Local Joe’s owner Jodie Ray Stanfield received the 2017 Alabama Small Business Person of the Year award in Washington, D.C., during National Small Business Week. He is pictured with his wife Karen (left) and Linda McMahon, director of the U.S. Small Business Administration (right).

On May 1, Alabama Retail Association member Jodie Ray Stanfield, owner of Local Joe’s Trading Post in Rainbow City, was awarded the 2017 Alabama Small Business Person of the Year award in Washington, D.C., during National Small Business Week.

As part of National Small Business Week, small business owners from all 50 states and U.S. territories were invited to our nation’s capital, to highlight the impact of outstanding entrepreneurs.

“I am still in awe,” said Stanfield. “It was such an honor to be recognized and to represent Alabama.”

Local Joe’s Trading Post is a small country store owned and operated by Jodie and Karen Stanfield and their family. According to their website, “The smell of freshly smoked pork, chicken, and turkey beckons far before one reaches the destination at the corner of Highway 411 and Pleasant Valley Road. In a day and age when the hustle and bustle of everyday life seems to be overwhelming, it is nice to take a trip somewhere that carries and individual, or family, back to a simpler time. ” The store also sells fresh, local-grown produce.

You can read more about his recognition at the links below:

Local Hero Stanfield is Alabama’s Small Business Person of the Year (al.com)

Local Joes’s and Stanfield Earn Small Business Honor (Gadsden Times)

SBDC Client Named Small Business Person of the Year (Jacksonville State University)

Since 1963, the U.S. president has issued an annual proclamation announcing National Small Business Week, which recognizes the critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners. This year, Small Business Week was April 30 – May 6.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), more than half of Americans either own or work for a small business, and they create about two out of every three new jobs in the United States each year. Every day, they work to grow small businesses, create 21st century jobs, drive innovation and increase America’s global competitiveness.

Here in Alabama, small business is a vital part of life. More than 300,000 small businesses provide around 765,000 jobs, representing the state’s entire workforce, according to the Alabama Small Business Development Center Network.