security. She’ll be operating out of Security Chiropractic.
Leandra is a certified massage therapist specializing in Neuromuscular massage, which focuses on muscular dysfunction and injury. She also practices Deep Tissue, Lymphatic Drainage and Hot Stone massage and is working on getting certified in spa treatment.
She is continuing her education at the Colorado School of Healing Arts. Leandra’s career goal is to help people live more productive, comfortable and healthy lives. She’s always been a big fan of massage therapy, going back to when she was a kid, whether it was getting a massage herself, or rubbing Mom or Dad’s shoulders.
Leandra’s Touch Therapy is open Monday's 8am-12pm, Wednesday's 8am-12pm & 3pm-6pm, and Fridays 3pm-6pm
(719) 930-3532
Leandra is a certified massage therapist specializing in Neuromuscular massage, which focuses on muscular dysfunction and injury. She also practices Deep Tissue, Lymphatic Drainage and Hot Stone massage and is working on getting certified in spa treatment.
She is continuing her education at the Colorado School of Healing Arts. Leandra’s career goal is to help people live more productive, comfortable and healthy lives. She’s always been a big fan of massage therapy, going back to when she was a kid, whether it was getting a massage herself, or rubbing Mom or Dad’s shoulders.
Leandra’s Touch Therapy is open Monday's 8am-12pm, Wednesday's 8am-12pm & 3pm-6pm, and Fridays 3pm-6pm
(719) 930-3532
Shelter LIfe Insurance earns top ranking
Shelter Life Insurance Company and Shelter property/casualty companies rank among Top-50 in the United States
The Ward Group® has recognized Shelter Life Insurance Company as a top-performing life company for the second consecutive year.
In addition, the Ward Group® ranked the Shelter Insurance® group of property and casualty companies among the top-50 performers out of over 3,000 U.S. P&C insurers analyzed for the annual ranking.
The "Top-50" list was released on July 7 by Ward Group®, an operational consulting firm and leading provider of benchmarking and best practices services to the insurance industry.
Annually, Ward Group® analyzes the financial performance of over 850 life-health insurance companies and over 3,000 property and casualty insurers domiciled in the United States and identifies the top performers in each segment. This group is called the "Ward's 50" for the year. Each Ward's 50 company has passed all safety and consistency screens and achieved superior performance over the five years analyzed (2003 - 2007).
Over the last decade, the insurance industry has changed dramatically with new technology, changing customer and employee demographics and increasingly competitive market conditions. "It is important for companies to remain focused on meeting revenue goals while maintaining an efficient operating model that enables them to meet customer demands," explains Jeff Rieder, President of Ward Group. "The best companies excel at balancing expense management, technology deployment and customer service."
The Ward's 50 property-casualty insurance companies produced an 18.7% return on average equity from 2003 to 2007 compared to 14.6% for the property-casualty industry overall. The Ward's 50 life-health insurance companies produced a 17.5% return on average equity from 2003 to 2007 compared to 13.1% for the life-health industry overall.
Shelter Insurance® is a financial group of companies with two direct personal lines property and casualty companies, a property and casualty reinsurer, a life and annuity insurer, a thrift bank, and other smaller financial entities. Shelter’s direct business is written through 1,300 agents in 14 states and is supported by 1,800 employees. Shelter Insurance Companies’ Home Office is at Columbia, Missouri. Shelter is rated “A” Excellent by AM Best and Api by Standard & Poors.
For more information, visit www.ShelterInsurance.com
To learn more about the Ward's 50, visit www.wardinc.com
The Ward Group® has recognized Shelter Life Insurance Company as a top-performing life company for the second consecutive year.
In addition, the Ward Group® ranked the Shelter Insurance® group of property and casualty companies among the top-50 performers out of over 3,000 U.S. P&C insurers analyzed for the annual ranking.
The "Top-50" list was released on July 7 by Ward Group®, an operational consulting firm and leading provider of benchmarking and best practices services to the insurance industry.
Annually, Ward Group® analyzes the financial performance of over 850 life-health insurance companies and over 3,000 property and casualty insurers domiciled in the United States and identifies the top performers in each segment. This group is called the "Ward's 50" for the year. Each Ward's 50 company has passed all safety and consistency screens and achieved superior performance over the five years analyzed (2003 - 2007).
Over the last decade, the insurance industry has changed dramatically with new technology, changing customer and employee demographics and increasingly competitive market conditions. "It is important for companies to remain focused on meeting revenue goals while maintaining an efficient operating model that enables them to meet customer demands," explains Jeff Rieder, President of Ward Group. "The best companies excel at balancing expense management, technology deployment and customer service."
The Ward's 50 property-casualty insurance companies produced an 18.7% return on average equity from 2003 to 2007 compared to 14.6% for the property-casualty industry overall. The Ward's 50 life-health insurance companies produced a 17.5% return on average equity from 2003 to 2007 compared to 13.1% for the life-health industry overall.
Shelter Insurance® is a financial group of companies with two direct personal lines property and casualty companies, a property and casualty reinsurer, a life and annuity insurer, a thrift bank, and other smaller financial entities. Shelter’s direct business is written through 1,300 agents in 14 states and is supported by 1,800 employees. Shelter Insurance Companies’ Home Office is at Columbia, Missouri. Shelter is rated “A” Excellent by AM Best and Api by Standard & Poors.
For more information, visit www.ShelterInsurance.com
To learn more about the Ward's 50, visit www.wardinc.com
Keeping Up with the Americans With Disabilities Act
by Cindy Powell
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the most comprehensive civil rights law protecting people with disabilities. On July 26, 1990 the ADA passed both Houses of Congress overwhelmingly: Senate, 91-6 and House, 377-28. Now, 18 years later, many people remain unfamiliar with The ADA.
Prior to the passage of the ADA, several civil rights laws provided limited protection for people with disabilities.
1968: Architectural Barriers Act was the first federal law addressing civil rights for people with disabilities. This law requires that buildings constructed by the federal government or with federal funding be accessible to people with disabilities. This law also resulted in the first set of standards for the removal of architectural barriers: The Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS).
1973: Rehabilitation Act was the first federal law to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities. This law requires that federally funded programs be accessible to people with disabilities and that federal employers provide reasonable accommodations for their employees with disabilities. Much of the terminology in the Rehabilitation Act was used in the ADA.
1975: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) established the rights of students with disabilities to a free, appropriate public education in the most integrated setting possible. This law mandated that parents and schools work together to design individualized education plans (IEPs) for students with disabilities.
1986: Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) was passed to ensure access to air travel by people with disabilities. The ACAA was passed in response to a Supreme Court decision that found that the Rehabilitation Act did not apply to air travel.
The ADA prohibits discrimination in:
* Title I: Employment
* Title II: State and local government
* Title III: Privately owned businesses
* Title IV: Telecommunications
* Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions
Since the ADA’s passage in 1990, people with disabilities have gained access to a wider variety of services, programs and activities across America . A 1996 poll of 1,330 individuals from 48 states conducted by the United Cerebral Palsy Association found that:
· 96 percent of the respondents said that the ADA has made a difference in the lives of people with disabilities;
· 81 percent said that the ADA had made a difference in their own lives;
· 57 percent stated the ADA has resulted in better access to buildings; and
· 46 percent reported greater inclusion of people with disabilities in the community.
However, 75 percent of respondents identified employment as the area where they have observed the least change. Over a decade later, in 2007, the employment rate of people with disabilities is approximately 30%, compared to 75-80% for people without disabilities. Title I, the employment section of the Americans Disability Act (ADA), will be featured in the next issue of Southside Business News.
Cindy has served people with disabilities and interpreted for the Deaf since February 1975. Cindy’s background includes the continuum from infants who are “at risk” for developmental delays to elderly persons with severe disabilities, in Colorado and Montana . Cindy has also instructed specialized sign language courses since 1979. For more Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA ) information, please visit http://www.adainformation.org/.
Real Estate Divorce Specialists Create New Niche
- In the ever-competitive real estate industry, real estate
professionals are always looking for ways to stand out from the crowd
and attract more clients. Most real estate professionals have worked
with at least one client that was experiencing a divorce. Divorce,
unfortunately, is very common in the U.S., with over half of all
marriages ending in divorce.
Divorcing couples comprise a large portion of the real estate market. In
over 72% of all divorce cases, the parties involved are either buying a
house, or selling a house, or both. This creates a demand for a real
estate professional who understand the special problems and laws that
govern the dissolution of a marriage.
Certified Real Estate Divorce Specialists are trained in the legal and
tax aspects of the divorce process as it relates to real estate. They
learn obscure legal implications that even many divorce attorneys don't
understand. This specific training allows them to help divorcing couples
get a fair and equitable division of real estate and avoid pitfalls
common in a divorce.
Carol Ann Wilson of Longmont, Colorado, developed the Real Estate
Divorce Specialist program. Wilson is widely recognized as the nation's
foremost expert on marital financial issues and the leader in the field
of divorce financial planning. As a Certified Financial Planner, she has
been doing pre-divorce financial consulting since 1985.
Gregg Greenstein, JD, a nationally recognized Colorado divorce and real
estate attorney, teaches the first day of class. Greenstein, who has
been in practice for over 20 years, has taught dozens of divorce classes
for real estate brokers.
"Divorcing couples are going through one of the most stressful times in
their lives and they need all the help they can get," Wilson says.
"They are looking for a professional who not only empathizes with what they're
going through, but who understands the tax and legal implications of
dividing real estate in a divorce."
Wilson is promoting her program as a way for real estate professionals
to create a niche in the large and competitive real estate industry.
Wilson is no stranger to creating niches. In 1993, she founded the
Institute for Certified Divorce Planners in order to train attorneys,
CPAs and financial professionals in the financial issues of divorce.
Since she created this new niche in the financial planning industry,
hundreds of divorce practitioners have been trained and are now
practicing all over the U.S.
"Any time you can develop a niche and stand apart from the crowd, you
will benefit your practice," Wilson says. "In the real estate market,
divorce cases result in a significant number of real estate
transactions, so it is an excellent niche to develop. As a Certified
Real Estate Divorce Specialist, you can stand out from the crowd and
become the real estate professional of choice for divorcing couples and
their attorneys."
Real Estate Divorce Specialist Certification Training
July 30-31, 2008
Penrose Library
20 N. Cascade Ave., Colorado Springs, CO 80903
http://www.RealEstateDivorceSpecialist.com
professionals are always looking for ways to stand out from the crowd
and attract more clients. Most real estate professionals have worked
with at least one client that was experiencing a divorce. Divorce,
unfortunately, is very common in the U.S., with over half of all
marriages ending in divorce.
Divorcing couples comprise a large portion of the real estate market. In
over 72% of all divorce cases, the parties involved are either buying a
house, or selling a house, or both. This creates a demand for a real
estate professional who understand the special problems and laws that
govern the dissolution of a marriage.
Certified Real Estate Divorce Specialists are trained in the legal and
tax aspects of the divorce process as it relates to real estate. They
learn obscure legal implications that even many divorce attorneys don't
understand. This specific training allows them to help divorcing couples
get a fair and equitable division of real estate and avoid pitfalls
common in a divorce.
Carol Ann Wilson of Longmont, Colorado, developed the Real Estate
Divorce Specialist program. Wilson is widely recognized as the nation's
foremost expert on marital financial issues and the leader in the field
of divorce financial planning. As a Certified Financial Planner, she has
been doing pre-divorce financial consulting since 1985.
Gregg Greenstein, JD, a nationally recognized Colorado divorce and real
estate attorney, teaches the first day of class. Greenstein, who has
been in practice for over 20 years, has taught dozens of divorce classes
for real estate brokers.
"Divorcing couples are going through one of the most stressful times in
their lives and they need all the help they can get," Wilson says.
"They are looking for a professional who not only empathizes with what they're
going through, but who understands the tax and legal implications of
dividing real estate in a divorce."
Wilson is promoting her program as a way for real estate professionals
to create a niche in the large and competitive real estate industry.
Wilson is no stranger to creating niches. In 1993, she founded the
Institute for Certified Divorce Planners in order to train attorneys,
CPAs and financial professionals in the financial issues of divorce.
Since she created this new niche in the financial planning industry,
hundreds of divorce practitioners have been trained and are now
practicing all over the U.S.
"Any time you can develop a niche and stand apart from the crowd, you
will benefit your practice," Wilson says. "In the real estate market,
divorce cases result in a significant number of real estate
transactions, so it is an excellent niche to develop. As a Certified
Real Estate Divorce Specialist, you can stand out from the crowd and
become the real estate professional of choice for divorcing couples and
their attorneys."
Real Estate Divorce Specialist Certification Training
July 30-31, 2008
Penrose Library
20 N. Cascade Ave., Colorado Springs, CO 80903
http://www.RealEstateDivorceSpecialist.com
Friday, July 4, 2008
Hire a Hero Enlists Salesforce.com and XAware to Assist Veterans
Online Social Network Helps Military Personnel Find Meaningful Employment Following Their Service Commitment
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--XAware, Inc. today announced it is contributing its data integration software and professional services to the Armed Forces Support Foundation’s Hire A Hero network. Hire A Hero is an online social network that provides the infrastructure, tools and support needed for service members to find a quality career upon their return from active duty. Since its founding in January 2007, Hire A Hero has come in contact with over 190,000 service members and helped many transition back into the civilian world.
The vast majority of the transitioning military community is men and women in their 20s. These veterans are comfortable with online social networking tools such as instant messaging, Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn. Similar to these social networking sites, Hire A Hero users are able to create online profiles that can communicate the individual’s story and career objectives. This includes pictures, resumes, podcasts and videos. At the same time, Hire A Hero is working with companies of all sizes, management associations, staffing companies and trade unions to bolster its national network and provide quality job opportunities for service personnel.
“The men and women who protect our country should be rewarded, not penalized, for their service,” said Brac Selph, executive director of Hire A Hero. “Unfortunately, the unemployment rate among veterans is consistently higher than non-veterans. And for those that do find work, underemployment can often be a problem. XAware’s pro-bono data exchange services and donated licenses of salesforce.com’s Software-as-a-Service CRM solution have been instrumental in allowing us to connect service members with people who can help them get good, well paying jobs and more importantly connect back into their community. By using XAware’s data integration services and Salesforce to connect service members with volunteers, events and friendly employers, Hire A Hero is helping those who have done the most to protect the American Dream to participate fully in its rewards.”
Hire A Hero uses the Salesforce CRM application to help automate the job placement process for veterans as part of salesforce.com’s 1% Product Donation program. As is the case with the general population, service members use a variety of different computing systems. This produces incoming data in an assortment of formats. In an effort to integrate these different forms of data, Hire A Hero turned to the XAware Plug-in for Salesforce, which is available at the Salesforce.com AppExchange. XAware is an open source product that hides the differences and complexity of data coming from disparate sources. XAware transforms the data into a common format that can be understood and used by Hire-A-Hero’s Salesforce system.
“I am very grateful and pleased with the help I received from Hire A Hero,” said Staff Sergeant Glenn Kaufman of the U.S. Army. “Hire A Hero connected me with a wonderful volunteer coach in my area. Thanks to this program I have received a far greater response from prospective employers than I ever expected. I am forever grateful to Hire a Hero, my career coach and the other organizations that volunteer their services.”
Today’s military community includes more than two million active duty personnel and an additional two million reservists and members of the National Guard. Since military service often removes these people from their normal social and career networks, Hire A Hero offers a way to be re-introduced into the civilian world, and reconnect veterans with their local communities. These veterans use Hire A Hero to search for careers in a variety of categories, by region and key words.
“By utilizing Web 2.0 networking features, Hire A Hero brings together job seekers who have completed their service to our country with military friendly employers,” said Tim Harvey, CEO of XAware, and a veteran of the United States Marine Corps. “Hire A Hero is harnessing the immense power of a viral, Web-based community to build a network that our military people can use as they search for meaningful career opportunities, whether close to home or in a new part of the country.”
“It’s amazing to see an organization like Hire A Hero do such extraordinary work and support it using next generation technologies,” said Suzanne DiBianca, executive director of the Salesforce.com Foundation. “We applaud their efforts and those of the over 4,000 nonprofits around the world using Salesforce to better serve their missions.”
Hire A Hero has also embarked on a campaign to gather one million “Thank You” messages for our troops. The online message board contains messages to remind service members of how much our nation appreciates their sacrifices. For more information, please visit: www.thanksforserving.com.
About XAware, Inc.
XAware is the first company to provide a comprehensive open source data integration solution for creating composite data services. XAware provides users with the ability to rapidly access and integrate data with applications and business processes. Furthermore, XAware makes it possible to transform data, regardless of the source, into reusable components for SOA and Web 2.0 applications. XAware features an Eclipse-based development environment and runtime engine based on the Spring framework that can be implemented to take advantage of almost any IT infrastructure. Companies worldwide, including S1 (NASDAQ: SONE) and Synovus (NYSE: SNV) rely on XAware for their composite data services needs. For community information please visit: www.xaware.org and for corporate information on XAware, please visit: www.xaware.com.
Contacts
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--XAware, Inc. today announced it is contributing its data integration software and professional services to the Armed Forces Support Foundation’s Hire A Hero network. Hire A Hero is an online social network that provides the infrastructure, tools and support needed for service members to find a quality career upon their return from active duty. Since its founding in January 2007, Hire A Hero has come in contact with over 190,000 service members and helped many transition back into the civilian world.
The vast majority of the transitioning military community is men and women in their 20s. These veterans are comfortable with online social networking tools such as instant messaging, Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn. Similar to these social networking sites, Hire A Hero users are able to create online profiles that can communicate the individual’s story and career objectives. This includes pictures, resumes, podcasts and videos. At the same time, Hire A Hero is working with companies of all sizes, management associations, staffing companies and trade unions to bolster its national network and provide quality job opportunities for service personnel.
“The men and women who protect our country should be rewarded, not penalized, for their service,” said Brac Selph, executive director of Hire A Hero. “Unfortunately, the unemployment rate among veterans is consistently higher than non-veterans. And for those that do find work, underemployment can often be a problem. XAware’s pro-bono data exchange services and donated licenses of salesforce.com’s Software-as-a-Service CRM solution have been instrumental in allowing us to connect service members with people who can help them get good, well paying jobs and more importantly connect back into their community. By using XAware’s data integration services and Salesforce to connect service members with volunteers, events and friendly employers, Hire A Hero is helping those who have done the most to protect the American Dream to participate fully in its rewards.”
Hire A Hero uses the Salesforce CRM application to help automate the job placement process for veterans as part of salesforce.com’s 1% Product Donation program. As is the case with the general population, service members use a variety of different computing systems. This produces incoming data in an assortment of formats. In an effort to integrate these different forms of data, Hire A Hero turned to the XAware Plug-in for Salesforce, which is available at the Salesforce.com AppExchange. XAware is an open source product that hides the differences and complexity of data coming from disparate sources. XAware transforms the data into a common format that can be understood and used by Hire-A-Hero’s Salesforce system.
“I am very grateful and pleased with the help I received from Hire A Hero,” said Staff Sergeant Glenn Kaufman of the U.S. Army. “Hire A Hero connected me with a wonderful volunteer coach in my area. Thanks to this program I have received a far greater response from prospective employers than I ever expected. I am forever grateful to Hire a Hero, my career coach and the other organizations that volunteer their services.”
Today’s military community includes more than two million active duty personnel and an additional two million reservists and members of the National Guard. Since military service often removes these people from their normal social and career networks, Hire A Hero offers a way to be re-introduced into the civilian world, and reconnect veterans with their local communities. These veterans use Hire A Hero to search for careers in a variety of categories, by region and key words.
“By utilizing Web 2.0 networking features, Hire A Hero brings together job seekers who have completed their service to our country with military friendly employers,” said Tim Harvey, CEO of XAware, and a veteran of the United States Marine Corps. “Hire A Hero is harnessing the immense power of a viral, Web-based community to build a network that our military people can use as they search for meaningful career opportunities, whether close to home or in a new part of the country.”
“It’s amazing to see an organization like Hire A Hero do such extraordinary work and support it using next generation technologies,” said Suzanne DiBianca, executive director of the Salesforce.com Foundation. “We applaud their efforts and those of the over 4,000 nonprofits around the world using Salesforce to better serve their missions.”
Hire A Hero has also embarked on a campaign to gather one million “Thank You” messages for our troops. The online message board contains messages to remind service members of how much our nation appreciates their sacrifices. For more information, please visit: www.thanksforserving.com.
About XAware, Inc.
XAware is the first company to provide a comprehensive open source data integration solution for creating composite data services. XAware provides users with the ability to rapidly access and integrate data with applications and business processes. Furthermore, XAware makes it possible to transform data, regardless of the source, into reusable components for SOA and Web 2.0 applications. XAware features an Eclipse-based development environment and runtime engine based on the Spring framework that can be implemented to take advantage of almost any IT infrastructure. Companies worldwide, including S1 (NASDAQ: SONE) and Synovus (NYSE: SNV) rely on XAware for their composite data services needs. For community information please visit: www.xaware.org and for corporate information on XAware, please visit: www.xaware.com.
Contacts
BROADMOOR Announces New Director of National Sales – Southeast Region
(BUSINESS WIRE)--Director of Sales and Marketing David C. Fine announced that Ms. Michelle MacMullen has become the newest member of The BROADMOOR sales team. Ms. MacMullen will be responsible for sales in the Southeast Region and brings eight years of experience in the hospitality industry.
Ms. MacMullen comes to The BROADMOOR from The Ritz-Carlton Palm Beach, FL, where she spent five years as Senior Group Sales Manager-Southeast Market. Prior to that, she held positions at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, FL, and The Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia, PA.
Ms. MacMullen is based in Fort Myers, FL, where she will be positioned among key clients in the Southeast. She is a graduate of Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven, CT, and has a husband and two young children.
The BROADMOOR is the longest-running consecutive winner of both the AAA Five-Diamond and the Mobil Travel Guide Five-Star awards. For more information on The BROADMOOR please call 800-634-7711 or visit www.broadmoor.com.
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