Kosciusko Leadership Academy cadets learned about “Entrepreneurship in Kosciusko County.” Shown from left are KLA cadet Corbin Holtsberry sponsored by Lake City Bank; Adam Heckaman, owner/ operator at Splendor boats; Caleb Roth, Founder of eFLIP Software and ScoutIQ; Marlene Betances, president and CEO of EnPak; and KLA cadet Chris McKeand, sponsored by Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office.

News Release

WARSAW — The Kosciusko Leadership Academy cadets visited Grace College’s Manahan Orthopedic Capital Center Tuesday, March 19, for a panel discussion with Marlene Betances, president and CEO of EnPak LLC; Adam Heckaman, owner/ operator of Splendor Boats; and Caleb Roth founder of eFLIP Software and ScoutIQ, Empty Shelves, LLC and most recent Stacking Habits Podcast. The topic for the event focused on entrepreneurship in Kosciusko County.

Betances answered questions about lessons learned from starting a company: know your strengths and finding others to fill in the gaps; networking is key, take one step at a time, pick trusted partners, and don’t give up. Betances said, “Perseverance is the key to success.” She also said Kosciusko County has many resources that help entrepreneurs, like KEDCO. EnPak LLC offers services for packaging, labeling, kitting, and warehousing for the medical device industry. Success to her is having good customer and client relationships.

Heckaman runs Splendor Boats with his brother and sister. Not many people know, but Splendor Boats is a fiberglass manufacturing source for the marine industry in Silver Lake. He and his brother and sister added Splendor Boats Service and Sales Company in Warsaw, because they saw a need. Heckaman stated the measure of success to him was the good customer reviews.

Roth spoke about his software programs eFlip and ScoutIQ. Small businesses can use these platforms to determine what books to buy and at what price. He has a new startup called Stacking Habits Podcast. As a serial entrepreneur he shared some advice and questions that helped him discover new business opportunities. Roth wishes during his journey he had talked to the competition earlier, but he said he is learning and reflecting from mistakes. He also believes in building a strong team and also knowing your potential weaknesses; this has helped him succeed.

This KLA session was the last regular session for the academy year. White paper presentations will be presented at “Project Proud” on April 9 at Lake City University starting at 7:30 a.m. A graduation banquet will also be held on April 23 at the Owl’s Nest event center in Syracuse.