Post-pandemic party planning
Event planners see increased demand as restrictions ease By Carey Smith Audrey Kondelis got her start in party planning last summer, inspired after a fire at MJ’s Fish and Chicken Express closed the restaurant for an extended time. Kondelis’ birthday was approaching and as she says, “I felt bad for them, and I thought, [...]
2021 Women of Influence
Click to view the 2021 Women of Influence
Q & A Dr. Charlotte Warren
By Lana Shovlin
Carole Keating takes the reins – Springfield entrepreneur adds more businesses to her portfolio
By David Blanchette Carole Keating’s entrepreneurial success can be simply summed up. “I really don’t take ‘no’ for an answer,” Keating said. “If I hit an obstacle, I always keep going. That pretty much sums it up, perseverance and hard work.” That perseverance has paid off, most recently with Keating’s acquisition of Egizii Electric, located [...]
Businesses adjust to railway corridor expansion
By Carey Smith As the Springfield Railway Improvements Project moves toward completion, an increasing number of businesses have been impacted, with more to come. Benmar Sunrooms was the first business to be displaced in 2014, and since then, an additional 18 businesses have had to relocate as a result of work taking place along the [...]
2020 15 Under Fifteen
This is the 18th year that Springfield Business Journal has partnered with United Community Bank to recognize 15 outstanding small businesses in the local area. To qualify, a business must be located in Sangamon or Morgan county, have been open for at least two years and have 15 or fewer full-time employees. A business is [...]
Businesses help parents with remote learning
By Holly Whisler Springfield business MB Heating & Cooling realized that many of their employees were facing a dilemma: go to work, or stay home with kids who are learning remotely. General manager Doug Gholson explained that last spring, the company had a plumber and an installer who could not work a full week because [...]
A Q&A with Dr. W.G. Robinson-McNeese
By Lana Shovlin Dr. Wesley Robinson-McNeese has been a soldier and a student, a pastor and a physician. He grew up in East St. Louis and tried college after graduating high school, but ultimately joined the military and was sent to Vietnam. At the age of 30, he returned to college and then graduated [...]