A Dickinson County woman is named by the U.S. Small Business Administration as the Iowa Small Business Person of the Year. Joanne Stockdale is a former C-P-A who owns Northern Iowa Die Casting in Lake Park, which makes parts for all sorts of machines. The 56-year-old Stockdale is only the second woman honored as Business Person of the Year in the award’s 40 years in Iowa. While it’s an honor, she says it’s one that “pretty soon, no one will ever mention” as she says more women are entering and succeeding in the fields of engineering and manufacturing. Stockdale bought the factory in 1984 when it only had six employees and annual sales around 225-thousand dollars. Today, she has more than a-hundred workers and has sales over ten-million dollars. She says there are no secrets to reveal, just hard work. She attributes her success to good bankers and what she calls her “dynamite” employees.
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