Mitchell's Home Instead recognized as South Dakota's Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year

Apr. 28—MITCHELL — A Mitchell business is earning recognition from the Small Business Administration (SBA) just days ahead of the United States' annual National Small Business Week.

Home Instead, based on Havens Avenue in Mitchell, was named South Dakota's Veteran-Owned Small Business of the Year, the SBA announced Wednesday.

The Mitchell business, which has a satellite campus in Huron, focuses on providing in-home care to senior citizens in an effort to increase their quality of life and delay the need for seniors to be placed in assisted living facilities or nursing homes.

"Honestly, it's really amazing and surprising. We feel that we do great work, but it's always kind of a shock to have somebody want to recognize you in this way," said Tom Catron, majority-owner of Home Instead. "We are just doing our everyday job, which is to help people, and we're doing it because it feels great."

Though Catron, a Woonsocket-native, may be the one named by the SBA, he shares credits with his sister and co-owner, Tana Slykhuis, a career nurse.

Home Instead was eligible for the award as Catron served as a major of military intelligence with the U.S. Army National Guard in Pennsylvania. He served one tour in Kosovo in 2005, before retiring from the armed services in 2015.

Upon his retirement, he chose to return to Mitchell to be closer with his family. When Slykhuis' mother-in-law, who founded Home Instead in 2002, was ready to retire, Slykhuis asked Catron if he'd be interested in taking over the business with her.

"When my sister asked if I wanted to partner with her, it was really the right opportunity at the right time. We both always wanted to help our communities," Catron said. "It was just 100% what I needed at that moment, and being able to help people stay in their homes and age gracefully still drives me today."

Though Home Instead doesn't provide in-home medical services, Catron said they offer senior citizens the opportunity to stay as comfortable as possible in their own homes for longer through services such as housekeeping, providing meals, assisting with personal care and more.

"As people age, they don't want to leave home to go to an assisted living or nursing home, and they don't really need to. Right now, there's limited capacity in a lot of those facilities," Catron said. "What we're able to do is come into someone's home and help with non-medical aspects that allow them to stay in their home a little bit longer. That really lets those people stay living in their homes, in the settings where they're most comfortable."

Catron said the business provides services to about 100 clients, mostly in larger, East River cities, but noted services are available in all the small towns in between.

Beyond providing a necessary service, another qualification for the SBA award is service outside of a business.

"We try to be active in our community and help with local fundraisers and events like that," Catron said. "We organized a cancer fundraiser not too long ago, for example. We've been active in donating and participating in many other fundraisers in the area."

Catron cited the business' work with Mitchell's CASA, a non-profit organization who focuses on assuring safe and nurturing environments for abused and neglected children through assigned volunteers who advocate on the child's behalf.

"We also try to participate in any dementia or senior-related activities. Every Christmas, we organize a charity event called Be a Santa to a Senior," Catron said. "For that, we find disadvantaged seniors in the area and we sponsor a tree where we'll put their gift wishes up on the tree."

After collecting donations, the senior will receive the items that were on their wish-list.

"A lot of people are not aware of the areas where we work and the services we offer," Catron said. "They're always welcome to call us and we're happy to help them through anything."

As part of the week-long celebration that inspired the award, the SBA's South Dakota District Office will award a Small Business Person of the Year in a May 3 virtual ceremony, which is open to the public.

"National Small Business Week is a pinnacle celebration each year, where we collectively honor and amplify South Dakota's top business owners," said Jaime Wood,director of the South Dakota District of the SBA "This year's winners are an outstanding representation of the nearly 90,000 small businesses owners across our state. They work tirelessly to create employment opportunities, provide much needed products and services, and go the extra mile to volunteer time and talent where needed for advisory boards, community projects, and events."

Others recognized by the SBA on Wednesday include:

* Woman-Owned Small Business of the Year: Tara Pirak, Valley Ag Supply, Inc., Gayville

* Young Entrepreneurs of the Year: Robert "Zane" Swan and Stephen Swan, HeSapa Enterprises LLC, Rapid City

* Small Business Champion of the Year: Bill Zortman, Radio Host, "It's Your Business", KELO AM 1320, Sioux Falls

* Small Business Person of the Year: Karla Santi, Chief Executive Officer/Founder, Blend Interactive, Inc., Sioux Falls

* Small Business Exporter of the Year: Mark Luecke, Prairie AquaTech, Brookings;

* Family-Owned Small Business of the Year: The Novstrup Family, Wylie Thunder Road, Aberdeen

* Minority-Owned Small Business of the Year: Mulugeta and Marta Endayeau, Lalibela Restaurant, Sioux Falls

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