SIFE team honored by Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce

January 28, 2008

by Darla Martin Tucker

More than 1,000 people at the Riverside Convention Center Jan. 24 gave a standing ovation honoring a La Sierra University team and its leader.

For the third time in 15 years, the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce conferred its annual Hero Award on La Sierra’s Students In Free Enterprise team and the team’s founding advisor, Johnny Thomas, dean of the School of Business.

The La Sierra team won the 2007 World Cup last October during Students In Free Enterprise competitions in New York City. They beat 43 teams from around the world for their economic empowerment projects during 2006 and 2007.

Craig G. Blunden, board chairman of the Riverside chamber and chairman, president and chief executive officer of Provident Financial Holdings Inc., presented the crystal Hero Award during Riverside’s annual State of the City event. The State of the City is a venue in which Riverside Mayor Ron Loveridge outlines the city’s finances, economic development projects and other issues.

 “Our campus is incredibly proud of the wonderful students who make up our World Champion Students in Free Enterprise Team, and mindful of the time, commitment and passion that each student brings to their work,” University President Randal Wisbey said upon accepting the award.

“It is also a marked privilege to be able to represent the city of Riverside, during competition, to colleges and universities across the United States and around the world,” he said.

La Sierra’s SIFE programs range from educating more than 700 people in Riverside County on business aspects of starting child care centers to helping villagers in Kalaala, Ethiopia establish a medical scrubs manufacturing plant.

Thomas led the students to U.S. championship victories in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2002 and 2007, and a World Cup win in 2002.

During last May’s national competition in Dallas, SIFE’s leadership inducted Thomas into the National SIFE Hall of Fame.

The Riverside chamber of commerce honored the La Sierra team’s accomplishments with the Hero Award in 1994 and 2002.

“It’s amazing that we would get recognized once, but to be honored three times is fantastic,” Thomas said.

"It was a great honor to be recognized from the community who gives us so much support. It was a very warm reception and really felt like the community was accepting and validating our efforts, which means a lot and definitely helps to re-motivate us to go out and do more,” said Ryan Blackerby, the SIFE team’s 2007-08 president. Blackerby was also a member of the 2006-07 World Cup team.

The SIFE team’s photo appeared last fall on thousands of boxes of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes sold in a limited edition run at Wal-Mart super centers.
“…for the first time, the SIFE team put Riverside on a Kellogg’s Corn Flakes box,” Loveridge quipped during the Jan. 24 affair at the convention center.

La Sierra’s President Emeritus Larry Geraty and former Riverside chamber of commerce board chairman gave the convocation for the State of the City event. Wiseby and Geraty are current members of the Riverside chamber’s board.

Students In Free Enterprise, or SIFE, is a Springfield, Mo. organization formed by international business and higher education partnerships. Its university-based teams around the globe focus on empowering disadvantaged communities while providing students opportunities to hone skills.

SIFE has 1,400 programs underway in 48 countries. Student teams create annual reports and presentations for national and world competitions. Chief executive officers from major corporations serve as judges and critique teams on the effectiveness and impact of their work.

The teams’ projects must incorporate SIFE's five educational topics: Market economics, success skills, entrepreneurship, financial literacy and business ethics.

PR Contact: Larry Becker
Executive Director of University Relations
La Sierra University
Riverside, California
951.785.2460 (voice)