KidVentures award winners are, from left, top: Antonio Argiz, Melissa Giles, Marcus Rivero, Carmen Morris and George Yap; bottom: Tesharie Spaulding, Melissa Bandera, Julene Leurmond and Destin Jones.

"Business Flair Recognized" The Miami Herald, May 19, 2005

Tesharie Spaulding has an easy smile, a quick laugh and a killer sales instinct. That combination helped the 12-year-old from Charles Drew Middle School sell more decorated mugs, called Friendship Cups, than any of her classmates. But no one accuses her of being in business for the money - she gave 100 percent of her profits to charity.

Keeping the heart from getting buried in the balance book is what KidVentures has been trying to instill in young entrepreneurs such as Spaulding since it was founded in 1999.

And on Thursday, the organization honored that spirit in nine entrepreneurs - ranging from a fifth-grader to a 52-year-old - during its first Generations of Entrepreneurship Awards.

George Yap , the founder of LEASA Industries, one of Florida 's largest growers of tofu, bean and alfalfa sprouts, was given the Lifetime Achievement Award. The oldest of the honorees, Yap recalled arriving in Miami virtually broke in 1976 and struggling to keep his business and dilapidated van running. His company at 2450 NW 76th St. , in Liberty City finally succeeded, he said, in no small part due to his willingness to give people a second chance. In former convicts, he has found some of his best workers, and noted that anybody can make a mistake.

``Police chiefs go to jail, politicians go to jail, even Martha Stewart goes to jail - so what?'' he asked. ``If you can help someone, someone else will help you.''

Antonio Argiz , the managing partner of the accounting firm Morrison, Brown, Argiz & Farra at 1001 Brickell Bay Dr. ; and Carmen Morris , the president of the public relations and marketing outfit Carmen Morris & Associates, at 15074 SW 127th Ct. , were given the Distinguished Entrepreneur Award.

Through her nonprofit foundation called Sanctuary of Moses Ministries, Morris is building homes and a school in Benin, West Africa, for 400 children who have been rescued from slavery in that country.

In an emotional speech, she called giving to others - regardless of one's station in life - the best lesson adults can pass on to youngsters.

``Their role models aren't actors or actresses but you and me. And we need to show them our best,'' she said.

The Emerging Entrepreneur Awards went to Marcus Rivero, who launched the online wheel and tire store Wheelguyz.com, headquartered at 5620 NW 161st St. in Hialeah ; and Melissa Giles , the founder of Soulfrito, an urban Latin music festival and Misto Marketing and Management at 555 NE 15th St . Along with running successful businesses, the 20-somethings are both giving back to the community - Rivero at a homeless shelter and Giles through her cultural work.

Julene Fleurmond , a freshman at the University of Miami , and Melissa Bandera , a senior at Hialeah High School , were given the Youth Entrepreneurship Award. Fleurmond founded Envibrance Design Studios, www.envibrance.com, a company that is helping inner-city and minority businesses develop an on-line presence. She has also won numerous awards for her community work and for founding HeART for Humanity, an inner-city arts mentoring organization.

Bandera's flair for marketing has turned her Meli's Jewelry business into a success and inspired her to be a small business booster in her community.

And then, of course, there were the kids of the KidVentures Awards. Destin Jones, a fifth-grader at South Miami Elementary School , and Tesharie Spaulding were given the Very Young Entrepreneurs Awards.

Just two of the 700 schoolchildren who have participated in the KidVentures program since its inception, they both excelled at their school-based companies.

Jones said he sold bookmarks and other items to classmates and to employees at Carnival Cruise Lines. But despite his knack for sales, he's not sure it's a sign of things to come.

`I think I'd like to be a lawyer,'' he said. ``No. No. I want to be an architect . . . or an engineer.''