South Palm Beach SCORE to be Honored by U.S. Small Business Administration during National Small Business Week in Washington, DC

HERNDON, Va., May 18, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- SCORE –www.score.org-, mentors to America's small business, is proud to announce that the U.S. Small Business Administration -www.sba.gov- will present South Palm Beach SCORE with the National SCORE Chapter of the Year award during National Small Business Week, May 20th – 26th in Washington, DC. South Palm Beach SCORE was chosen to receive this award from the SBA thanks to the strong relationships they've built in their local small business community, the programs they've developed assisting veterans & young entrepreneurs, and their efforts to expand the reach of their chapter to new entrepreneurs and small business owners.

"Our feeling is we want to give back to this country," said Hal Finkelstein, South Palm Beach SCORE Chapter Chair. "We all recognize the fact that our country needs entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs generate the majority of jobs in this country and we are in a position to help more and more entrepreneurs succeed and that's what we want to do."

South Palm Beach SCORE helped over 5,000 small businesses in FY2011. Jennifer Suzuki, SCORE client and President of e-Dealer Solutions, says "With SCORE, you feel like you're never alone and as a small business owner you often feel alone at the top. It's nice to have resources like SCORE and like my mentor, Martin Kahn that donate their time to help people like me contribute to not only our state but to our nation."

South Palm Beach SCORE has also started a number of programs that have helped their community grow, including:

• Joining with Lynn University, Palm Beach State College, and Florida Atlantic University to assist with Veteran Affairs, Government Trade Shows, and Mentoring Business School students & alumni.
• Forming a program with the Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce to provide a 33 week course working with area students, ages 11-18, focused on successfully starting and operating a small business.
• Creating the Veterans Grant Program to help returning Iraq and Afghanistan vets start or grow their own business. South Palm Beach SCORE members funded the program by donating over a quarter of a million dollars of their own money to get the program off the ground

"I am proud that South Palm Beach SCORE has been chosen as the National SCORE Chapter of the Year. Hal Finkelstein and the members of his chapter have gone above and beyond our expectations," said SCORE CEO Ken Yancey. "I have followed South Palm Beach SCORE, as they have grown over the past five years, and it was never a matter of if they would become SCORE Chapter of the Year, but when."

For more information, visit http://www.score.org/chapter-of-the-year.

About SCORE
Since 1964, SCORE has helped more than 9 million aspiring entrepreneurs. Each year SCORE helps launch 58,000 new businesses and create 71,000 jobs. SCORE provides small business mentoring and workshops to more than 375,000 new and growing small businesses annually.

For more information about starting or operating a small business, call 1-800/634-0245 for the SCORE chapter nearest you. Visit SCORE at www.score.org. Connect with SCORE at http://www.facebook.com/SCOREFans and www.twitter.com/SCOREMentors.

Contact Information
Shalini Karnani Bonjour
703-487-3645 
[email protected]

SOURCE SCORE