Teri Nicely
Realtor, Red Key Realty Leaders
A while ago, I worked with a business coach who asked me what I liked to do outside of Real Estate. She wanted to know what I was passionate about, what motivated me, and brought me joy. These three things emerged: taking and teaching yoga classes, entertaining and bringing people together, and being a lifetime learner. I delight in learning about spiritual growth, physical fitness and health, plant-based diets, real estate trends, and technology. This coach helped me realize how my gifts and passions give purpose to my real estate business. Teaching people about real estate while maintaining a calm personality and demeanor, largely achieved through practicing yoga, helps my clients stay calm and breathe through difficult situations... this defines me as a realtor. Bringing clients into my home for educational parties with a designer or gardener brings me great joy. I love to connect people – clients, friends, contractors, decorators. I make sure I am using these gifts and passions every single day to build a healthy business and serve my clients as well as I can.
Gail Kitsis
Owner, Crazy Bowls and Wraps
People think we are a franchise, but my husband and I own each store. We opened our first location over 25 years ago. We love eating healthy and working out. We couldn’t find healthy fast food in St. Louis, so we decided to open our own restaurant. I always say we were young and dumb when we started. Did you know that we were the first restaurant in St. Louis to serve brown rice, kale, and quinoa? Even though we could eat in our kitchen every day, we intentionally try a new restaurant every week. Especially now. We order out and pick up curbside. St. Louis has some of the best restaurants in the country right in our own back yard, and we support them.
Allison Winkler, DMD
Owner, Kirkwood Family Dental
I don’t think of myself as a female dentist. I’m just a dentist. You should be able to do whatever you want to do regardless of your chromosomes. I am a dentist who is also a business owner. I am so proud of being an employer that my employees can rely on and know is going to support them. Just being able to offer jobs in the first place makes me really proud. I like that people want to come to work. My staff drives to our downtown Kirkwood office from Farmington, Granite City, and Festus. I know that they depend on me for their livelihood, and I take that very seriously. During the COVID-19 crisis, I gave up my salary and committed to paying my employees 75% of their pay while we were closed. My accountant gave me this great piece of advice when I bought the practice, “Pay your people until it hurts because loyalty is something you can’t put a price on.” When we open back up, my staff will stick with me, and I value that. I am committed to supporting each person on my team because everyone matters. I support other small business owners who are dedicated to their staff and their community.
Abby Lapides
Owner, Sugar Creek Gardens
Remember the old saying, "A pansy a day keeps depression at bay?" We are committed to making you smile and brightening your day with plants and flowers. You may notice a few changes here at Sugar Creek. In our commitment to being good stewards to the Earth, we are working on ways to promote a healthy environment. Certain pesticides have proven to be extremely harmful, disrupting the all-important food chain. While we've always limited our use of insecticides in the nursery, we've gone a step further–we've committed through the Missouri Prairie Foundation's Grow Native program not to sell or use these products. To help ease the single-use plastic problem, we've changed our trunk liners from plastic to paper. They'll keep your trunk clean, and can be recycled or composted. Simply place the used liner in your recycle bin or compost bin. Or even better, you can use the liner as an organic weed barrier and soil builder. Just place it where you don't want weeds and top with a bit of mulch or compost. They will naturally break down, enriching your soil. While there is so much we cannot control right now, we continue to look for ways to better our earth and our environment.
Vanda Dilber
Branch Manager, Enterprise Bank & Trust
I enjoy giving back to the Kirkwood community by leading people in a lifetime of financial success. I’ve been in the banking industry for almost ten years, and there is nothing more rewarding than being able to offer solutions to clients and even non-clients that come in with a problem. Enterprise Bank and Trust is committed to the community in ways other than providing banking solutions. We sponsor the reading program for the Kirkwood Library, as well as the fireworks show for the city of Kirkwood. And also, we love raising funds for Kirkwood Youth in Action. Personally, I enjoy collaborating with the schools in Kirkwood. I am passionate about being able to educate young adults on the basics of banking. You would be surprised how many students come into the bank who don’t know how to fill out a withdrawal slip or how to truly use a debit card. To be able to provide an education that prepares young people for the real world is a fantastic feeling.