Happy Trails Horse Farm will offer tours, food and drinks during its grand opening celebration Oct. 11 from noon to 5 p.m.
The farm, owned by Patrick Smith, has a new horse boarding facility and is located at 740 Bernhardt Road.
A trail ride will begin at 4 p.m., and there will be hayrides every half hour. Raffle tickets for a quilt will be sold to benefit St. Jude Children’s Hospital.
Tax Center opens
Salisbury native Judy Goodman has returned to her hometown to open a Tax Centers of America office at 319 Faith Road in Innes Street Market.
She will be assisted by 15 employees, including another Salisbury native, Joseph Patterson, in providing income tax preparation and e-filing along with bank products for refund anticipation loans.
The office opened Sept. 15 and will hold an open house at 11 a.m. Saturday.
Goodman is also planning to offer a free income tax school to recruit and train tax professionals. No experience is necessary.
Classes for the Comprehensive Income Tax Course will begin at 6 p.m. Oct. 13 at the Faith Road location. They will be taught by Goodman and Teresa Patterson, who have more than 25 years of combined knowledge and experience.
Call 704-267-7738 to reserve a space.
For almost 20 years, Goodman managed a local branch of a nationally known tax office, preparing income tax returns, teaching basic and advanced income tax classes and training employees.
After her three sons, Scott, Brian and Chris, were grown, she moved to Los Angeles in 2003, where she worked for the same company managing the Los Angeles District office and its 550 employees.
In 2005, she became director of audit and compliance for a Los Angeles CPA firm, preparing and presenting audits to the IRS for clients with large or multiple businesses. She also prepared corporate and partnership returns for clients with multiple entities.
“And all of this was to be able to come full circle back to Salisbury to open a new business,” Goodman says. “I love what I do. I truly feel that I have made the most rewarding career choice possible. For me, there is absolutely nothing better than knowing I have helped a client.”
The new business will mean new jobs for local people and free training through Tax Centers of America’s comprehensive income tax class. There will also be promotions and an incentive program for local businesses that will provide money for local scholarships at the end of each tax season.
It will also prepare returns for local law enforcement officers and firemen at no cost if they come in after Feb. 15.
“We feel that they are out there putting their lives on the line every day for our community, and this is one way we can say thank you,” Goodman says.
She also emphasizes that her office will be informed to help clients through the current economic crisis.
Goodman is a Master Tax Preparer who completes continuing education yearly and has taught licensed income tax classes for tax professionals for 25 years.
Patterson attended East Rowan High School and N.C. State University in Raleigh, where he played football. He also worked in Los Angeles for five years, where he was trained by a nationally known tax franchise.
R3 Center workshops
The R3 Center, 164 Dale Earnhardt Blvd., Kannapolis, will offer the following free career development workshops and resume clinics in October for adults in Cabarrus and Rowan counties:
– Is It Time for More Training? 6 p.m. Oct. 7
– Layoff Survival Tips, 9:30 a.m. Oct. 10
– Looking for Work at 50+, 9 a.m. Oct. 11
– Stand Out from the Competition, 6 p.m. Oct. 14
– Looking for Work with a Criminal Record, 9:30 a.m. Oct. 16
– Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, 9:30 a.m. Oct. 23
– What Not to Wear: Interview Fashion, 9:30 a.m. Oct. 24
– Interview Techniques, 9 a.m. Oct. 25
– It’s Not Who You Know n It’s Who You Meet! 9:30 a.m. Oct. 30
The R3 Center will offer free resume clinics to help job searchers improve their current resume or create a new one from scratch at 9 a.m. Oct. 4, 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Oct. 9, 6 p.m. Oct. 15 and 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Oct. 21.
Another workshop, “N.C. Research Campus Careers 101” will also be offered in October. It is designed to help individuals learn more about the types of jobs being created by the N.C. Research Campus and the training and education needed to qualify for such positions. Call 704-216-7201 for a schedule of these workshops and to reserve seats.
Due to the popularity of its free workshops, clients are encouraged to call the center in advance and reserve a seat.
For more information, call 704-216-7201 or visit http://www.rowancabarrus.edu/r3center/.
LMI Builders ranked
LEXINGTON ó LMI Builders Inc., a general contractor based in Lexington, has been recognized in the Business Journal’s annual ranking of the Triad’s 50 fastest-growing privately held companies for 2007.
LMI is the product of a merger with Level Masonry Inc. in 2005.
The company’s projects include the Triangle Fire Department in Lexington and Salisbury Christian Academy in Salisbury.
First Command opens
First Command Financial Services Inc. has opened a new office in Suite 24, 1121 Old Concord Road.
“I am excited to staff First Command’s new local office and continue serving the people of Salisbury,” said Sherry English, financial advisor who has relocated from the former location in Faith. “With other advisors throughout North Carolina and across the country, I’ll continue our shared goal of providing First Command client families the best service possible in the communities where they work and live.”
First Command Financial Services and its subsidiaries, including First Command Bank and First Command Financial Planning, have been assisting American families in their efforts to build wealth, reduce debt and pursue their lifetime financial goals and dreams since 1958. The focus is on consumer behavior as the first and most powerful determinant of results.
Office achievement
Home Health Professionals has been selected the Regional Office of Achievement for the 2008 third quarter.
Regional Director Debbie Day presented a plaque to the Salisbury office to celebrate the recognition.
Also, Jody Kepley, nurse administrator, presented Triad Medical pins to employees for their years of service. They include Anita Frick, office manager, 20 years; Darlene Locklear, registered nurse, and Terri Lee, 10 years; and Michelle Carpenter, registered nurse, five years.
Frick also received a gift in recognition of her continued support and loyalty.
Home Health Professionals and Primary Health Concepts provide care to clients at their homes under the direction of primary care physicians.
Linda Braswell compiles the Rowan Roundup of companies, organizations and individuals. You can submit information about new businesses, honors and management promotions to her at the Salisbury Post, P.O. Box 4639, Salisbury, NC 28145-4639; fax it to 704-639-0003; or e-mail lbraswell@salisburypost.com. Please include a daytime phone number.