University News

PTAC at IIRA Helps Business Moving Veterans From Illinois Veterans Home

March 7, 2019

Share |
Printer friendly version

MACOMB, IL – The Central Illinois Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC), a unit of the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs (IIRA) at Western Illinois University, is helping a Quincy, IL business navigate the state paperwork necessary for them to help move residents while the Illinois Veterans Home (IVH) in Quincy is renovated.

Golden Bridges, Inc. is a senior move management company that works with relocating people, and has specialized training in serving senior citizens with disabilities and/or dementia. Later this month, they will begin moving the residents of the IVH to the new Lester Hammond Hall living facility.

Theresa Ebeler, center director of the IL-PTAC at WIU, said the program works with businesses to navigate federal and state business requirements, as well as provides academic support. PTACs provide one-on-one counseling, technical information, marketing assistance and training to existing business owners who are interested in selling their products and/or services to local, state or federal government agencies.

There is no charge for PTAC's services because the IIRA receives grant funding to help with the process. There are several other PTAC offices located around Illinois.
"For small businesses, navigating the state or federal agencies is an extensive process," said Ebeler.

"Ninety-nine percent of registrations get kicked back and this one was an exception. We talked them through the registration process of getting certified."

Golden Bridges is also working with PTAC on becoming certified as a Woman Owned Business.

Ebeler said Golden Bridges offers a "quality of care approach" to moving that fits well with the needs of the IVH. Movers will set up each resident's new room as closely as possible to their current room so they can adjust to new surroundings more easily.

"Golden Bridges with meet and work with individual residents so they are conscious of their individual needs," she added. "They want to make the move and the transition as seamless as possible."

Golden Bridges will use 11 staff members to sort, pack and unpack each veteran's belongings. The items will be transported by Golden Bridges staff, as well as volunteers from the local American Legion post.

"We started Golden Bridges as three good friends who wanted to do something to contribute to our community," said Nancy Waters, co-founder of Golden Bridges, Inc. "We had all worked in the healthcare industry, and we all had experience working with seniors, so Senior Move Management felt like a natural fit."

The other founders of the business are Susan Scholz and Suzanne Ellerbrock.

"In order to contract with IVH, we needed to become BEP certified," said Ellerbrock, who serves as Golden Bridges president. "PTAC was helping us every step of the way. Theresa was truly interested in us as individuals and in helping us attain our certification. It sailed through on the first try thanks to her assistance. We have also attained certification as a women-owned business, which will help us in the future to attract and attain government contracts, thanks to PTAC."

For more information about PTAC, visit iira.org/rdrg/procurement-technical-assistance-centers-ptacs.

Posted By: Jodi Pospeschil (JK-Pospeschil@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing