Business planning course

BANGOR – New Ventures is a 12-week business planning course which covers, in depth, topics such as the customer, the competition, marketing, financial record keeping, taxes, legal aspects, financing and much more. It will be presented March 29 to June 14 at University College of Bangor.

At the end of 12 weeks, participants will have a written business plan. The course qualifies for three UMA credits, with a small processing fee. Class size is limited to 15.

Applications for participating in the class are due Wednesday, March 21. An orientation will be held 9:30-11:30 a.m. Thursday, March 22, at University College.

For an application form or more information, call Jane Searles, 262-7843, at Women, Work and Community; or call (800) 4422-2092 or e-mail searles@maine.edu.

Business tax seminar

BANGOR – The Penobscot County Cooperative Extension will sponsor a Small Business Tax Seminar will be held 6-9 p.m. Wednesday, March 14, at 307 Maine Ave. The cost to attend is $5.

This seminar is designed for small business and self-employed taxpayers. It will provide navigation tips and usage guidelines to make www.IRS.gov, the small business owner’s resource. During the session a Web site will be utilized to answer many tax questions. Electronic filing and payment options, educational products, business income and expenses; starting, operating and closing a business and much more is featured on the Web site. Shawn S. Savage of the Internal Revenue Service will present the seminar.

To register, call 942-7396 or (800) 2287-1485 and ask for a registration form. Seating is limited and early registration is advised.

Certified appraiser

OLD TOWN – James W. Sewall Co. announced that Senior Consultant Gerilyn Boss? has been licensed as a certified general appraiser by the Maine Department of Professional and Financial Regulation.

The certification, which requires 3,000 hours of professional appraisal experience, 180 appraisal education hours and a certified general examination, qualifies Boss? to appraise any property in Maine and other states with which the state has a reciprocal agreement.

With more than 20 years’ industry experience, Boss? performs a broad range of appraisals, timber valuations and forest management projects at Sewall.

Since joining the company in 2002, she has appraised timberland and standing timber across the eastern United States, Lake states and Pacific Northwest, as well as conservation easements, common and undivided interests and recreational properties.

She is recognized as playing a key role in the corporate divestiture of timberland in the northeastern and southeastern U.S. With her new certification, Boss? becomes Sewall’s third CGA in the Forestry and Natural Resources Group.

To obtain more information, call Lisa Schoonmaker, communications director, at 827-4456 or visit www.jws.com.

Nonprofit financial oversight

BANGOR – The Institute for Civic Leadership will present “Nonprofit Board Financial Oversight” 8 a.m.-noon Thursday, May 31, at the Dyke Center for Family Business, Husson College, 1 College Circle.

Attendees will gain confidence in their ability to fulfill their fiduciary responsibility as a nonprofit board member. Learn how to read a profit and loss statement, recognize financial warning signs and put the knowledge to work in your own organization.

The cost is $70, $55 per additional person from same group.

For more information, call Wayne Griffin, Institute for Civic Leadership, at 773-3254, Ext. 100, or e-mail wgriffin@civicleadership.org.

Move for realty group

BANGOR – RE/MAX Advantage Realty Group recently relocated to its newly purchased facility at 108 State St. Carolyn Fish, broker and owner of Advantage Realty Group, has been in the realty business in Bangor area for more than 20 years.

“We’re excited about our new office space,” she said. “It accommodates our growth by providing room for additional agents, the Cabela Trophy properties division and the upcoming commercial division.”

Bangor Savings Bank staff welcomed RE/MAX Advantage into its new office building at an open house celebration on Feb. 9, just before the agency’s fourth anniversary.

Jane Irving, senior vice president and mortgage development manager at Bangor Savings Bank, said, “We established a business relationship with Advantage Realty Group some time ago and are pleased to be partners with them in this purchase. We are very happy to see them expand into the Greater Bangor community.”

Carolyn Fish’s son, Jason Fish, is the office manager at RE/MAX Advantage. His previous experience has been building, managing and operating hotels and resorts throughout the United States. Since he joined the RE/MAX team in 2004, he has assisted in the development and advancement of technology tools and resources, which has helped the agents focus more on clients and less on processing paperwork.

“It’s business partnerships like we have with Bangor Savings Bank that benefit small businesses, local communities and the people they serve,” said Carolyn Fish.

Licensed massage therapy

BANGOR – Licensed massage therapist Ellie Montague recently opened a massage space beneath Pine Tree Physical Therapy at 760 Union St.

Montague is a 2002 graduate of the University of Richmond in Virginia and a 2005 graduate of the Virginia School of Massage in Charlottesville, Va. She comes to Bangor as a student of nursing at Husson College and is accepting new massage clients.

Before arriving in Bangor, Montague spent a year in Topsham working for Sue Beaucage as a massage therapist at Beau Bella Salon and Day Spa and contracting with chiropractor Aubrey Gail and massage therapist “Beau” Beaucage at New England Medical Fitness.

The experience of working in a fitness center and with a chiropractor helped shape her philosophy to provide high quality, effective and compassionate therapeutic massage to clients of all ages, she said.

Montague specializes in therapeutic, relaxation, deep tissue, hot stone and pregnancy massage techniques. For information, call 837-8214 or e-mail beladora@hotmail.com.

Do-it-yourself retailer

BREWER – A new Lowe’s soon will be under construction at the northeast corner of Wilson Street and Pierce Road. The store is expected to open in the spring of 2008.

Store officials said the do-it-yourself retailer is known for helping homeowners find the right equipment and supplies to build, improve, beautify and enjoy their homes.

Lowe’s will offer 40,000 products under one roof. The home improvement warehouse store will have 117,000 square feet of retail sales space. A garden center of 31,600 square feet will offer flowers, bushes, trees and garden supplies tailored to the Maine climate and lifestyle.

A store of this size represents an average investment for the company of $18.5 million and creates up to 175 new jobs.

Lowe’s reaches out to the community through partnerships with the American Red Cross, United Way, Habitat for Humanity and the Home Safety Council to create safer homes. In addition, in 2005 Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation contributed more than $13 million to support educational and community projects across the country.

Based in Mooresville, N.C., the 60-year-old company is the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. For more information, visit www.Lowes.com.

Lowe’s opened its first Maine store in 2005. Currently, it has six stores in Maine with a store under construction in Scarborough. It has more than 760 employees in its Maine stores.

Small Business Journalist

BANGOR – Deborah Neuman, producer and host of the “Back to Business” radio show, has been named Maine and New England’s 2007 Small Business Journalist of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

“Back to Business,” a talk radio show for small businesses, can be heard every Saturday on WVOM, the Voice of Maine, 103.9 FM.

Christopher Frank, founder of Intelligent Spatial Technologies in Orono, nominated Neuman for the award.

“Deb’s show highlights small business issues and offers weekly ‘best practice’ tips from business experts,” Frank said. “Her distinguished career has given her the ability to foresee the topics that are of interest to the Maine business community and she always chooses topics relevant to her listening audience.”

Neuman is director of the University of Maine Target Technology Incubator and an authorized associate counselor with the Maine Small Business and Technology Development Centers.

The incubator, a project of the University of Maine’s Office of Research and Economic Development, fosters technology development, commercialization and successful business management practices.

Neuman will be honored at the SBA celebration dinner in May.