Small-business awards and some musical chairs

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

It’s red carpet season in the small-business world.

As part of the local celebration of Small Business Week, the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and the Small Business Administration will honor 13 entrepreneurs and small business boosters at a luncheon at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles on Thursday.

Winners include aircraft designer Igor Pasternak of Worldwide Aeros Corp. in Montebello, who will be named small business person of the year. John Krikorian, editor and founder of Business Life magazine in Glendale, will be named small business journalist of the year.

The awards come against a backdrop of change at the local SBA level, where the progression of musical chairs is getting a little dizzying.

Here are the changes we know about: Alberto G. Alvarado, director of the SBA’s Los Angeles District, is in Washington detached on a project having to do with contracting. Taking his place at the awards luncheon will be Adalberto Quijada, who has left his post as director of the Orange County office to become acting director of the L.A. office. The deputy director of the Santa Ana office, Rachel Baranick, is now acting director of that office. The western region of the SBA, which includes Nevada, California, Arizona, Hawaii and Guam, also has an acting director: John M. Quinn. He’s filling in after the departure of Bruce C. Thompson, an appointee of President George W. Bush, until a permanent appointment can be made. All this was told to me by Christopher Lorenzana, spokesman for the Santa Ana office, who is himself leaving soon to become spokesman for the western regional office in Glendale.

Here is a link to the list of Small Business Award winners.

-- Sharon Bernstein