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West Hartford Entrepreneur Named Connecticut Small Business Person of the Year – We-Ha | West Hartford News

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West Hartford Entrepreneur Named Connecticut Small Business Person of the Year – We-Ha | West Hartford News


Derek Ezovski, president of Outsourced Risk Management Solutions (ORMS) of West Hartford, has been named Connecticut Small Business Person of the Year.

ORMS President Derek Ezovski has been named Connecticut’s Small Business Person of the Year. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

 

By Ronni Newton

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West Hartford entrepreneur Derek Ezovski, who launched his own company, Outsourced Risk Management Solutions (ORMS), after recognizing an important need in the lending process that few were equipped to easily and efficiently address, has been recognized by the SBA Connecticut District Office as Connecticut National Small Business Person of the Year.

Small Business Administration District Director Catherine Marx joined Ezovski and West Hartford Mayor Shari Cantor, CT DECD Project Manager Sue Decima, West Hartford Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Chris Conway, and other officials as well as family, friends, and colleagues at a celebration at the ORMS office at 7 South Main Street on April 9.

ORMS President Derek Ezovski. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

“It’s a very niche part of the business, but it’s a very important part of what goes into a loan and making sure it gets done,” said Ezovski about ORMS’s role in performing environmental due diligence, including Phase I reports, for commercial real estate lenders. “We work with a lot of SBA lenders that have to get loans out to small businesses that don’t have a lot of knowledge of how to do it alone.”

Marx said “National Small Business Week” is the SBA’s favorite time of year. “This is a moment when we get to pause and recognize and celebrate our innovators, our job creators, and the entrepreneurs who shop up every day – every single day – to invest in our communities. They are the ones weaving the fabrics of our main streets – and our South Main Streets [where ORMS is physically located] – strengthening our neighborhoods and driving our economy forward.”

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SBA District Director Catherine Marx. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Marx noted that Ezovski’s journey truly embodies that spirit of entrepreneurship, using his expertise in real estate and environmental risk to develop an understanding of the field, and then taking a risk to grow a business that supports the success of others. “This year’s Small Business Person of the Year has grown ORMS into a national service provider that is integral to the small business ecosystem, a testament to his perseverance, dedication, and honed expertise. This has created jobs within ORMS and for hundreds of small businesses that rely on his service. His work plays a vital role in powering the American Dream for so many,” she said, adding that it doesn’t happen overnight.

“It takes wisdom, it takes resilience, and it takes commitment to excellence,” Marx said. Through ORMS, a ripple effect has been created that assists SBA lenders in properly evaluating risk, “giving them the confidence to say yes to projects and loans that otherwise might stall. And with every yes, it means another business opens its doors, it means another business expands their operations, and it creates jobs.”

Mayor Shari Cantor delivers a proclamation to ORMS President Derek Ezovski. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Cantor, whose husband built a small business from scratch, noted that she understands the hours and hours of work involved to reach a level of success. She thanked Ezovski for his contributions, and also thanked West Hartford’s town manager and economic development division for working so hard to support small businesses.

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Cantor presented Ezovski and ORMS with a proclamation honoring National Small Business Week and his being named Small Business Person of the Year.

CT DECD Project Manager Sue Decima with ORMS President Derek Ezovski. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Decima noted that in West Hartford, DECD has provided 18 loans for a total of $3.1 million through the Small Business Boost Fund – some of that lending assisted by the work of Ezovski and ORMS.

Conway said that when people think about West Hartford Center “they see the restaurants, they see the shops, they see the coffee. I don’t think enough people look up and know about the really cool, innovative, creative, hard work that goes on in all of these spaces up here,” he said of the ORMS second floor suite, above Blue Elephant Trail on South Main Street.

West Hartford Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Chris Conway congratulates ORMS President Derek Ezovski. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

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Ezovski said it’s hard to explain what they do – “which is actually the whole reason why our business is so important for small businesses.” When a small business owner is buying a piece of property it may be the only time they buy a piece of property other than their home, but hearing they need an expensive appraisal can be daunting. “So we started this company to try to help the lenders with a piece of the puzzle that they weren’t really experts in.”

ORMS President Derek Ezovski has been named Connecticut’s Small Business Person of the Year. Pictured with SBA District Director Catherine Marx. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

Times were tough, and very challenging, when he started the company in 2009, Ezovski said, but they now have 25 people across the country.

“This has been a really big honor,” Ezovski said. Their team is committed to being part of the program, to supporting the American dream, he said.

The CBIA will hold an event in conjunction with the SBA at the Bristol Events Center, in Bristol, CT, on May 6, celebrating all of the 2026 Small Business Week award winners from Connecticut. To attend, register here: National Small Business Week 2026 – CBIA.

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ORMS President Derek Ezovski has been named Connecticut’s Small Business Person of the Year. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

ORMS President Derek Ezovski has been named Connecticut’s Small Business Person of the Year. Photo credit: Ronni Newton

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Percy Steinhart, Creator of the $1,000-Velvet-Slipper Brand Stubbs & Wootton, Restored This Connecticut Home

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Percy Steinhart, Creator of the ,000-Velvet-Slipper Brand Stubbs & Wootton, Restored This Connecticut Home


The Federal-style home of late fashion tastemaker Percy Steinhart in Litchfield, Connecticut, has come to market asking $3.9 million. 

Steinhart, whose full name was Percival P. Steinhart III, founded the Palm Beach, Florida-based footwear brand Stubbs & Wootton, known for its velvet slippers, which have been worn by kings and pop stars. The boutique’s classic smoking slippers range from $625 to $1200, and come in a range of whimsical embroidered varieties. 

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Steinhart restored and designed the nearly 4-acre Connecticut estate himself, according to listing agents Heather Croner and Patricia McNamee of William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty, who listed the home Wednesday. 

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“It needed every bit of attention, which he gave it,” Croner said. “It’s so beautiful now; big spacious rooms, all in lovely proportion and beautifully decorated.”

The main house dates to 1874 and spans 6,641 square feet across two stories, with white siding, charming bay windows, multiple fireplaces, stained glass above the entrance and period embellishments. A welcoming entry hall leads to an elegant living room and corner dining room, the modern kitchen has a large island and breakfast nook, while a library steps down to a garden room surrounded by French doors. 

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The house bears evidence of Steinhart’s insouciant style, with color-drenched rooms, patterned wallpapers as well as the striking two-tone wooden flooring in the library, which is original to the house. “He was a design maven, altogether,” said Croner. “Everywhere you look, every inch shows his sense of design.”

There is also a matching white pool house with two sets of French doors added by Steinhart, which opens onto a flagstone pool deck, and a converted carriage house with green barn doors. Combined, there are a total of seven bedrooms. 

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The grounds also include a greenhouse, an outdoor kitchen, a croquet lawn and a terraced garden with multiple levels. 

Steinhart purchased the house for $2.6 million in 2022, property records show. He had sold another house on the block the year before for $1.8 million, more than double what he paid for it in 2013. He died in November 2025 at age 76. 

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Steinhart was born in Cuba to a prestigious family of bankers and businessmen, and founded Stubbs & Wootton in 1990. Fans of the footwear include Lady Gaga, King Juan Carlos I of Spain and Anne Hathaway, who was photographed wearing them on the set of the recently released “The Devil Wears Prada 2,” according to Steinhart’s obituary in The Wall Street Journal.

His brother, Frank Steinhart, who now runs the company, could not immediately be reached for comment. 

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Syracuse is the first P4 offer for Connecticut DB: ‘I’m grateful’

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Syracuse is the first P4 offer for Connecticut DB: ‘I’m grateful’


2028 defensive back Ryan Sims is a quick rising prospect from Suffield (CT) Academy. 

He’s been hearing from schools like Rutgers, Penn State, Boston College and Massachusetts, and has also started receiving offers.

His first came from Connecticut in January, followed by Rhode Island in April. On April 11, he hit another milestone when the Orange offered for his first Power 4 offer. 

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“I really enjoyed my visit,” Sims said to The Juice Online. “I’m very grateful for the Syracuse offer.”

Sims was offered during his trip to Central New York

The offer came during his visit to Syracuse for its spring game on April 11.

During his visit, he got to see campus, tour the facilities and meet with the coaching staff. One coach he spent the most time with was Stack Williams, who extended him the offer.

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“I really liked coach Stack,” Sims said. “I appreciated how he took time to connect with everyone who was visiting regardless of what point they are in their recruiting process with Syracuse.”

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They talked about D.A.R.T. (detailed, accountable, relentless, tough), the mantra that head coach Fran Brown has instilled in the program since he arrived at Syracuse two seasons ago. 

Sims likes the culture at Syracuse

Sims also connected with Williams on how Syracuse develops its players to compete in the ACC and also helps them to prepare for the professional ranks after that.

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Among the players that Brown has coached since arriving at SU include defensive backs Justin Barrons (Dallas Cowboys), Alijah Clark (Dallas), Clarence Lewis (Dallas) and Isaiah Johnson (Miami Dolphins).

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“I love the program overall and what it stands for and the culture around it,” Sims said. “Coach Stack and I got to talk more on a personal level.”

Sims is predicting a breakout 2026 season

Suffield struggled in the 2025 season, going just 1-8. But Sims has vowed a different outcome this fall.

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“2025 was an adjustment season,” Sims said. “My true breakout season will be this junior year. I felt I hesitated and could’ve just stopped holding back and made way more plays.”

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Sims said he’s the kind of defensive back that can be out on an island and continue to make plays.

“I am a long, patient DB,” Sims said. “I love to play the ball and make quarterbacks not want to throw my way.”

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Popular CT rideshare pilot program gets millions in upcoming budget

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Popular CT rideshare pilot program gets millions in upcoming budget


Connecticut lawmakers will include $10.5 million for the state’s microtransit pilot program as part of the state’s upcoming budget, that’s according to State Sen. Christine Cohen, who is chair of the Transportation Committee.

“This $10.5 million provides programming in different areas across the state that really allow folks to have their independence, to travel freely to social activities, to doctors appointments, to and from work and so much more,” Cohen said.

The program, which started in 2024, has proven to be popular throughout the state, according to Cohen. The pilot program offered in 18 towns and cities across the state, operates much like Lyft and Uber, where residents can book rides with various contractors.

Transit advocates like Cohen hope the program may be expanded statewide.

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They say it meets an urgent need, as many municipalities in Connecticut lack comprehensive mass transit coverage.

“My goal would really be to see these micro transit options in towns in all 169 towns eventually, so that even our most remote settings have options with respect to public transportation,” Cohen said.

Jeremy Tillinger, the director of policy at Via, a rideshare contractor with the pilot program, spoke about the service in late April. Tillinger said the program is already bringing in positive results.

“At a time when affordability and the rising cost of gas prices is on everybody’s minds, micro transit is providing an innovative, cost efficient solution for many,” Tillinger said.

Peggy Lyons, the First Selectwoman of Madison, said many of her residents want the program to continue.

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Lyons said about 25,000 rides were booked for the program running in Madison, Guilford, Middletown and East Hampton last year.

“This is kind of filling in that gap and just within the way our state is structured, I think a lot of people are starting to depend on this, and they would hate to see it go,” Lyons said.





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