Meanwhile by Mary is a one-woman business located in Brookston, Indiana, about 13 miles north of Purdue University. Perhaps Brookston’s biggest claim to fame is their annual fall Apple Popcorn Festival. But Brookston also has another side - over the years several entrepreneurial startups have taken root in the Brookston area. The first that I was personally involved with is Dave’s Computer World, started by David Alm in the early nineties, it grew from a hobby and is the longest lasting computer store I’m aware of in the general area. Started in a small corner of his father’s wooden string instrument shop, in time Dave has taken over several adjacent office spaces and is a a very interesting lifestyle business. If you are going through Brookston, stop in and chat with David, you’ll be glad you did.

Another interesting lifestyle but entrepreneurial firm in Brookston is TwinRocker. Started in 1971 to provide handmade paper to a narrow target market, TwinRocker continues to flourish today in the corn fields of Brookston. Check out their website - it is an interesting story.

But I digress. In Sunday’s Journal & Courier, Phaedra Ellington had an interesting  story about a new business in Brookstone named Meanwhile by Mary. Mary Donley also has an interesting story behind her product, “Bang-dana.” And what, you ask, is Bang-dana? Her web site states it’s “an affordable, individually handmade, casual alternative to the wig or hat for everyday use by patients undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer or alopecia.” Mary provides the following background into why she started Meanwhile by Mary:

“I am a retired hairdresser and retired registered nurse; I’ve been sewing for 52 years, so when my sister Nancy Powell began battling cancer this year I stepped up to my sewing machine and without much thought I figured a way to make “bang-danas” with hair and puffiness on top to simulate a hiding head of hair.  After making 12, I began to sew bangs onto soft lace and into Velcro so that she could interchange bangs into a variety of scarves.  Her feed back was so positive, she begged me to share this wig alternative with others going through this temporary indignity.  After months of dismissing the idea, I realized that there is a real need and I have time and ability to help other women and girls in this situation.  Thus MEANWHILE began.”

Phaefra notes in her J&C article that a percentage of Mary’s profits will go toward cancer research, and there is a silent benefactor who matches an additional 25 % of all sales toward cancer research also.

Must be something in the water in the Brookston area that incubates the entrepreneurial spirit. Here’s a last example:

Two Cookin’ Sisters, a small specialty food company co-owned by sisters, Kristi Robinson Rensberger and Kim Robinson. Purdue University graduates & 10-year 4-H members, the sisters decided to put their backgrounds in food and marketing into building Two Cookin’ Sisters. Their mother, Carolyn Robinson, also a Purdue graduate and the girls’ onetime 4-H leader, works at the stove and offers her endless support and love for jam!

Two Cookin’ Sisters Specialty Food Co. & Shop opened their doors in May 2005 filling the shelves with their delicious specialty food products, art, gift items and other specialty foods- all made in Indiana! In 2006 they started a related business also in Brookston. Encouraged by their success, one of the sisters wrote a booklet, the details of which follow:

How We Started Our Small Specialty Food Company

Two Cookin’ Sisters- Big Sister Salsa
By Kim Robinson $9.95 Booklet

“A quick lesson is how to start your own small specialty food business. Learn the lessons from the road with Two Cookin’ Sisters and their experience in starting their salsa side business that has grown into a full-time specialty food production company and retail store. Enjoy their story, tips and advice.”

I’d better stop - this blog is turning into a book instead of a blog entry. Brookston, Indiana does indeed serve as a starting place for many diverse startups - all in the middle of where? Hank