Meninak member Richard Hadden (left) introduced Breaking Ground Contracting founder Marry Tappouni (middle) during the organization’s recent meeting. Tappouni was named the Small Business Administration’s “Florida Small Business Person of the Year” for 2009, with her story being quite educational said Meninak President Bunky Johnson (right).
Meninak breaks bread with ground breaker
12/11/2009
by David Chapman Staff Writer
For Mary Tappouni, there really is no “going green” – she’s been there, done that.
With the company Breaking Ground Contracting , the Small Business Administration’s “Florida Small Business Person of the Year” for 2009 hasn’t used the philosophy to simply make a dollar, but instead the movement is something she truly believes in for the community.
Tappouni spoke to the Meninak Club of Jacksonville during its recent meeting and used the time to discuss her business beliefs, story and educational outreach to more than 70 members of the organization.
“Yes, I’m a contractor but I care about a sustainable future,” said Tappouni. “Sustainable design is for everyone.”
She described green building as “people, profit, planning” and said during the infancy of her business, many people – even those she worked around and admired – told her green building was a fad.
“You can be an environmentalist and a developer,” she said. “They don’t have to be mutually exclusive.”
Originally, she went away from the labels associated with being a woman-owned business but now embraces the idea. Breaking Ground Contracting recently celebrated its 12th anniversary and currently has 13 employees, she said, while alluding to the growing competitive marketplace.
While Jacksonville, and Florida in general, has lagged when it comes to embracing the concept, she’s seen extreme growth in the last year-and-half. She’s grown the company, too.
Breaking Ground Education Services, the newly created division, helps educate contractors, architects, developers and others who want to learn about the green building practice.
“Everything with green building starts with education,” she said.
Tappouni’s story left one Meninak member, who works in a related field, impressed.
“She’s very good at what she does,” said architect Ted Pappas. “She’s just an original ... I think it’s great to see someone who cares do well and make a difference.”
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