FYI: Business

Source: Tulsa World, Okla.mini storageOct. 27--Creek Nation slates Education & Career ExpoThe Muscogee (Creek) Nation's Department of Education & Training is hosting its first Education & Career Expo from 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 7 at the Beggs High School Dome in Beggs.More than 30 employers, college and technical schools will be attending. For more information, call 918-732-7776.Pediatric urgent care opens at 51st and HarvardDr. Ethan Warlick recently opened PediStat-Pediatric Urgent Care at the southeast corner of 51st Street and Harvard Avenue in the Country Club Plaza.Warlick previously was the director of the Pediatric Emergency Center at Saint Francis Hospital in Tulsa for five years and had been at Saint Francis for 11 years.PediStat takes a customized approach to family-centered, evidence-based pediatric medicine.Tulsa's BlueSpeed AV honored at dealer awardsTulsa's BlueSpeed AV was honored with two awards at the 2013 Control4 dealer awards.BlueSpeed AV received the Midwest Regional MVP and the award for the best whole home under $100,000.The awards recognize those who have excelled with business practices, service and technical support for clients, sales volume, and through innovative Control4 projects within commercial and residential spaces.BlueSpeed AV provides home and commercial automation and lighting control design in Tulsa and northeast Oklahoma and specializes in the integration of audio, video, lighting, temperature and securityBlueSpeed was founded by Ryan Sullivan in 2007 after six years in the satellite industry.Small Business Banking Forum set for Nov. 9A Small Business Banking Forum will be held from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Greenwood Cultural Center, 322 N. Greenwood Ave.Small business owners, bankers and other lenders are among those welcome to attend. Attendees can learn how banks underwrite loan requests, about sources of equity for businesses and nonbank sources of debt financing, resources for business owners, and more.The forum is free, but advance registration is required. RSVP to Gloria Reynolds by the close of business on Nov. 4 by emailing glreynolds@fdic.gov or call 972-761-2413.Tulsa-area leaders earn Bronze Quill AwardsTulsa-area communications professionals were honored by during the annual International Association of Business Communicators Bronze Quill Awards held at the Tulsa Historical Society.Bob Portiss, port director of the Tulsa Port of Catoosa, was named the 2013 Communicator of the Year for promoting Tulsa's economy and bringing additional business to the area.Shannon Frederick, senior director of Global Associate Communications at Wal-Mart, received the John Hartman Professional of the Year award. Frederick was recognized for her efforts that included serving as president of IABC/Tulsa during a time of growth and recognition for the organization. Under Frederick's leadership, IABC/Tulsa was named the 2013 Small Chapter of the Year and the 2013 International Chapter of the year.Angela Byers of Byers Creative was awarded the Leon Bolen Service Award, which honors an IABC member for volunteerism and support of the chapter's goals.Awards of Excellence went to: Jennifer Rector, Grace Durbin and Brad Borror, all of ONEOK Inc.; ONEOK Communications; ONEOK; Rex PR; Sam's Club Internal Communications Team; Sharon Price, Ron Joyce and Brian Yazzie, Cherokee Nation Businesses.Other Awards of Excellence went to Ginger Homan, Sherry Nelson and Justin Johnson, MODA; Kiley Roberson, Rose Rock Midstream; Keith Isbell and Steve Higgins, Williams Cos. Inc.; Sharon Price, Craig Henry, Joshua Smith and Jessica Land, Cherokee Nation Businesses.BOK launches HomeDirect Mortgage online salesTulsa-based BOK Financial Corp. has launched HomeDirect Mortgage, an online sales channel designed to meet home buyers who shop for mortgages at home, the office or on the go.The new channel complements BOK Financial's mortgage operation that originated about $4 billion in loans in 2012.HomeDirect Mortgage is based in Kaself storagesas City, Kan., and is a division of BOK Financial, a multibillion-dollar regional financial services company.HomeDirect Mortgage directly solicits mortgage consumers nationwide through online loan aggregators and meets the needs of consumers who are shopping for mortgages online.With the launch of HomeDirect Mortgage, BOK Financial Mortgage will partner with several of the top mortgage lead aggregators in the United States, including Leads 360, Leadqual, Leadpoint, Schwartz Closings and Zillow.For more information, visit homedirectmortgage.comInland Truck Parts & Service opens second siteInland Truck Parts & Service has expanded its presence in the Tulsa area with a second location at 300 N. Hickory Ave. in Broken Arrow to provide full-service truck repair and maintenance.The new service shop, formerly Midwest Diesel, is open weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.Inland General Manager Jay Oney in a release noted that in late 2014 the business plans to consolidate everything under one roof for customer convenience.The new Inland service capability covers everything from light-, medium- and heavy-duty trucks to SUVs and 4x4s. The service provides customers everything from diagnostics to extensive repairs.Established in 1944, Inland offers parts and shop services at 28 locations in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.Commercial launder Clean opens a new Tulsa siteClean, a company that serves as a commercial launder for industry and health care, opened a new Tulsa facility at 1223 N. 105th East Ave.The new 8,000-square-foot facility will employ about 10 people with room for expansion. Clean's current office at 4281 S. Sheridan Road will be consolidated into the new facility.A ribbon cutting Wednesday coincided with the 75th anniversary of Clean's founding in 1938 in St. Louis. The family-owned business is now in its third generation.Clean has facilities in Tulsa and Oklahoma City as well as in Missouri and Illinois.The firm provides a variety of products and services including health care, industrial, executive and casual workplace apparel; safety and specialty apparel; dust-control programs; apparel leasing and sales; and custom-designed programs. Clean maintains a staff of some 400 employees and serves customers in Oklahoma, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Kansas and Illinois.Small business lending rises in OklahomaThe U.S. Department of the Treasury reported that Oklahoma institutions receiving capital through the Small Business Lending Fund have increased their small business lending by $490 million over baseline levels.Nationwide, participants receiving capital through the program boosted small business lending by $10.4 billion over baseline levels since the depths of the recession and $1.4 billion over the prior quarter.Participating Oklahoma community banks in the program had a $40.4 million increase in small business lending in the 2013 second quarter.The SBLF program, established as part of the Small Business Jobs Act that President Barack Obama signed into law in 2010, encourages community banks to increase their lending to small businesses, helping those companies expand their operations and create new jobs.Treasury invested more than $4 billion in 332 institutions through the SBLF. Collectively, these institutions operate in more than 3,000 locations across 48 states.SBLF encourages lending to small businesses by providing capital to community banks and Community Development Loan Funds with less than $10 billion in assets. The dividend or interest rate a community bank pays on SBLF funding is reduced as the bank increases its lending to small businesses -- providing a strong incentive for new lending to small businesses so that these firms can expand and create jobs.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) Visit Tulsa World (Tulsa, Okla.) at .tulsaworld.com Distributed by MCT Information Services迷你倉